Former Edmonton Oiler Power Forward Abruptly Cut by the St. Louis Blues

The Blues have released left-winger, and former Oiler and Flame, Milan Lucic, from his professional tryout, according to an announcement made by the team.

He'll nonetheless remain in the organization for now and will report to the AHL's Springfield Thunderbirds, where he will take part in a PTO.

Lucic, age 37, landed a PTO with St. Louis all the way back in August and showed up for his first NHL training camp in roughly two years. He skated in four preseason games for the Blues, scoring one goal and an assist.

He then sustained a lower-body injury that shut him down late in camp, removing any chance he had of converting his PTO into an opening-night roster spot.

St. Louis quietly kept extending Lucic's PTO in 10-day increments, a new rule in the recent CBA extension, while he rehabbed his injury. He's now healthy, but his injury set him back.

Even with the team's 4-7-2 start to the season, though, they didn't see enough out of him to warrant giving Lucic, a 17-year veteran, a look on the fourth line, at least not yet.

Releasing him from his tryout does nothing to preclude the Blues from giving him a contract later on if they like what they see during his return to action in Springfield, but they felt the AHL was a better fit for him to hone his skills at the moment.