Capitals' Jakub Vrana: Roster spot with Caps won't come easy

Vrana will have to fight hard for an Opening Night roster spot with the Capitals, CSN Mid-Atlantic reports. "He's going to have to earn it," Capitals GM Brian MacLellan said. "We're not going to give it to him. He has the potential to do it but his performance will dictate that."

Analysis:

While it's obvious that every player has to earn the right to play at hockey's highest level, we view this as a warning from MacLellan that he won't be deploying Vrana strictly based on the center's status as the 13th overall pick from the 2014 draft. As noted in the report, prominent forwards in Evgeny Kuznetsov, Andre Burakovsky and Brett Connolly are all due for new contracts as restricted free agents -- not to mention that skilled scoring winger T.J. Oshie could test the open market as an unrestricted free agent -- so there's a lot to be determined before one could realistically expect Vrana to make the big leap. The talented Czech appeared in 21 games for the Capitals this past season, recording three goals and just as many assists, though he was left off the playoff roster. At any rate, his potential alone makes him worth a keeper slot or late-round flier in redraft leagues.