Confirmed with Link: Gabriel Vilardi signs 3-year ELC

[Mats26]

Bob McKenzie on TSN 690 radio this morning confirmed Vilardi had surgery after his OHL season ended last year, back flared up in summer camp. Because of his back he tried to compensate and had a groin issues as well. Now he feels alot of it is mental with Gabe. Kid needs to stay positive, lots of time to heal.

 

[kings11]

Bob McKenzie on TSN 690 radio this morning confirmed Vilardi had surgery after his OHL season ended last year, back flared up in summer camp. Because of his back he tried to compensate and had a groin issues as well. Now he feels alot of it is mental with Gabe. Kid needs to stay positive, lots of time to heal.

Great to hear it isn’t back related but the mental will come in time... I think he’s overthinking about not getting hurt but as soon as he realizes he can trust his body again he’ll take off !

 

[YP44]

I hope McKenzie is right cause didn't the Mayor put out last night that he had a set back with his back?

 

[YP44]

Those clubs that passed on him in the draft are looking smarter by the day.

Just saw on the TSN ticker that they have him listed as out of the tournament due to his back.

True they are, but even if he never plays an NHL game I can't say it was a stupid gamble by LA. Possibly getting him as late as they did could still be huge....could never pan out either.

Only thing is I really wanted Necas, so that could sting a bit

 

[AlphaBravo]

I suppose the best thing for him at this point is to quasi-shut him down. Send him to juniors, have Kings medical staff closely monitor him, and give him limited ice time and gradually increase the ice time it if he looks healthier.

 

[Mats26]

I hope McKenzie is right cause didn't the Mayor put out last night that he had a set back with his back?

On TSN they said he just won't be ready for the start of the tourney, timelines won't fit with him finishing his rehab and start of tournament or something like that.

https://www.tsn.ca/hockey-canada/vi...w-with-vilardi-being-ruled-out-of-wjc~1567938

 

[Bandit]

Great to hear it isn’t back related but the mental will come in time... I think he’s overthinking about not getting hurt but as soon as he realizes he can trust his body again he’ll take off !

Yeah it's not his back. It's his back AND his groin...

 

[kings11]

Yeah it's not his back. It's his back AND his groin...

No I think the back is more a trust issue whereas the groin is his current ailment

 

[KopitarFAN]

 

[regulate]

Well, the good news he won't have to be protected in the expansion draft.

 

[YP44]

sending him down was absolutely the right call. He needs to get his confidence back and be comfortable his back isn't going to let him down. Plus LA isn't going anywhere this year anyway.

 

[BigKing]

This is such a shit show.

I still would have gambled on him but it is kind of funny to look back at how so many people here said he dropped because "NEW NHL SKATING OMG" as opposed to injury concerns.

The kid is a beast when he's on the ice. That talent level does not drop that far in the draft simply because he isn't a burner.

Anyways, the Kings being able to contend with this core was very much predicated upon Vilardi making an impact as early as this year and definitely by 2020. That isn't happening now. The cavalry is not coming in time to save this roster unless they can nab immediate help in Hughes.

 

[Steve Zissou]

Let the kid heal. The Kings season is already in crapper.

 

[DoktorJeep]

The Kings did the best thing for Vilardi. He’s got a mans frame, but it looks like the Kings may have mis judged his health in the summer, now that we know about the surgery. Feels like we’ve been waiting forever, but in reality he was drafted less than 2 years ago as a late 17 yo.

On the side from that draft is that the Kings 2, 3 and 4 picks are all playing in the wjc

 

[kings11]

I still see
Brickley
Clague
Kupari
JAD
As players that will make strong pushes to make the club plus add in Amadio, Wagner and Luff as guys that look great as a 4th line if not a 3rd line .. good to have some youth coming up with some potential ... oh and that’s not even including our pick this draft !

 

[AlphaBravo]

Good move. Use this year to get Vilardi as healthy as possible, and pray he can play next year with Kupari, JAD, and Clague.

 

[BallPointHammer]

How will the Kings determine if he's healthy? They don't even know what's wrong with him. MRI machine OUT OF ORDER. Kings Doctors-he has a bad back. The doctors then put on all kinda of flashy workout gear and go teach a cross fit class in Venice.

I don't know. I think the front office knows. I think the fans should know. If it turns out he's been a lost cause all this time than ...... I don't know, put LROB AND ROBB on the **** list for eternity.

 

[King'sPawn]

This is such a **** show.

I still would have gambled on him but it is kind of funny to look back at how so many people here said he dropped because "NEW NHL SKATING OMG" as opposed to injury concerns.

It's because people were citing his injury after he was drafted as evidence of why he fell, instead of actually reading the scouting reports and listening to the media pundits in the know.

Just because you or others may have been right doesn't mean you weren't premature. It's like calling a kid a bust just because he has a bad D+1 season. You may very well be right, but it's too early.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

I hope the back isn't a recurring issue, but it has been for a few years now, so I'm not sure if he'll ever be 100%.

 

[BigKing]

It's because people were citing his injury after he was drafted as evidence of why he fell, instead of actually reading the scouting reports and listening to the media pundits in the know.

Just because you or others may have been right doesn't mean you weren't premature. It's like calling a kid a bust just because he has a bad D+1 season. You may very well be right, but it's too early.

I'm not saying he's a bust but commenting on the fact that he definitely was passed over due to injury concerns. It's not a question of being premature with anything but rather that him falling due to injury concerns was mostly swept to the side on here due to the skating issue being a better, more positive narrative than the fact the kid couldn't even go through the pre-draft combine.

We can call his draft year injuries flukey but he couldn't do all of the combine and immediately proceeded to miss half of his first post-draft season.

While skating issues could have led him to be lower a bit on some team's boards, it wasn't why he fell all the way to the Kings.

 

[SettlementRichie10]

I think the notion that his mental has gone downhill due to injuries is even worse than if he just had consistent injuries.

In my humble opinion, kid is toast.

 

[RocketKing]

so he had back surgery and then he developed a groin injury due to a core imbalance no doubt. There never was any reason to press him into action this quickly IMO. He should have never been in a position to over strain his core/groin. They should have let him recover FULLY, which they clearly did NOT. I dont see a failed pick yet. I am wondering thought as to how extensive the surgery was.

 

[KINGS17]

so he had back surgery and then he developed a groin injury due to a core imbalance no doubt. There never was any reason to press him into action this quickly IMO. He should have never been in a position to over strain his core/groin. They should have let him recover FULLY, which they clearly did NOT. I dont see a failed pick yet. I am wondering thought as to how extensive the surgery was.

Yeah, but don't forget he needed to play to maintain the "contender" illusion for the fans.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I hope the back isn't a recurring issue, but it has been for a few years now, so I'm not sure if he'll ever be 100%.

Has it?

I remember his appendix and his knee injuries and the back thing is now being reported as surgery while the latest issue is groin.

It's not better that he's a god damn game of Operation, but I'd rather have some of those fluky ones with one back surgery than several years of back issues when it comes to long-term healthy development.

 

[KingPuckChoo]