Does Jakub Vrana clearing WAIVERS prove there is a BIG problem in the NHL?

PUBLICATION

Ryan
January 4, 2023 (7:05 PM)

SHARE THIS STORY

Yesterday we got the shocking announcement that the Detroit Red Wings had put Jakub Vrana on waivers.

Vrana was acquired by the Red Wings from the Washington Capitals with Richard Panik, round 1 pick in the 2021 draft and round 2 pick in the 2022 draft in exchange for Anthony Mantha.

The Czech sniper since 2018 has been one of the most efficient even strength goal scorers when it comes to efficiency. He has scored 20+ goals twice in his career, and has been on pace for much more on multiple occasions but suffered injuries.

UNREAL angle on this Jakub Vrana goal 😱 pic.twitter.com/EhmGLgMkz1� ESPN (@espn) March 11, 2022

So this brings us to question, why would 31 teams pass on a 26 year old capable of scoring 30+ goals?

It's not very often you see a player of this age and calibre available for free and no one jump on it. Vrana just finished a stint in the NHLPA players assistance program, but having cleared the program, hopefully his issues are behind him, but would this be enough for teams to not put a claim on him?

Vrana has two years remaining on a contract that carries a cap hit of $5,250,000, which is very reasonable for what he brings to the table, but here is the issue. Due to the flat cap and rising salaries, only 6 teams out of 31 had the cap space to even consider putting a claim on him. Those teams being the Ottawa Senators, Minnesota Wild, Chicago Blackhawks, Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres and Arizona Coyotes.

Bringing in Vrana definitely improves a roster, so it would affect what some of these teams are looking to accomplish, but a team like Ottawa, Minnesota or Buffalo you would have expected to jump all over him. But again, with the cap not rising and RFA's and UFA's contracts continuing to grow, teams are too worried to take the chance.

pumped for more Jakub Vrana this season. 21 goals in just 37 games since coming to the Red Wings. Look how freakin fast the puck is on and off his stick on some of these shots pic.twitter.com/qWczd3bB1X� Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) October 12, 2022