Another Turn of Events For Blues Forward Jakub Vrana

The St. Louis Blues apparently had told forward Jakub Vrana on Monday morning that he would be going on waivers. It never happened, as trade discussions for the player ramped up. But nothing came to fruition, and now on Tuesday, the speedy winger has officially been placed on waivers.

Placed on NHL waivers today: Jakub Vrana (STL).

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) December 12, 2023

Vrana's agent, JP Barry, felt that a trade could be imminent on Monday, as he said the Blues were "in discussions with teams before the waiver process." Now it remains to be seen if one of those clubs is ready to take on a $5.25M cap hit and put in a waiver claim. That seems highly unlikely, however, and in fact, it's reasonable to suggest that the Blues' unwillingness to retain enough of that hefty salary was what put the kibosh on any potential deal.

Vrana, 27, is a former first-round pick (13th overall in the 2014 Draft), and hits unrestricted free agency at the end of the season. 

More of a goal-scorer than a playmaker, he's able to create his own offense, but this year, the shots simply haven't been finding their mark, as evidenced by his woeful 4.9% shot percentage, with 41 shots on goal in 19 games, and just two goals and six points.

Last year, when he arrived in St. Louis, everything was working, as he popped 10 goals in 20 games with the Blues.

Insider Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff noted, "I think Vrana is a guy that has hit a wall at this point in his career. There was a lot of hope after he came over to the Blues last year. You’re thinking ‘this guy has a great goal scoring-per-60-minute number throughout the course of his career’. If he can get the off-ice portion of himself on track, maybe this is someone that can have a fresh start."