Winnipeg Jets forward Gabe Vilardi out 4-6 weeks with sprained MCL

Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness told media Wednesday that forward Gabe Vilardi will miss the next four to six weeks with a sprained MCL.

Vilardi left Tuesday night’s 5-1 loss against the Los Angeles Kings after getting tied up with Kings forward Blake Lizotte and going down awkwardly.

The 23-year-old has registered one assist in two games this season with the Jets. Vilardi was acquired in a package deal with Rasmus Kupari and Alex Iaffalo in exchange for Pierre-Luc Dubois earlier in the summer. The Jets resigned Vilardi to a two-year contract with a $3.4375 million cap hit.

Vilardi is coming off a career year with the Kings in 2022-23, where he had 23 goals, 18 assists, and 41 points in 63 regular season games, with his goal total alone tying his previous career-high in points. He also played in five playoff games, with two goals, two assists, and four points, as the Kings were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in six games by the Edmonton Oilers. In 152 games with the Kings spanning over four seasons, Vilardi notched 41 goals and 37 assists for 78 points. He added four points in seven Stanley Cup Playoff contests.

Vilardi was initially selected in the first round, No. 11 overall, by the Kings in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. The Kingston, Ontario, product spent three years in the Ontario Hockey League with the Windsor Spitfires and Kingston Frontenacs, where he tallied 68 goals and 89 assists for 157 points in 143 games. During the 2016-17 OHL season, Vilardi helped the Spitfires capture the Memorial Cup; he was named to the CHL Memorial Cup First All-Star Team.