Throughout the years, every team drafts players. Most are drafted with varying degrees of hope. Few are actualized. Some "can't miss" prospects end up becoming busts (see Edmonton Oilers). Few end up making it and even fewer end up having a significant impact on the game. Even though a tough couple of years, LA Kings prospect Gabe Vilardi has the potential to become the player fans dream of.
Leading up to draft day in 2017, Vilardi was projected to be a top 5 overall pick with some analysis having in the top three, after Nico Hischier and Nolan Patrick. Vilardi slid all the way down to #11 overall to Los Angeles, being passed over by players such as Lias Andersson, Casey Middlestadt and Micheal Rasmussen. Two principal concerns arose that dropped his stock and left teams picking other top prospects over him. The first was his skating speed. While having a tremendous mind for the game and the skill to match, Vilardi was perceived to be slower than the average in his class and, as such, a harder sell to teams who had just witnessed Pittsburg win back to back Stanley Cups based off speed. The second reason he dropped from the top 5 was because of his injury history. To begin his sophomore season, he suffered a 6-week knee injury followed by an injury that kept him out of the team Canada U-17 Development Camp.
Despite this, the Kings lept at the opportunity to draft Vilardi. As a 6'3 highly skilled power forward, he fit the King's style of hard to play against yet proofed to be a glimmer of hope for a prospect pipeline that had been starved for talented players (besides Valentine Zykov's short stint) for years. In his next season, while playing through another injury, Vilardi proved to be almost too good for juniors, gathering 58 points in a mere 32 games, leading his Kingston Frontenacs to the plays. In the OHL playoffs, he kicked it up to a whole new level, leading the Frontenacs in scoring a team gifted with NHL caliber prospects such as Jason Robertson, Sean Day, and Linus Nyman. Unfortunately, this marked the apartment high point in his short career thus far.
In this OHL playoff run, he sustained an injury to his back. Thought to be treated over the summer with rest, Vilardi came to camp ready to try to make the Kings roster. He ended up missing all of training camp after tweaking his back injury and opened the year on SOIR (Season Opening Injured Reserve) He didn't touch the ice for another two months. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity (because the Kings were in the midst of a brutal start of their season, firing head coach John Stevens and playing without an identity), Vilardi got loaned to the Kings minor league affiliate, the Ontario Reign. While each game being played seemed like a positive step in the right direction, Vilardi never fully healed, cutting is injury loan short. He ended up missing several practices for the Canadian WJC U20 team until finally he was ruled completely out for the tournament.
He began to treat and rehab his back, yet little information was released on his condition or if it was improving. Fans lost hope he would ever play again. This all changed in October 2019, almost 11 months after he played his last four games. He began skating again, first by himself for 30 mins at a time, until he was medically cleared and reassigned to Ontario. He played his first games for Ontario, putting up 8 points in the first 8 games.
While undoubtedly concerning that his injury has been ongoing, keeping him out for almost 18 months, his skill is undeniable. Very rarely do prospects make a smooth transition into the pro game from juniors, Gabe Vilardi seems to be managing the struggles significantly easier than his peers. If he can manage his pain and help to prevent more injuries from occurring, hope can still be high that Vilardi won't just make the NHL, but be a dominate force. For a player that was once viewed as a similar player to Ryan Getzlaf, I bet the Kings hope he turns into that for them. Since being activated from injury, he hasn't given them any reason not to.
PS: Possibly having Vilardi and Kayliev together makings my heart hurt
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