The Blues finally have their answer: Vladimir Sobotka is not coming back to the NHL in 2015-16.
Sobotka's decision to play in Russia's Kontinental Hockey League for a second straight season was recently confirmed to Blues general manager Doug Armstrong by Sobotka's agent, Petr Svoboda.
Sobotka, 27, will remain on the Blues' reserve-suspended list.
The confirmation ends months of uncertainty surrounding the forward's plans.
Sobotka, who signed a three-year, $12 million-plus contract with Avangard Omsk of the KHL last offseason, had two weeks following the IIHF World Championships in May to exercise an "out" clause in the contract and return to the NHL.