Confirmed with Link: Gabriel Vilardi signs 3-year ELC

[Sol]

Why doesn't he drink milk ffs.

 

[The Tikkanen]

Why doesn't he drink milk ffs.

He's lactose intolerant.

 

[DoktorJeep]

Seems like it’s been close to one year since we’ve seen GV in skates and equipment on the ice. So until we see that again, it’s hard to measure progress.

If the kid misses another whole season and the Kings draft another center with a high pick, I think GV is getting pushed down the org depth chart in a hurry.

Turcotte has already passed him and out of JAD, Kupari and Thomas, one might emerge as an NHL top six C in the next couple of years.

That’s what makes the injury so frustrating as a fan, is that if he were healthy, he’d be almost guaranteed ice time at both the AHL and nhl levels.

 

[crassbonanza]

Seems like it’s been close to one year since we’ve seen GV in skates and equipment on the ice. So until we see that again, it’s hard to measure progress.

If the kid misses another whole season and the Kings draft another center with a high pick, I think GV is getting pushed down the org depth chart in a hurry.

Turcotte has already passed him and out of JAD, Kupari and Thomas, one might emerge as an NHL top six C in the next couple of years.

That’s what makes the injury so frustrating as a fan, is that if he were healthy, he’d be almost guaranteed ice time at both the AHL and nhl levels.

My only issue is that there are quite a few fans online who feel the need to repeat their own dire diagnosis about Vilardi's health anytime that he is mentioned and it is frankly quite annoying. There is just an overwhelming amount of negativity around any discussions about him, as if people want to be the smart ones telling anyone even slightly optimistic how stupid they are. I just wish we could discuss him without a dozen people popping in to talk about how he will never play again.

 

[The Tikkanen]

My only issue is that there are quite a few fans online who feel the need to repeat their own dire diagnosis about Vilardi's health anytime that he is mentioned and it is frankly quite annoying. There is just an overwhelming amount of negativity around any discussions about him, as if people want to be the smart ones telling anyone even slightly optimistic how stupid they are. I just wish we could discuss him without a dozen people popping in to talk about how he will never play again.

I'm waiting until I see a diagnosis from a doctor before I declare his career is over.

 

[Fishhead]

I'm waiting until I see a diagnosis from a doctor before I declare his career is over.

 

[RossLonsberryFan]

I’ve made a number off posts where I’ve said his back injury could well be something age related, I was thinking more along the lines of something along the lines of standard MSK bio mechanics, but this is a better answer as it is much more specific with regards to timelines and patterns. In particular I’m thinking that the lack of comment by the Kings also supports the theory. If he had anything that needed any major surgical intervention I’m sure we’d have known about it long ago.

Still, he’s not on the ice yet so it’s still a case of wait and hope. The good news is though that if this is the correct diagnosis, once he’s healed it stays healed.

Hello. I wrote the article about Vilardi and spondylolysis. I started out with the same exact theory as you, that it had to be musculoskeletal. Which is what spondylolysis is. I have a nephew who is 6'6" and remember that he had lower back pain issues when he was 16-17 years old and it was related to his bones still growing and his muscle growth not keeping up with his bone growth. He went from 5'9" at 13 years old to 6'4" at age 18. He did not stop growing till he was 23 years old when he maxed out at 6'6".

There is a lot more information that I did not include in the article because, like I said in the beginning, I wanted to keep it non-technical and more layman's terms. If you have any questions about the information I studied, feel free to ask. There's also a lot of links I can share to back my theory up.

Thank you for the kind words and your support for my theory. I was very apprehensive about going public at first because it is so speculative. But I got tired of waiting for all the hockey insiders to come up with theories and got tired of all the gloom and doomers , so I decided to do the homework myself.

 

[RossLonsberryFan]

The fact no decision has been made yet on his availability for camps is encouraging to me. It could be as simple as waiting until scan results are seen before they red or green flag it. I say that because if it was uncertainty, based on general symptoms, like still occasionally having pain I’d bet he’d have been ruled out of camp already. Given he’s ‘progressing’ hopefully it will reduce some of the ‘he’s done’ hyperbole, at the very least.

