The Vancouver Canucks have released forward Sammy Blais from his professional tryout contract (PTO). General manager Patrik Allvin made the announcement late Monday morning.

The Canucks signed Blais to an AHL contract in late August, that included an invite to training camp. Following his release from the PTO, Blais will report to Abbotsford Canucks training camp and prepare to play the year down in the AHL unless another NHL team offers him a contract.

Blais, 28, came in with high hopes of cracking the Canucks’  NHL roster, where bottom six jobs looked to be up for grabs.  The Canucks seemed to have equally high hopes for Blais as well heading into camp.

“He’s an experienced guy, played games on a contending team in St Louis a couple of years ago,” GM Patrik Allvin said ahead of training camp. “It’s a great opportunity for him. I think what he contributes to on the ice is the way we want to play. We want to be hard to play against and he is a checker. So there is, there’s an opportunity for him.”

Unfortunately, Blais never quite got going and struggled to show off his speedy in your face style of play that he’s known for. Since winning a Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues in 2019, Blais has found himself dealing with a variety of injury issues and has struggled to produce consistently.

Blais shared ahead of this year’s camp that this is the best he’s felt in a while after tearing his ACL two and a half years ago.

“This summer was pretty much like the first summer where I really felt good. I tore my ACL two and a half years ago, was a pretty tough break for me. When I got traded to the [New York] Rangers, I think I was playing good when I got hurt, and coming back from that, that injury was pretty hard, but now I feel good and I feel confident on the ice.”

Still relatively young at 28 years old, Blais now heads to the AHL with the goal of earning himself an NHL contract down the road. Through 257 NHL games, Blais has tallied 27 goals and 44 assists while logging 122 penalty minutes.