Jakub Vrana has words for ex-teammate Alex Ovechkin

The record for second all time in National Hockey League scoring that was previously held by Detroit Red Wings legend Gordie Howe is no more. Last week, Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin officially overtook Howe, scoring his 801st and 802nd goals against the Winnipeg Jets to move into 2nd place on the scoring list behind only that of Wayne Gretzky. 

And it's certainly not surprising to see Ovechkin's success to his former teammate in current Red Wings forward Jakub Vrana, who was dealt to Detroit in a blockbuster 2021 trade. 

“I’m not surprised," Vrana said of his former teammate. "He's driven."

Vrana, who has his name on the Stanley Cup along with Ovechkin's thanks to their historic 2018 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights, had nothing but positive things to say about the Russian star. 

“He works hard, real hard, and is a competitive guy but in the locker room it’s all fun,” Vrana said. “He takes it real seriously on the ice. But in the room, it’s not like he’s serious all the time. He wants to have fun and makes sure it’s fun for the guys.”

With only 92 goals to go until Ovechkin catches Gretzky while also managing to stay healthy despite playing a heavy game, Vrana believes it's only a matter of time before the Caps captain is No. 1 in NHL scoring history. 

“When you have that many goals in your career, he’s (Ovechkin) a guy he’s always going to want more,” Vrana said. “And he’s never been injured. He’s always been real solid, never really went through a long (term) injury. He’s a heavy, big (6-foot-3, 238 pounds), strong, just a massive piece of human. You can see it with his hits. He plays a heavy game.”

“I believe in him, I believe he’s going to do that,” he continued. “But, of course, I can’t tell you he will. That’s up to him. But I believe that he’s a guy, once he’s that close and he’s so competitive, he’ll do that.”