Nash sucks and I would much rather have vrana get his top 6 minutes than waste any time playing Nash. He was trash last season and he’s one year older hard pass.

Also Wilson get 3.5-4.5 no less. He averaged .75/Ppg in the playoffs and he’ll finally be playing top 6 minutes. Easily should get 40-50 points.

Also let coleplay be the back up why waste $$$

Also Stephenson isn’t playing?!?!?! Ugh why?!? This isn’t smart you confuse me so much

Nash > Vrana. That improves the caps. Vrana sucks.

Wilson is Grinder. Hyman is his immediate comparable. Has good hands but doesn't use them. Limits how much he earns.

No need to rush a goalie, paying someone who's probably going to retire soon anyway isn't bad especially on a contract like that.

Does it matter? He's a bottom 6 guy rn and if the caps have better players then him, he won't play simple as.

If we go by playoff scoring rates, Burakovsky's 6 points in 138 minutes over ten games, after coming back from surgery are much better than Vrana's 8 points in 275 minutes over 23 games. Wilson, Oshie, and Ovechkin also clearly outscored Vrana, so there aren't any top six minutes available for Vrana even without signing Nash, which is why I keep thinking they use his waiver exemption, but that's taboo on here. Wilson had 15 points, even if they took him 375 minutes of ice time.

Burakovsky, WIlson, and Connolly all got the same even strength points per minute last season, down to the hundredths place, and I think they're all worth 3M per year.. My comps for WIlson at 3 are Matt Martin who hits more and fights more but scores less in limited action at 2.5, and Leo Komarov who hits more and scores more but fights less at 3.0. In another thread someone suggested that Wilson hits so hard that he can take top players out of a playoff series and give the Caps a huge advantage, and I'm like.... Boone Jenner did that to Burakovsky in game two, after Burakovsky played pretty well for 22 mintues in game one. Jenner was coming off a 16 goal season and into February of his thirty goal season when he signed his two year 2.9M contract (https://www.capfriendly.com/players/boone-jenner). Wilson scored 14 goals this year and added 2(?) in the playoffs on the top line. Can he keep improving and score 60 points a year for life? Sure. Why not? Or maybe Stephenson, Burakovsky, and Boyd get to 40 points before him. In the playoffs, he was 6th among all right wings in points, which is great, but he was also 4th among Capitals right wings in goals. In 1st place, Devante Smith-Pelly just re-signed at 1 million for 1 year, which keeps the team together and gives them a chance to contend again, soon. I know Wilson is younger than DSP (by one year) and was drafted higher (by one round) and hasn't bounced around in his career as much....

Tom Wilson has 20 points in 62 career playoff games, for a career playoff average of..... .323 ppg. 8 of them are goals which puts him around .129 gpg, career, in tthe playoffs. https://www.hockey-reference.com/players/w/wilsoto01.html

Devante Smith-Pelly, who signed a 1M contract, has 16 playoff points in 48 playoff games for .333ppg. 13 of them are goals which gives him .270 playoff goals per game, career. https://www.hockey-reference.com/players/s/smithde06.html DSP had two more playoff goals than Wilson this year, scores playoff goals at twice Wilson's rate, and scores playoff points at a slightly higher rate, throughout his career. In two periods on the top line, he didn't produce, but it's entirely possible that both are middle six forwards next year, if Burakovsky finally has his breakout season and claims a top line spot. Do you want to see the Caps pay a middle six winger 4.5M because he hits pretty hard?

My guess is that, with Burakovsky talking about spending this summer working on how to be more consistent, we see BuraKuzy reunited by November, and Burakovsky scores 25 to 30 goals this year. Does that happen on a line with Ovechkin, does Ovechkin reunite with Backstrom and Oshie, or do we see Ovechkin carry Eller and Wilson to new offensive heights? There's a new head coach, there are going to be a couple of new assistant coaches. It's anybody's guess. But if Burakovsky plays like we all keep expecting, Wilson gets a huge contract, and Vrana gets unearned top six time, then paying everybody next summer becomes impossible. Adding Nash as a proven twenty goal scorer and capable 2nd power play contributor (he can play any spot but right point) gives Bura and Vrana an obstance to overcome, to make them really earn all that ice time. If they don't outplay an aging star who only had 24 goals last year, then the team gets to keep both of them. Either way, Nash gets a shot at the title, and at playing with some great centers, who might just help revive his career. But much like the approach I thought they would take last year with Kempny, I would go into it as a one year thing, and not expect to make any space for Nash next summer. So he's free to acquire, he lowers the team's salary cap numbers long term, and he might chip in thirty goals.

I'm not signing Rick Nash to be like, "oooh yay! Rick Nash! Former top overall pick and alleged superstar coming off an 8M deal with the Rangers." I think he's a little less good than Chris Kreider at basically the same game at evens, but he's what's available for free, and Kreider would cost a first and then the team would lose Burakovsky and Connolly next summer to salary cap math. Since their regular season production was each tied with Wilson's, I hope you can see the logic in trying to keep them both around.

Stephenson isn't playing because I didn't want to read the comments I'd get for sending Vrana to Hershey to play 25 minutes a night and score 70 points. Don't worry. IRL, if they sign Nash for a tiny offensive bump and a lot of salary cap stability, Stephenson plays.

