The 26-year-old top-line winger found no taker for his services on the waiver wire, where he was placed Tuesday. He already is on a conditioning stint with the Wings' AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins.
It speaks to how far Vrana has fallen on the Wings' rebuilding depth chart that general manager Steve Yzerman was willing to risk losing a gifted scorer for nothing. But the Wings have not seen much of Vrana since acquiring him at the 2021 trade deadline: He missed 56 games last season recovering from shoulder surgery, and missed two months this season while placed in the players assistance program.