My personal opinion is that any structural defect to Vilardi's back has had sufficient time to heal and create a union with the affected disc (i.e. the stress fracture to his pars interarticularis facet joint has fused naturally). But again, because of his rapid bone growth in adolescence, I believe he also has (hopefully had - past tense) an imbalance between his muscle mass, muscle strenght, and muscle flexibility and his large frame. I believe this is the most important progress that needs to be made before he returns to sports. When Luc Robitaille said he is more concerned with Vilardi just getting healthy first, I believe he is referring to his muscles maturing and being capable of supporting the demands of his big body.

We have heard multiple times that Vilardi has to follow a protocol that I believe is to build up his core muscle strength to alleviate his spine from bearing the load. But it's kind of like a chicken and the egg catch-22. How do you develop core strength if you have a muscle imbalance and you need your body to grow more muscle mass in order to reach a balance? That is why there can be no timeline. It's up to Gabe's body to develop over time. And he can't afford to hit the weights and try to build muscle that way when he is trying to avoid putting a load on his back.

 

[Bandit]

Sweet, so we might see Vilaridi at rookie camp when he's 23...

 

[RossLonsberryFan]

Sweet, so we might see Vilaridi at rookie camp when he's 23...

It is what it is... But his ELC expires before that.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

The annual tradition of Gabe Vilardi failing to attend and participate in any rookie/development camps has been going strong for three straight years now. He can do it!

 

[Bandit]

It is what it is... But his ELC expires before that.

Don't worry, we'll sign him to an 8 year max deal to keep him.

 

[RossLonsberryFan]

The annual tradition of Gabe Vilardi failing to attend and participate in any rookie/development camps has been going strong for three straight years now. He can do it!

I think missing training camp three years in a row is in the bag.

 

[Kingsfan1]

My personal opinion is that any structural defect to Vilardi's back has had sufficient time to heal and create a union with the affected disc (i.e. the stress fracture to his pars interarticularis facet joint has fused naturally). But again, because of his rapid bone growth in adolescence, I believe he also has (hopefully had - past tense) an imbalance between his muscle mass, muscle strenght, and muscle flexibility and his large frame. I believe this is the most important progress that needs to be made before he returns to sports. When Luc Robitaille said he is more concerned with Vilardi just getting healthy first, I believe he is referring to his muscles maturing and being capable of supporting the demands of his big body.

We have heard multiple times that Vilardi has to follow a protocol that I believe is to build up his core muscle strength to alleviate his spine from bearing the load. But it's kind of like a chicken and the egg catch-22. How do you develop core strength if you have a muscle imbalance and you need your body to grow more muscle mass in order to reach a balance? That is why there can be no timeline. It's up to Gabe's body to develop over time. And he can't afford to hit the weights and try to build muscle that way when he is trying to avoid putting a load on his back.

I really hope so , Because I’m beginning to worry what Vilardi might have is ankylosing spondilytis. It’s a rare disease/condition that affects the back , spine , back muscles , upper neck and knees , because the pain bounces back and forth . 1 in every 100,000 people I believe get it or those were the statistics back when I would research about it . I’ve seen this condition first hand because my father has it and I still have horrific memories that bring me to tears sometimes when I think about it and how far I’ve come now .

There were times my family and I would wake up at 2,3,4,5 am from my fathers screams in his sleep because the pain was to hard to deal with . He’s been a soldier his entire life and my biggest hero because of how he dealt with it . He would just sit on the couch close his eyes and yell in pain but fight through it because he didn’t wanna be a pill addict and he didn’t want it to affect his family. He never once took pain killers even when the pain brought him to his knees and us to tears because I’ve never seen a grown man vulnerable and cry and yell in pain like that and there is nothing we can do about it . He worked and provided for my family with this pain and made it worse and worse . Now he’s slouched over completely and his neck is paralyzed complete no movement because of a car accident and his bones being so weak , everything shattered .

There’s a reason why I sound ignorant at times and mention how much I make now because we grew up so poor and shared 1 room as an entire family and seen it all coming from immigrant parents . As soon as I grew up a little and I had to grow up fast because of my fathers condition I started working at 12 and by the time I was 18 I didn’t allow my father to work anymore . He provided for us like a soldier the least I can do is provide for my family (wife and children) and my parents who gave me their all and continue to do so .

