Washington Capitals’ Vincent Iorio leaves Game 1 against New York Rangers due to injury

Not a good sign for one of the Washington Capitals’ young blueliners.

During the second period of the team’s opening game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the New York Rangers, Capitals defenseman Vincent Iorio was hit awkwardly into the boards by Rangers forward Alexis Lafreniere.

The play continued, and Lafreniere began a sequence that led to the Blueshirts’ leading scorer, Artemi Panarin, scoring the team’s second goal of the game.

According to Newsday’s Colin Stephenson, Iorio was favoring his right shoulder as he left the ice. He did not return to the game on Sunday, playing a total of 1:50.

It was not how Iorio wanted to end the afternoon, especially as the 21-year-old was making his Stanley Cup Playoff debut.

Iorio made his NHL debut in March of the 2022-23 season, playing just three games before starting this year with Washington’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Hershey Bears. The Coquitlam, British Columbia native made his season debut with the Caps on March 30 against the Boston Bruins and ended up playing six regular-season games.

In 10 NHL games, Ioroio has registered just one assist.

Washington selected Iorio with the 55th overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, signing him to his entry-level contract near the end of his junior hockey career with the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Western Hockey League.

Iorio has spent the majority of his young pro career with Hershey, helping the team win the AHL’s Calder Cup last season. In 123 games with the Bears, he has notched six goals and 30 assists, including five points in last year’s playoff run.