The NHL announced on Wednesday evening that former Washington Capitals forward Jakub Vrána has been placed in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program.
FROM THE NHL
The National Hockey League Players’ Association and National Hockey League announced today that forward Jakub Vrana of the Detroit Red Wings will be unavailable to his Club for an indefinite period while he receives care from the player assistance program of the NHL and NHLPA.
Under the terms of the joint program, Vrana will continue to be paid while receiving treatment. He will return to the Club when cleared for on-ice competition by the program administrators.
Vrana’s care will be administered pursuant to the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program.
The NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program was created in 1996 to help NHL players and their families deal with substance abuse, mental health, and other personal challenges.
Vrana didn’t play Monday against Los Angeles and didn’t participate in Tuesday’s practice (the team had the day off Wednesday) due to what the Wings called “personal reasons.”
Tyler Bertuzzi (upper body) will be out 4-6 weeks. Jakub Vrana (personal reasons) will be unavailable tonight.
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) October 17, 2022
The team removed Vrána from their active roster earlier in the day on Wednesday.
Vrana played over 11 minutes in Saturday’s 5-2 victory in New Jersey, scoring his first goal of the season against best-friend Vitek Vanecek.
V GOES TOP 🧀! pic.twitter.com/HmNS1hf1um
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) October 16, 2022
Vrana has only played 39 games since arriving at the trade deadline in April 2021, in the deal that sent Anthony Mantha to Washington. He missed the first 56 games of last season due to shoulder surgery after sustaining an injury within the first 10 minutes of training camp. However, in those 39 games as a Red Wing, Vrana has scored 22 goals with 10 assists.
We don’t want to speculate what specifically Vrána is dealing with, but we wish him all the best and a speedy return to the Red Wings and the NHL.
By Jon Sorensen
Thoughts are with you, Jake!
Be strong Jake!
Surprisd to read this as I always thought he was a level headed kid. Goes to show that no one knows what is going on under the surface! Whatever is going on hope that you get a grip on it and resolve the issues Jake! God Bless!
Well said, Steven.
Speedy recovery, Jake!
wow, not good…hope he works out what he needs to work out and gets his life on track
Remembering how much fun he had after the Cup win and how much of a personality he had in general, obviously tough to think of that dampened. Hope he gets the proper help and returns strong for the Red Wings!
One Day at a time Jakub. Prayers coming your way.
Thoughts are with you, Jake. 👊
Hang tough Jacub.
I’m assuming he got hooked on pain killers after surgery
Don’t make an ass out of you and me.
Best of luck to you Jake with whatever you are dealing with!! Rehab worked for me here 32 years later with a big thanks to NIH and their rehab program.
Wishing him all the best. Stay strong, Jake ❤️