One former St. Louis Blues player was unable to convert his PTO into a full NHL contract, while another alumni has been successful in converting his try-out into a permanent NHL contract.
Czech forward Jakub Vrana attended the Washington Capitals training camp on a PTO, and the team has signed him to a one-year contract worth $775,000 on a one-way deal.
Vrana, 28, played 41 games for the Blues franchise throughout the last two seasons. The team traded for the skilled winger on Mar. 3, 2023, in exchange for forward prospect Dylan McLaughlin and a seventh-round draft pick in 2025.
He seemed to have rediscovered his scoring touch when he first came to the Blues, scoring 10 goals in 20 games before the conclusion of the 2022-23 season.
Unfortunately, his strong play did not carry over into 2023-24 despite being named to the team’s opening night roster. Jakub spent lots of time in the press box as a healthy scratch last season with the team, playing only 21 games and recording two goals and six points.
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He was, however, a top-line scorer in the AHL for the Springfield Thunderbirds, scoring 16 goals and 36 points in 42 games.
Now, the 28-year-old winger returns to the city where his career started, Washington.
The Capitals hope they can get the goal-scoring skilled forward who scored 49 goals and 99 points in 151 games from 2018 to 2020, and give them some scoring depth deep in their lineup in the upcoming season.
The talent is there, but Vrana’s biggest struggles have been his consistency and work ethic without the puck. He needs those two areas in his game to iron out if he wants to be a full-time NHL player.
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