This summer, Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman made a big move when he acquired relatively inexperienced goaltender Ville Husso from the St. Louis Blues and signed the 27 year old netminder to a 3 year contract worth $14.5 million, working out to an average annual value and salary cap hit of $4.75 million per season.

While we're still a long ways away from knowing whether or not Husso will be able to deliver on the promise he showed when backstopping the St. Louis Blues for 40 games last season, he is already winning over the hearts and minds of fans in Detroit off the ice. He has done so by showing that he has a tremendous amount of respect for those that have come before him, and he has shown that most recently with his new goalie mask.

Obviously coming to Detroit meant that Husso would need a new goalie mask for the upcoming National Hockey League season and on Saturday the Red Wings released a short video in which Husso describes his newest piece of equipment. In the video Husso reveals that it was his desire to pay tribute to former Red Wings goaltender Mike Vernon, and he has done just that.

As you will see in the video, much of Husso's design was inspired by Vernon's own choice of design back when he played in Detroit from 1994 until he was traded to the San Jose Sharks in 1997.