The Washington Capitals selected forward Jake Karabela in the fifth-round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. Karabela partook in the team’s 2022 Prospect Development Camp in July, which concluded with a scrimmage at Capital One Arena in Washington.
Karabela, who is an 18-year old native of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, was one of a number of prospects selected by the Caps that received high praise from Assistant General Manager Ross Mahoney.
“Yeah, I was at home…with family friends. I was shooting hoops with my buddy and all the dads were inside watching and they came running out once they heard my name called, so it’s pretty surreal and it’s really cool to be here. It’s an honor you dream of as a kid, it’s a huge lift off your shoulders, but then again the work begins now and you have to prove you belong here.”
Karabela is a member of the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League and recorded 12 goals and 45 Points in 68 Games Played last season. Primarily a Center throughout his playing career, he switched to playing the wing in 2021-22.
“I’ve played center my whole life, until this year. I’m glad I did play wing, I think that makes me more versatile, makes me more eye-opening to other people, so I think for me, I’m more comfortable at center, I’d rather play center, but I’m versatile and I can play wing.”
While playing a scrimmage at the Capitals’ home barn is as close to the NHL as Karabela has been thus far in his hockey career, like any attendee of the team’s Development Camp, hard work and progression are key to potentially making the NHL club in the future.
“I think for me myself, I think I’m versatile, I can play center, I can play wing. I think I have offensive upside, I like to make plays, be a playmaker. I think for me the biggest step is to get more physically mature. The guys here, they’re older, they’re stronger, they’re faster, so I think for me I just need to get more physically stronger and hopefully I’ll be here.”
To here all of Karabela’s comments, see the video below:
“Certainly it’s an honor. You dream of [getting drafted] as a kid … but then again the work begins now and you have to prove what you got and prove that you belong here.”@VogsCaps caught up with fifth-round pick @JakeKarabela at #CapsDevCamp last month.#ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/s3nMZAiZs5
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) August 18, 2022
Follow all Capitals Prospect news on our Prospects page or follow Capitals Prospects on Twitter.
By Michael Fleetwood
