Red Wings Owe Ducks Huge Favor After Recent Trade

The Detroit Red Wings owe the Anaheim Ducks a huge favor after a recent trade.

Dec 1, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Red Wings goaltender Ville Husso (35) makes a save in the third period against the Vancouver Canucks at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images / Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

The Anaheim Ducks went against the grain with their recent deal with the Detroit Red Wings. In an age when general managers are more ruthless than ever, the Ducks did the Wings a huge favor by acquiring goalie Ville Husso for future considerations.

On paper, the deal is awful for the Ducks and impactful for the Red Wings. Husso's hit at the NHL level is nearly $5 million, and with him reporting to the American Hockey League, his cap hit will be around $3.5 million.

Why on earth would the Ducks make this deal? It not only hurts their team in the interim, but it also massively assists another organization.

If you ask NHL insider Frank Seravalli, it's a move to strengthen the Ducks' AHL roster for their playoff run. He took to his X account to pitch his theory that this move was solely to bolster their postseason odds for their minor-league affiliate.

There's no dot to connect between Ville Husso trade to Anaheim and a potential John Gibson trade.

In AHL San Diego, Calle Clang is out month-to-month and Oscar Dansk is only other goalie with experience. They want San Diego to make playoffs.

Gibson expected back this week.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 25, 2025

Respectfully, that makes no sense. Teams always make trades to bolster their AHL lineups, and they never make ones this lopsided. In fact, the swapping of AHL players is relatively common, with five separate trades involving solely AHL players taking place since the calendar flipped to 2025.

There are also plenty of veteran goalies in the AHL that could help the San Diego Gulls make the postseason. The American Hockey League is littered with talented netminders. Why not go after any of those goalies who aren't owed any money for the rest of the year?

The other glaring issue with Seravalli's stab in the dark is that the Gulls aren't a good team this year. They are 19-24-5, putting them in second-to-last place in the Pacific Division. How, exactly, does a goalie with a career goals-against average of 3.05 get them into the postseason?

The only possible reason is that this was one of those - help me now, we help you later, types of deals. By dumping Husso's contract, the Red Wings have an influx of salary cap space in advance of the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline. Detroit currently occupies the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference and is trying to end a playoff drought.

So, perhaps the Ducks were willing to take on a disproportionate salary for a goalie who helps their minor-league team improve. Anaheim is, after all, still rebuilding toward the future. But maybe, just maybe, the Ducks did the Red Wings a huge favor by acquiring Husso in exchange for nothing. And maybe the Wings are willing to repay the favor down the road. Don't be surprised when that comes to fruition in the near future.

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