Gabriel Vilardi is the real deal. It just took a few games to get back to speed.
It has taken Gabriel Vilardi all of 13 games to catch up to - and subsequently overtake - the goal and point totals set by current Los Angeles Kings forward Pierre-Luc Dubois this season.
And, if you remember correctly, the Winnipeg Jets' current top-producing forward sat out 18 games while shelved for over six weeks with a right MCL sprain.
“He’s bumping up his play and I’ve seen it before," former Kings teammate-turned Jets teammate Alex Iafallo said of his play recently.
"You can tell he has more confidence with the puck and he’s making great plays with that line. It’s fun to see... He put the work in. Obviously he was out for that many weeks so he's in here every day. You can't ask for much more out of a guy so do the right things and success will happen. You can see that through Gabe.”
Vilardi, the centrepiece in the four-player, five-piece deal that sent Dubois to Los Angeles this past June has been everything that Jets' general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff could have hoped for, and then some.
At this point, the trade - that also saw Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari and a 2024 second round draft pick head to the Kings in exchange for a freshly-signed Dubois - is looking more like a fleecing with every game the Jets play.
"To be able to come back after an injury like he had that early in the season and play the way he's playing right now is - you know, I've been through it - it's hard but it's really impressive," linemate Nikolaj Ehlers said of Vilardi's play since returning on November 30.
Vilardi suited up in just three games before his injury, and has been back in Winnipeg's lineup for 10 more games.
Through those 10, the Jets are 7-2-1 and Vilardi has six goals and 12 points.
In just the past four games alone, Vilardi has a remarkable five goals and 10 points.
“He’s got great hands, he’s got great patience with the puck," head coach Rick Bowness said. "And he sees the ice really well. Big strong guy that’s hard to play against, but it’s his patience with the puck and his skill level is really, really underrated.
"So he makes plays, he’s great around the net, but I love his patience with the puck. He has that sense of when and when not to make the play, he hangs on to it long enough and lets the play develop. Then takes advantage of it.”
Not only has Vilardi taken advantage of loose pucks on the doorstep, he has also stepped up in his role on the newly-formed top line alongside Ehlers and Mark Scheifele.
"The work he does in the o-zone behind their net, in the corners with his stick, his stick handling is unbelievable," Ehlers continued. "And obviously those passes that he makes, you know we just have to put it into the empty net pretty much. Makes our job a little easier but us as a line, we feel good, we read off each other really well and that's exciting for us.”
Since joining Ehlers and Scheifele on the top line, Vilardi has five goals, five primary assists, 26 shot attempts and 10 high-danger scoring chances. When his line is on the ice, the Jets have outscored their opponents 9-2 and outshot them 48-22 while at five-on-five.
“It’s great. I mean, it seems like they always score," teammate Axel Jonsson-Fjallby laughed following Wednesday's game against Detroit. "They are great leaders. We are trying to take after them and still play our game.”
Although Vilardi says it has taken a bit of time to build that chemistry, Bowness' decision on what to do with his forwards following the injury to top scorer Kyle Connor has paid some early dividends.
Although unlikely he receives any sort of recognition from the League for his stretch of dominance, due to the fact that his strong performances have come over the span of who separate calendar weeks (as opposed to the NHL's preferred 'Star of the Week' format), he has earned praises from his coaches and teammates alike, and will hope to continue his strong play when the Jets resume their December schedule following the Christmas break.
"We haven't seen a whole lot of him," Bowness said after the win over the Red Wings. "Earlier, before he got injured, we could see this guy's got great hands around the net. Then you watch him every game, his confidence is growing. You see him try to make plays, he hangs onto the puck, which is what we said from training camp on. He's so good around the net because he hangs onto it. He's so big and strong, got great vision and has patience with the puck of when to pass it and when not to pass it and hang on to it. He's been very, very impressive for us."
Despite all the personal success, the biggest thing for the 24-year-old is team success. Right now, his mates are sitting right where they want to be: first in the Central Division. But the long and winding road is still a ways from its half-way mark.