“Experience is something you don't get until just after you
need it.”
-- Steven Wright
The Washington Capitals have a good record over the years
drafting, developing, and employing goal-scoring wingers from Eastern
Europe. Peter Bondra (born in what is
now Ukraine), Alexander Semin (Russia), and Alex Ovechkin (Russia) rank second,
fifth, and first, respectively, on the club’s all-time goals scored list. Capitals Nation hopes that Jakub Vrana (Czech
Republic) is next in line to leave his place among the goal scoring leaders in
team history.
But first, Vrana has to complete his rookie season. Although he is just 21 years old, Vrana has
had a rich and full development between representing the Czech Republic on the
international stage, playing with Linköpings HC in Sweden, and then with the
Hershey Bears of the AHL over parts of the last three seasons. Last season, Vrana got his first taste of NHL
action, dressing for 21 games with the Caps in two call-ups last season.
As debuts go, it was not electrifying, but it did provide
the occasional glimpse of what the Caps might have in the young winger. Vrana scored three goals in those 21 games,
all of them on power plays, and two of them of the game-winning variety.
That was the good.
But there were disturbing signs as well.
Upon returning to the Bears after his second call-up with the Caps,
Vrana went 5-5-10, plus-5, in 13 games to end the regular season. The postseason was another matter,
though. In the opening round against the
Lehigh Valley Phantoms, he was without a point in Games 1-3, and he recorded only
two shots on goal. The lack of offensive
contribution mattered, even as the Bears held a 2-1 lead after those three
games, since the team managed only seven goals in the three games, five of them
in Game 1.
Vrana was benched for Games 4 and 5 as the Bears eked out a
first round win.
But the pattern for Vrana reappeared in Round 2 against the Providence Bruins –
no points in the first three games of the series and a benching. He sat for Games 4-6 before taking the ice in
a decisive Game 7 that the Bears lost, 4-2.
As it turned out, Vrana went without a point in seven postseason games
and recorded only three shots on goal.
That the Bears managed only 25 goals made his lack of contribution that
much more disappointing.
Odd Vrana Fact… Jakub Vrana did not record a point in any
game in which he skated more than 11 minutes last season (0-for-10). He was 2-2-4 in seven games in which he skated less than ten
minutes.
Fearless’ Take…
Despite that disappointing 2017 postseason at Hershey, Vrana
did post 35 goals in 88 regular season games with the Bears over parts of three
seasons. In 187 games in various
settings with Linköpings, he recorded 86 goals.
He does have a knack for finding the back of the net.
Cheerless’ Take…
If anything, Vrana’s two stretches with the Caps last season
revealed things he needs to improve.
Strangely, one of them might be shooting, or at least getting shots on
net. Eight times in 21 games he did not
record a shot on goal, although averaging just around 11 minutes a game in
those contests might have played a role.
His shots tapered off with time, too. He had 21 shots on goal in his first call-up of 12 games, but he had only 11 shots in nine games in his second call-up, and in five of those games (four of his last five) he had no shots on goal.
Potential Milestones to Reach in 2017-2018:
- 100 games (currently has 21)
The Big Question… Can Jakub Vrana be the next version of a
renowned Capitals sniper?
Jakub Vrana has perhaps more potential than any prospect in
the Capitals’ system. He is, at the
moment, the top under-25 player in the system yet to secure a spot on the
parent roster.
It is always an iffy proposition to attach the term “next [fill-in-the-blank
player]” to a player with a skill set such as Vrana’s. However, there does seem to be a clear
parallel with him in terms of skill set and developmental arc. Consider that in 1990-1991 the Caps had a 21-year
old with a profile as a goal scorer (86 goals in 129 games with VSZ Kosice in
Europe in three years before joining the Caps) who could skate like the
wind. He had 12 goals in 54 games of his
rookie season, four of them power play goals.
He did, though have defensive issues as he familiarized himself with the
North American game, going minus-10 in his rookie season (his worst until he
was a minus-17 with the Caps in his 14th and last season with the
club).
Vrana is a 21-year old who has already demonstrated an
ability to score goals both in European hockey and in the highest pro level
under the NHL. He, like the player who
came before him, is a left-handed shot and is of similar size. He would appear to have issues to work
through, but he also appears to have the skill set to be a top-notch goal
scorer at the NHL level.
Peter Bondra became the most prolific goal scorer in team
history (since eclipsed) while playing much of his career with the club in the “dead
puck” era. Jakub Vrana, who will wear
the number “13,” while his predecessor wore the number “12,” might not reach
such lofty goal totals as Bondra, but the similarities in style of play are
intriguing enough to wonder if achieving such goals are possible. It makes watching his rookie season with the
Caps one of the interesting subplots of the season, to see whether in fact
those perceived similarities express themselves in performance.
In the end…
Whatever Jakub Vrana’s potential as a goal scorer, it would
be a stretch to think of him as a leader in that statistic on this team, this
season. Even rookie goal scorers have an
apprenticeship to serve. As noted, Peter
Bondra scored 12 goals in 54 game of his rookie season, but then later recorded
four 40-plus goal seasons, twice reaching the 52-goal mark. Alexander Semin (the only other 13th
overall draft pick in Caps history apart from Vrana) scored 10 goals in 52
games of his rookie season before topping 30 goals three times and hitting the
40-goal mark once. Sure, Mike Gartner
recorded 36 goals in his first year with the Caps, but he had a year in the
World Hockey Association before joining the Caps, and that was a different,
more freewheeling era. And there is Alex
Ovechkin with his 52-goal rookie season, but his is the freakish outlier, one
of only five player in NHL history to record more than 50 goals in their rookie
season.
Jakub Vrana is likely to have a “rookie” season – stretches of
production that hints at his potential sprinkled with stretches in which he
disappears and perhaps frustrates his coaches (as skilled players sometimes do
with their lack of focus in the defensive end).
And as with rookies, the important thing to watch for is the kind of
player he is in March and April compared to the one he might be in October and
November. It is experience he needs,
although the team could benefit from his getting it before he needs it…in the
spring.
Projection: 69 games, 12-14-26, plus-5
Photo: Patrick Smith/Getty Images North America
