Our Washington Capitals report card series continues with Jakub Vrana.
Jakub Vrana has proven yet again that the Washington Capitals made a good choice with the 13th pick in the 2014 NHL Draft. In his third full season in the big leagues, Vrana has made another step toward being a top-six forward on any team in the league.
In the 2019-20 season, Vrana had career highs in goals and assists. He was able to put up 25 goals and 27 assists in just 69 games in the Covid-19 shortened season.
Vrana has improved every single season since entering the NHL in 2016. In 2018-19, Vrana had 47 points in a full 82 game season. This year he was able to have five more points in 13 fewer games showing how he has made the jump from role player with the occasional flash of offensive talent.
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Vrana was able to do all this while seeing less ice time than the top players, only averaging around 15 minutes of ice time each game. That’s what you get when you are below Alex Ovechkin on the depth chart.
Vrana was able to make Washington’s second power-play unit a force to be reckoned with as well. He posted 12 power-play points, setting up his teammates with 11 assists. He has stepped into the role to be the first guy to step into the top unit whenever they are in need.
With a new coach coming into Washington it will be exciting to see how he utilizes Vrana’s talent. Peter Laviolette has been known to develop young talent well and with Vrana already improving the way he has been, it is exciting to think about what he could do next season.
That being said you have to consider his performance in this year’s playoffs. Vrana had zero points in all 8 games the Capitals played in the bubble and had a -7 plus/minus. Vrana also missed multiple key breakaway attempts and struggled to convert offensive chances throughout the postseason. This is not the first time Vrana has had playoff struggles as he went pointless in seven games against Carolina the year before. This is a concern but definitely does not take away from the fantastic regular season he had this year.
Grade A-: There is no debate that Vrana had a great season and is showing great promise as an offensive threat for this Capitals team. He had the best season of his career so far and was crucial to the Capitals success during the regular season. He possibly could have secured an A but his very disappointing performance in the playoffs cannot be overlooked. Maybe next year he and Oshie can actually play in the All-Star game together.