Newly re-signed forward Jakub Vrana happy to remain with Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings pulled off one of the NHL Trade Deadline's biggest moves, acquiring forwards Jakub Vrana and Richard Panik along with a 1st and 2nd round draft pick in exchange for underachieving forward Anthony Mantha.

And though it was a small sample size, Vrana and the Red Wings appear to be a match made in heaven. 

Vrana scored eight goals (four in one game against the Dallas Stars) and three assists in the 11 games he appeared in with his new club, and showed that he can be the kind of impactful player that helped the Capitals to their first Stanley Cup in franchise history in 2018. 

Red Wings fans can now breathe a sigh of relief, as Vrana agreed to a three-year contract extension that will keep him in the Motor City through 2024, with an annual average cap hit of $5.25 million per season. And for the man himself, he's happy to put the "process" behind him and focus on the task ahead. 

"It was kind of a process, but I'm happy it works for both sides," Vrana said Wednesday from Sweden on a Zoom call. "I'm real excited to join this group in the upcoming years and really excited for these three years. 

Vrana, who had filed for salary arbitration after coming off a one-year, $2,327,588 that he had originally signed with the Capitals, had a hearing scheduled for Wednesday prior to the two sides coming to an agreement. It looked as though there may have been some doubt if that could happen, as Vrana asked for $5.7 million, while the Red Wings countered with an offer of $3.65 million.

"This is part of hockey (contract negotiations)," Vrana explained. "There are moments like this you go through. I just want to prepare for the season and focus on the stuff I can do best and let (his agent) handle it."

"I'm happy it's over and I can move forward preparing for the season."

Panik has since moved on, as he was packaged as part of a deal to the New York Islanders to acquire defenseman Nick Leddy. There are other several new faces in the Motor City that Vrana will be suiting up alongside, including goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic, forward Pius Suter, and defenseman Jordan Oesterle.