Washington Capitals Should Not Trade Jakub Vrana
The Capitals’ top prospect is posting great numbers in the American Hockey League after suffering a major injury. His performance will put him on the radar of many teams around the league.
The Washington Capitals aren’t among the teams with the deepest prospect pools in the National Hockey League, but what they do have is a handful of players with high-end talent. While two of those players are defensemen (Madison Bowey, Connor Carrick), the Caps have a lone prospect forward with game-breaking potential in Jakub Vrana.
Just over a week ago, we analyzed Vrana as the number one prospect in the Washington Capitals’ system. After recently returning from a long-term injury, Vrana’s production with the Hershey Bears has absolutely exploded. He was named the AHL Player of the Week on Monday after scoring three goals and adding four assists in just three weekend games. Their next contest was on Wednesday night versus the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, where Vrana continued to stay hot with three points (two goals and an assist).
MORE CAPITALS: Brad Boyes, Potential Caps Trade Target?
To sum that up, in the past week, the soon to be 20-year-old has five goals and five assists in four games. While this is a small sample size, it is a testament to the high skill level that Vrana possesses, and the potential that he is only beginning to scratch the surface of.
When the Capitals drafted Vrana at 13th overall in the 2014 NHL draft, they passed over some other very talented young players in what some viewed as a reach of a pick. Anybody that questioned that draft pick is probably now very much on board with Vrana as the top prospect in the organization.
More from Stars and Sticks
- Alex Ovechkin will score 50 goals in 2023-24
- It’s time for Capitals fans to chill out with the Anthony Mantha hate
- The Capitals Have Several Potentially Bad Contracts
- Top 3 Capitals prospects to watch at Rookie Camp
- Top 3 undrafted invites to watch at Capitals Rookie Camp
It isn’t every day that forwards that show as much potential as Jakub Vrana come along, so it naturally grabs that attention of other teams around the league. Coincidentally, the Washington Capitals are off to one of the best starts this season in not just team history but league history as well.
The team has made it clear that they are going all in this season. That could mean they go after one more big name at this year’s trade deadline to truly put their roster over the top in pursuit of the franchise’s first ever Stanley Cup. The Capitals know that they will have to give up something good if they want to receive that type of big time player, if they so choose to pursue one.
That player the team “gives up” should not be Jakub Vrana. It is yet undetermined if the Washington Capitals actually will pull off a blockbuster deal at the deadline, but there really is no circumstance that they should entertain the idea of trading their top prospect.
As Alex Ovechkin ages, it is all the more important to surround him with young and talented players moving forward. Ovechkin will not be able to score 50 goals forever, so it is essential that they find a way to develop several young goal scorers to pick up the slack. Two of those players are already with the Washington Capitals in Andre Burakovsky and Evgeny Kuznetsov.
When the Caps signed Justin Williams and traded for T.J. Oshie this offseason, it created a two-year window that will coincide with possibly the best teams that the Washington Capitals have ever iced. That “two-year” aspect is not an accident.
More from Capitals News
- Breaking down the Rookie Camp roster
- Hear what Magic Johnson said about Alex Ovechkin
- Capitals announce Rookie Camp schedule
- Breaking down the 2023-24 Capitals national TV schedule
- Capitals Alumni Weekend is coming back
While Oshie will still be just over 30 by the end of his deal, Williams will likely be slowing down (though he hasn’t shown signs of that yet) and we won’t know until the end of those two years whether or not he will be in Washington for an extended time.
Ironically, a young scorer like Vrana will likely be ready for top-six duties in two years if he continues his current trajectory. The young forward might even battle for a roster spot as soon as next year if Jason Chimera doesn’t return to the club.
Refocusing on the trade deadline, there is nothing wrong with the Capitals looking to do everything they can to assemble the best team they can. But with the incredible depth they possess and the very few holes they show, it simply is not worth moving your top prospect for a player such as Andrew Ladd who might not even slot into the Caps’ current top-six. There just isn’t a need for it.
More capitals: Potential 2016 NHL Trade Deadline Sellers
Jakub Vrana should be, and likely is, a big part of the Washington Capitals future. While no player should ever be untouchable, there is not a player worth going after (for a variety of reasons) that should require Washington to part with Vrana.