C Gabriel Vilardi (2017, 11th, LAK)

[Brew]

Drafted 2nd overall behind David Levin, 15 years old, 6'2, 185 lbs.

The kid is 15 and has pretty close NHL size.

Scouting report via OHL.

"Gabe is a skilled forward with a great shot and release. His shot is heavy and hard and he shoots the puck from almost anywhere. OEMHL Player of the Year is offensively creative, gets open and finds others when he has the puck. He plays a 200-foot game and looks like he cares about playing solid defense."

Discuss here.

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[thething]

Shouldn't this be discussed in the Windsor thread or the ohl section? Anyone that has info of him would likely be posting there.

Very few here have even heard of him, less having seen him play.

 

[Alberta tough]

For me he was the best forward at the CWG.

 

[BigBuck]

Shouldn't this be discussed in the Windsor thread or the ohl section? Anyone that has info of him would likely be posting there.

Very few here have even heard of him, less having seen him play.

You might be surprised how many have seen him play, I think he could be a solid pick in the 2017 draft.

 

[Get North]

For me he was the best forward at the CWG.

I agree. The Ontario team was really strong.

 

[ktownhockey]

Coached this player for 3 seasons.

Elite hands, vision , shot , release , hockey IQ

Average skater (accelaration needs work)

Does his best work from the top of the circles down.

Complete player. Should be a top 2 round candidate for the 17 draft.

Also wether this means anything or not to you guys he s a great kid. Funny and a hard worker.

 

[wings5]

Coached this player for 3 seasons.

Elite hands, vision , shot , release , hockey IQ

Average skater (accelaration needs work)

Does his best work from the top of the circles down.

Complete player. Should be a top 2 round candidate for the 17 draft.

Also wether this means anything or not to you guys he s a great kid. Funny and a hard worker.

Sounds like Michael Dal Colle 2.0

 

[ktownhockey]

Sounds like Michael Dal Colle 2.0

Very similar player. If he continues to develop that is a very fair comparison.

 

[Zaddy]

Surprised there isn't more discussion about this kid. Just scored a goal and an assist in the 1st period against London Knights and has 7 goals and 12 points in his 13th game right now. I know a lot of people think Nolan Patrick is unchallenged for the top pick in 2017 but to me it looks like Vilardi is absolutely up there to challenge, especially considering the age gap. Patrick is 11 months older and has a full WHL season under his belt already while Vilardi is just starting his OHL career. He just looks like the complete package out there and is only going to get better. Bear in mind I haven't seen a lot of him but from the little I've seen he, stylistically, reminds me a lot of Malkin. Basically the ideal type of player you want to build your team around in todays NHL. Would love some more input on Vilardi from people who have seen him more than me.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

Really good showing at U17. From what I've caught of Spits games, he's consistently looked extremely good. Very strong for a 16 yr old rookie.

We'll see if he keeps up steam over a full season. His level of play *as a 16 year old* is similar to what I saw from Domi in his rookie year and also Seguin (although I saw less of Seguin that year).

 

[Brew]

Kid is producing 33 points in 59 games behind guys like Logan Brown and Aaron Luchuk.

What are his expectations for next year?

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

Overall I thought he was impressive this season. He slowed down as the season progressed - but that's normal for 16 yr old OHL rookies.

Like I noted upthread, he was great at U17.

He's been invited to camp for IIHF U18.

There's a lot to like about him. While his skating is a 'work in progress' he's a really smart and complete player.

 

[Hammer Slammer]

Back with yet another video. I should really take a break.

 

[93LEAFS]

Back with yet another video. I should really take a break.

Great work as always. I hope after that well deserved break we get a Tippett video. How'd you end up getting the source material in the end? Windsor re-upload it or did you go through other teams sites?

As for Vilardi, I'm very intrigued on what he can do next year. As a center with good size I see him as the most likely to challenge Patrick and Liljegren. Granted, he will be competing with Brown for top line duties at points, which may depress his numbers a bit. His game reminds me a bit of Sam Reinhart. Good size, great awareness/vision, good hands and great at defelcting pucks. Needs to fix up the skating, but most bigger 16 year olds have that issue. Outside of Tippett scoring at an insane rate, I have hard time seeing someone in the OHL passing him.

 

[Hammer Slammer]

Great work as always. I hope after that well deserved break we get a Tippett video. How'd you end up getting the source material in the end? Windsor re-upload it or did you go through other teams sites?

Windsor actually had most of the highlights on their site, they were just buried in the "features" section instead of a highlights section. I went around to other team sites when I couldn't find it there and last ditch attempt was a google search. Managed to find everything eventually.

I sent the OHL a message yesterday about their highlights disappearing and haven't gotten a response yet.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

From what I saw, was really good at Hlinka camp. Ended up with what looked like a knee injury from Rasmussen and didn't make the final roster. Too bad, because I was looking forward to seeing him at the tournament.

I'm not sure what his 'injury update' is - hopefully he's fine to start the season.

 

[sanitysrequiem]

This guy looks like he may have a big breakout season this year

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

Out six weeks with the knee injury from Hlinka camp:

http://windsorstar.com/sports/hockey/spitfires-lose-vilardi-for-six-weeks

Obviously not great news, because he's lost the rest of the summer training-wise and will be getting into the swing of things re the season a bit late - but assuming there aren't lasting negative affects from the injury, I don't think this should be too much of a negative for the upcoming season for him personally.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

He has a knee injury from the Hlinka camp. He's projected to be ready to go around the time of the Spits season opener in late September:

http://windsorstar.com/sports/hockey/vilardi-sits-while-spitfires-skate

 

[93LEAFS]

Back, just tuned in, but appears to be on the wing from what commentators said.

Edit: 2 points already a goal and assist. Appears to be on Brown's wing.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

He's off to a good start on the season!

 

[Zaddy]

Nice to see him start off strong. Hope the injury didn't have any lingering effects. Vilardi is one of my favorite guys for this draft. I think he could make a legitimate case for #1.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Better or worse prospect than Dylan Strome in his draft year?

 

[Zaddy]

Vilardi with another goal and assist against Guelph. 5 points in 2 games. Really nice start to the season.

Better or worse prospect than Dylan Strome in his draft year?

I think they are similar level of prospects but personally I prefer Vilardi and think his game translates better to the NHL and that his ceiling is higher or rather that he'll be the more impactful player if both players reach their potential. I'm not a big fan of Strome though.

 

[93LEAFS]

He's had a great return this weekend. In the 3 games he's played he has 4 goals and 3 assists. Him and Logan Brown look to be deadly on the PP together. I didn't catch the Knights vs Spitfires game, but he was named 1st star online and had 2 goals. If he keeps this up he may be able to challenge Patrick. Granted, he has been used on the wing a lot.