NoCupsForCanada
Joined: Dec. 2018
Posts: 544
Likes: 557
This will probably age like milk, but...
Vrana's deal doesn't expire until after next season. Cap flexibility is a huge deal right now. The only teams that currently have the space to claim him without using LTIR are:
Ottawa
Minnesota
Chicago
Anaheim
Buffalo
Arizona
Ottawa has to extend DeBrincat and some other RFAs next year plus Stutzle's extension kicks in then, so they really can't afford his cap hit. Minnesota is stuck in cap hell until 2025 because of the Parise and Suter buyouts, so they're probably out. Chicago is clearly at the beginning of a rebuild, so picking up a guy like him with the idea of winning games makes no sense. Anaheim is in a similar boat, albeit with much more cap space. Buffalo could easily afford him even with extending their RFAs, but they're very deep at forward right now and probably want to let the kids continue to play. And Arizona is playing with an artificially low internal cap, so they aren't going to take on a deal like that.
Whatever happens, I think Yzerman will view this as a win. If he gets claimed, he just cleared a roster spot and 5.2 million off the books for the next 1.5 years without giving up a single asset. If he goes unclaimed, they still have a guy who could potentially be a major contributor as a top six forward if he can get himself back together.
Watch him end up in Toronto