Hahahaha Nash > vrana. Ugh I can’t even continue after that dumb comment have a good day

Without reading your book. I based vrana off playoffs stats bc he’s a top 6 forward and trotz played him in that role after round 1 actually half way threw the pens series. The kid was benched for chase which is stupid. Bura is great but his chemistry w eller and bc is unmatched. They have played well for 2 years together seemed simple to keep that line together. Wilson playoffs stats outside this year are dumb to track bc he played bottom 3 minutes. And most of the time he was on the pk or playing w beagle who is a great fo guy but sucks outside that.

Also Stephenson is probably one the fastest guys on the ice. He’ll have a top 9 role after bc proves to be a bust 2 months in. And it’s just odd again that a guy who looked great in his first nhl season you bench

I lol'd

Nash has already said he won't sign during the summer. It sounds like if he comes back at all it would be during the season. Also there's no cap room left to do anything with this roster. And I would be absolutely stunned if we got Wilson for 3 mil per year at 7 years there's no way he signs that contract.

Dumb comment? Look st stats bro and come back ????

2017-18

Nash had 21 goals and 34 points in 71 games

Vrana in his rookie season had 13 goals and 27 points in 73 games

Haha yeah 7 points difference between a rookie and a vet. Hahahaha again vrana

Also vrana was + 2
Nash -12

Vrana all day everyday.

Age 22 > age 34

Haha you’re smart


Nash ice time. 1211
Vrana. 912

Nash play 300 more minutes also


Hahaha idk why I wasted my time responding to you. Totally not worth it


Oh yeah he also scored in the sc game 5 where the caps won. His goal factored into caps winning the cup

Has Nash done that ever?!

Okay now I’m done. Sorry kid go back to you moms basement

Wow the caps fan base has got toxic since winning the cup. Vrana in no world is better then Rick Nash. +/- is a bogus stat. Nash had more ice time more points and also spent the first month of the season on the Rangers s**t show. Rick Nash > Vrana

Haha yeah +\- means nothing. And not toxic just have great players that produce when it matters.

Nash > vrana if it was 2012 but since neither of us have a time machine

Vrana > Nash. ✌?

Vrana after a year with Backstrom develops a lot, plays well in the playoffs, then costs 4M next year, and the Caps lose Burakovsky and/or Connolly, who each outscored Vrana last year in the playoffs on a points per game or points per minute basis despite playing more with each other and Eller than with Backstrom and Oshie.

Vrana after a year in the bottom six with stints in Hershey while he's waiver exempt to play 30 minutes a night develops a lot, plays well in the playoffs, then costs 2M for the rest of Ovechkin's contract, and the Caps can keep one or both of Burakovsky/Connolly, whoever earns it, but their even strength point production both matched WIlson's last year, so losing either of them just to rush Vrana's development is dumb. Burakovsky had six points in the last six games of the year. His points helped the Caps eliminate Tampa and Vegas, and win the Cup. With four points in 54:22, he had a point for every 13:35 of ice time he got in the finals. Burakovsky>pretty much anybody but Kuznetsov. http://www.espn.com/nhl/player/_/id/3042044/andre-burakovsky

Stephenson played an hour of the finals and was pointless. Vrana played over an hour of the finals and had two points. Meh. Wilson played 84 minutes of the finals and got three points, for one eery 28 minutes. Ovechkin played an hour and a half of the finals and had five points, for a point every 18 minutes. Kuznetsov had an insane point every ten minutes in the finals. Burakovsky and Kuznetsov played really well together a few years ago. I think next year he gets Wilson's spot with Ovechkin and Kuznetsov and Wilson falls back to the third line, where he remains a fan favorite in DC for the rest of his career.

I read both of your comments. I'm sorry you didn't read mine, or you might not have repeated yourself. Yes, Vrana has a higher ceiling than Nash, and is faster. Nash hits harder and scores goals better. I like the Caps' chances with both.

Erm Nash > Vrana and you gave the numbers yourself

Which you’re too dumb to understand

What that Nash > Vrana? Lol ??????

I think Vrana is young enough that he should keep improving. Nash might be old enough that he's all skill and no youthful vigor left by now. They're probably about even, but as @CapitalFail67 points out (and I googled it and checked) Rick Nash is indeed delaying his decision about whether to return until he gets more of an idea of how much damage was done by his last concussion, so maybe midseason, and has said he might keep playing for the bruins. His appearance on the list of UFAs might be a red herring.

I still think the Caps are fine to add a one year rental to their top six, and if they keep Backstrom and Oshie together, just about anyone who can ice skate and is willing to play left wing could help them spread out their offense and keep them from having as bad of an RFA logjam as the Leafs next summer. But I will freely concede that none of the best remaing goal scorers (Scott Hartnell, Benoit Pouliot, Chris Stewart each had like, 10 last year) is clearly better than Vrana right now. Stewart's possible, on a good line, with steady ice time. I think this year he outscores Stephenson or Vrana on that second line. It's been eight unimpressive years since his back to back 28 goal seasons, but he's probably inexpensive enough that if he doesn't seem to be helping Oshie have more space and get on a pace for thirty goals after a month or three, he can sit in the press box and the team hasn't really lost anything.

https://www.hockey-reference.com/players/s/stewach02.html