The St. Louis Blues put veteran forward Jonathan Drouin on waivers for a buyout on June 30. Multiple outlets reported this move aims to clear salary cap space for the team. The Blues also issued qualifying offers to a pair of restricted free agents on the same day, one of whom was Drouin. This buyout action cancels the qualifying offer agreement previously made with the forward. North American news sources reported on the transaction. The team did not give a detailed explanation beyond the usual waiver and buyout procedures. Drouin joins the pool of players eligible for other NHL teams to claim without cost before the buyout takes full effect. Payments will be divided over the coming years rather than lumped into a single payment.