The Winnipeg Jets have been among the NHL’s best teams this season and are considered one of the favorites to end the 35-year drought of a Canadian-based franchise winning the Stanley Cup.
But with the Stanley Cup Playoffs right around the corner, the Jets received some discouraging injury news. Forward Gabriel Vilardi has been designated as “week-to-week” with an upper-body injury. It’s an especially concerning injury because Vilardi routinely plays on Winnipeg’s top line with Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor.
Jets head coach Scott Arniel described the injury to Vilardi as a “freak situation” and admitted his disappointment in the situation, via ESPN.
“It’s really disappointing,” Arniel said. “We were upset about it last night when we found out. You know what, he’s done such a fantastic job in his summer training, and doing specific things so that he could have an 82-game season. He was looking after himself, and doing all the right things to get him here. And what happened, it really was kind of a freak situation.”
Without Vilardi, the Jets host the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night; the puck is scheduled to drop just after 8:00 PM EST.
Jets forward Gabriel Vilardi has set new career highs in goals/assists this season
The timing of Vilardi’s injury is especially bothersome considering that he’s already established new career bests with 27 goals and 34 assists in the 71 games he’s played this season.
A native of Kingston, Ontario, Vilardi’s talent was apparent from a young age. He was drafted in the first round (second overall) by the Windsor Spitfires in the 2015 OHL Priority Selection while also finding himself being ranked the fourth overall North American skater by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau.
Vilardi was then selected with the 17th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft by the Los Angeles Kings. He would play the subsequent years with their American Hockey League affiliate Ontario Reign before making his NHL debut in the 2019-20 NHL season.
In June of 2023, Vilardi was included as part of a major trade package that included Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari, and a 2024 2nd-round draft pick that was sent to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
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