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Confirmed with Link: Gabriel Vilardi signs 3-year ELC

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BigKing said:
Retool could only work if he made an immediate impact. Now he can't be relied upon to even be an NHL player.

They have to blow this thing up or, at the very least, secure a top three pick this season and hit on it.
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Even if Vilardi comes in next season and makes an immediate impact, Blake still has to worry about the declining play of Carter, Toffoli, and Kopitar.

Blow it up, not matter what.
 
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KINGS17 said:
Even if Vilardi comes in next season and makes an immediate impact, Blake still has to worry about the declining play of Carter, Toffoli, and Kopitar.

Blow it up, not matter what.
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It also relied on the top players not declining but, even if they didn't, Vilardi was necessary.

Blake isn't going to blow it up. Absolutely have to nail a high first rounder this year, Vilardi needs to recover, Kupari has to be legit and soon etc.

I'm not optimistic.
 
BigKing said:
It also relied on the top players not declining but, even if they didn't, Vilardi was necessary.

Blake isn't going to blow it up. Absolutely have to nail a high first rounder this year, Vilardi needs to recover, Kupari has to be legit and soon etc.

I'm not optimistic.
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I’m optimistic, not so much in the FO but in the fact that when given real time the youngsters have come through and in fact we’ve likely found our 3rd line in Wagner-Amadio-Luff. While I had high hopes for Vilardi, the play of JAD, Kupari and our Russians has been impressive! I look at it like this, said 3rd line has proven they can play, defend and score. For argument sake let’s say we sign Prokhorkin, that’s a top 9 guy though I see the talent of a top 6. Kale Clague and Daniel Brickley are going to get some run next season so that 2 options on the back end. The Voynov issue is still out there and we could just sign him if he’s allowed to play and solve a huge need? JAD is in my eyes a JDub type guy and we’ll likely have a 3 headed goaltending monster headed toward next season. This team isn’t really in a bad spot but intelligent moves need to be made and that’s were I believe the issue arises! We all know who needs to be moved and whose going to stay for various issues.... add in a Jack Hughes or Kaapo Kakko and we could be looking at a quick turnaround.
 
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kings11 said:
I’m optimistic, not so much in the FO but in the fact that when given real time the youngsters have come through and in fact we’ve likely found our 3rd line in Wagner-Amadio-Luff. While I had high hopes for Vilardi, the play of JAD, Kupari and our Russians has been impressive! I look at it like this, said 3rd line has proven they can play, defend and score. For argument sake let’s say we sign Prokhorkin, that’s a top 9 guy though I see the talent of a top 6. Kale Clague and Daniel Brickley are going to get some run next season so that 2 options on the back end. The Voynov issue is still out there and we could just sign him if he’s allowed to play and solve a huge need? JAD is in my eyes a JDub type guy and we’ll likely have a 3 headed goaltending monster headed toward next season. This team isn’t really in a bad spot but intelligent moves need to be made and that’s were I believe the issue arises! We all know who needs to be moved and whose going to stay for various issues.... add in a Jack Hughes or Kaapo Kakko and we could be looking at a quick turnaround.
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You are way too optimistic. A three-headed goalie monster? No way, Quick is averaging an injury a season, Campbell is serviceable as a backup, and while Petersen looks promising he still has much to prove.

JAD is going to be 20 years old at the beginning of next season. Let's slow the roll on him being the next Justin Williams. He may be, but he isn't going to be "Mr. Game 7" next year.

Our Russians have been impressive? Which Russians? The ones that have refused to come over to North America for years and are still under contract in the KHL? Maybe they come over some day, maybe they don't.

Kale Clague and Daniel Brickley? Still a lot of development work to do with Clague, and Brickley is a wild card.

Now given all that, what are optimistic about? A playoff spot? Contending for the Stanley Cup before Kopitar becomes ineffective?

The Kings need a massive infusion of young talent. Let's hope the last two drafts were the start of something good. I don't think Vilardi, JAD, and Kupari are the cavalry riding to the rescue.
 
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For a team that's gotten Forbort, Pearson, Kempe in the 1st round since 2010, and traded the 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2016 picks, if Vilardi ends up as a miss, that's going to be big. That's another year's worth of a setback, on top of everything else. That's pretty close to missing on the 4th pick in 2007(and one of the 2008 picks), and then having to trade a bunch of the future to get Penner, Richards, and Carter in response to missed opportunities like that. Then on top of that, things only started to really work once Carter got here. It was a lot to pay to not get anywhere. That's why Lombardi was on the hot seat by the 2012 deadline.

Whatever pick they get this year, it has to be a home run. That much more so if Vilardi can't ever get on the ice.
 
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It seems to me that due diligence was not done on Vilardi. I was excited that he fell. I think LA was too. Hard to say for sure. He was solid in the OHL last year. 11th isn’t the highest pick but there were solid players at that spot. It was and still is a gamble. Hindsight and all too.
 
There's a chance he goes to the Reign once the Fronts' season is over, but his career in jeopardy?

Shamefully sensationalistic with an unnamed source.
 
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At least LA got JAD and Mikey Anderson in that draft. Kings took the risk on Vilardi, looked like it would pay off for a minute. I think the writing is on the wall now tho.
 
Honestly, that's the only option. It will stunt his growth but it will be best for his future potential if they do everything they can to eliminate any chance of this injury ending his career prematurely.
 
He's only dropping in the draft because New NHL speed killzzz!!!

What a nightmare. Lombardi would have drafted him too though so it is what it is.
 
man, what a kick in the teeth! ...was hoping for Tippet in that draft, but was gone when the pick came around...oh well, add at least another year of suckage
 
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