Gabriel Vilardi’s lack of durability — which have been the biggest challenge thus far in his fledgling career — has continued to be an issue during his first season with the Winnipeg Jets.
Vilardi Dealing With Third Injury of 2023-24 Campaign
Vilardi is currently dealing with a nagging upper-body injury the Jets’ organization has called “day to day” but has caused him to miss the last six games over the past two weeks. The 24 year old last played on Feb. 29 in a 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars; it was in that game he he either suffered or exacerbated the injury — he was stapled to the bench for the back half of it because he wasn’t feeling right.
Vilardi has still not begun skating, head coach Rick Bowness said Monday. He appears to not be recovering as fast as initially hoped as the team had said he was going to travel on the two-game road trip last weekend, but ended up leaving him in Winnipeg instead as they trekked to Seattle and Vancouver for back-to-back games.
The timeline for Vilardi’s return remains unclear as Bowness said “we’re not sure when he’s going to skate,” but that it “could be Wednesday, Thursday. Let’s say we hope he skates this week.”
Even if Vilardi does begin skating Wednesday, which is far from a certainty, he’ll likely miss at least two more games — on Wednesday against the Nashville Predators and Friday against the Anaheim Ducks — as he will still need to work his way back to game speed.
The injury is the third of Vilardi’s maiden campaign since being acquired from the Los Angeles Kings last June as the key piece in return for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
His season got off to an inauspicious start as on Oct. 17, he suffered an MCL sprain when being tripped from behind by former teammate Blake Lizotte and missed 16 games as a result. He also missed two games in January due to an undisclosed lower-body injury.
Vilardi Has Extensive Injury History
Unfortunately, considering Vilardi’s extensive injury history, Jets’ brass must be increasingly concerned that they seem to have another player who’s a force when in the lineup but cannot be counted on to stay in it, much like Nikolaj Ehlers and Cole Perfetti before this season. They surely would like to offer him a longer-term contract after his two-year bridge deal is up after next season, but cannot — and should not — until he does something he has never done: stay healthy for an entire campaign.
Even.Bowness has expressed frustration. “Every time he seems to get going, he gets another injury,” he lamented on March 8.
Last season, Vilardi was limited to 63 games due to a concussion but still set career highs with 21 goals and 18 assists for 41 points. He was also hampered by a chronic back injury from the time he was 17 and playing in the Ontario Hockey League through 2019-20, where he played 42 games between the Kings and American Hockey League affiliate Ontario Reign. The season prior, 2018-19, he played just four OHL games.
Related: Jets’ Gabe Vilardi One-on-One: Overcoming Early Career Adversity
“There were several months — I wouldn’t say years, but several months — where I wasn’t sure if I was going to be playing hockey for my life, which is pretty scary because it’s all I’d ever known, all I ever wanted to do,” Vilardi told the Los Angeles Times in November, 2022. (From ‘Column: A bad back nearly cost the Kings’ Gabe Vilardi his career. Now he’s thriving,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 2, 2022.)
Vilardi Has Played Well When in Jets’ Lineup
Vilardi, when in the lineup, has played well in a top-six right-wing role, recording 16 goals and 14 assists for 30 points in 38 games. Prior to his most-recent injury, he was also a staple on the Jets’ top power-play unit, where his stellar net-front skills were on full display and key to helping the unit get back on track. He had five goals and five assists for 10 points in February and three multi-point efforts.
Despite the injuries, Vilardi is just seven goals and 11 points away from matching his career highs. It’s clear he has the skills to be a massive part of the Jets’ future and a bona fide NHL star. However, it’s becoming apparent he will only go as far as his health allows him to.
Jets Will Survive Without Vilardi, But Could Thrive Without Him
The Jets, who are 41-18-5 and in a three-way battle with the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche for first place in the Central Division, don’t need to rush Vilardi back. His absence has been insulated by the early-February addition of Sean Monahan to the forward group, a group that got even deeper at the trade deadline when general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff acquired Tyler Toffoli from the New Jersey Devils for the stretch run.
Related: Jets’ 2024 Trade Deadline: Getting to Know the New Additions
However, the group would be even more dangerous with Vilardi in it. His return would make them perhaps the most talented up front they’ve ever been in Jets 2.0 history and give them a true four-line attack.
The most important thing for the Jets is getting Vilardi 100 per cent healthy for the playoffs, because he’ll be an important part of any type of deep Stanley Cup run. However, they’d love to get him back as soon as possible so Bowness can figure out the ideal line combinations now that Toffoli’s in the fold. Going into the postseason with chemistry already built would be the best-case scenario for a team that’s going to face a strong opponent regardless of where they finish.
When Vilardi returns, it’s possible Bowness reunites him with Mark Scheifele and Ehlers on the first line — the trio had a dominant stretch of games together in December — making the second line Kyle Connor, Monahan and Toffoli. It’s also possible he places Vilardi with Connor and Scheifele, making the second line Ehlers, Monahan, and Toffoli.
Regardless, that’s a potent top six with a heady mixture of creativity, speed, tenacity, and experience, They would be complemented by one of the NHL’s best third lines in Nino Niederreiter, Adam Lowry, and Mason Appleton, and a fourth line with scoring potential in some combination of Morgan Barron, Alex Iafallo, Vladislav Namestnikov, and Perfetti.