Til today ankylosing spondilytis affects my father and brings him to his knees sometimes because it weakens your muscles and brings strong pain to the area . Over time like someone mentioned the muscles in lower back and around spine /discs fuse and become stronger , my father has slip discs and herniated discs as well because of this but he tells me that the pain isn’t in his lower back anymore when it comes it’s the upper neck and knees . So it’s very scary because it jumps around , I don’t know I hope Vilardi doesn’t have it but if he does I don’t think he should ever play the game again unfortunately, or else he will be damaged for good .

 

[jfont]

OMG

wish the best for your dad Kingsfan1

 

[Kingsfan1]

OMG

wish the best for your dad Kingsfan1

Thank you brother appreciate it

 

[RossLonsberryFan]

I really hope so , Because I’m beginning to worry what Vilardi might have is ankylosing spondilytis. It’s a rare disease/condition that affects the back , spine , back muscles , upper neck and knees , because the pain bounces back and forth . 1 in every 100,000 people I believe get it or those were the statistics back when I would research about it . I’ve seen this condition first hand because my father has it and I still have horrific memories that bring me to tears sometimes when I think about it and how far I’ve come now .

There were times my family and I would wake up at 2,3,4,5 am from my fathers screams in his sleep because the pain was to hard to deal with . He’s been a soldier his entire life and my biggest hero because of how he dealt with it . He would just sit on the couch close his eyes and yell in pain but fight through it because he didn’t wanna be a pill addict and he didn’t want it to affect his family. He never once took pain killers even when the pain brought him to his knees and us to tears because I’ve never seen a grown man vulnerable and cry and yell in pain like that and there is nothing we can do about it . He worked and provided for my family with this pain and made it worse and worse . Now he’s slouched over completely and his neck is paralyzed complete no movement because of a car accident and his bones being so weak , everything shattered .

There’s a reason why I sound ignorant at times and mention how much I make now because we grew up so poor and shared 1 room as an entire family and seen it all coming from immigrant parents . As soon as I grew up a little and I had to grow up fast because of my fathers condition I started working at 12 and by the time I was 18 I didn’t allow my father to work anymore . He provided for us like a soldier the least I can do is provide for my family (wife and children) and my parents who gave me their all and continue to do so .

Til today ankylosing spondilytis affects my father and brings him to his knees sometimes because it weakens your muscles and brings strong pain to the area . Over time like someone mentioned the muscles in lower back and around spine /discs fuse and become stronger , my father has slip discs and herniated discs as well because of this but he tells me that the pain isn’t in his lower back anymore when it comes it’s the upper neck and knees . So it’s very scary because it jumps around , I don’t know I hope Vilardi doesn’t have it but if he does I don’t think he should ever play the game again unfortunately, or else he will be damaged for good .

That would be a career ending condition in my opinion. The Kings have repeatedly used the term “chronic condition” to describe Vilardi’s problems. Ankylosing Spondylitis is a degenerative condition that progressively worsens. It’s an arthritic condition that inflames the spine and that pain cascades throughout the muscles and nerves close to the spinal chord.

I think the Kings would tell us that his career is over.

 

[RossLonsberryFan]

Thank you brother appreciate it

There are a number of spinal injuries that begin with similar spelling but aren’t the same thing. But they can be easily confused with each other.

Examples:

Spondylysis
Spondylitis
Spondylolysis
Spondylolysthesis

The last two conditions are related. But the first two are independent of the others.

 

[HookKing]

The annual tradition of Gabe Vilardi failing to attend and participate in any rookie/development camps has been going strong for three straight years now. He can do it!

He was at rookie camp last year.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

He was at rookie camp last year.

Nope.
Rookie Camp: Alignment, tournament broadcasts, Walker, Rempal, JAD - LA Kings Insider

-Gabriel Vilardi (back) isn’t a rookie camp participant but has progressed in his skating and was watching the morning’s proceedings from ice level. He won’t play in the Vegas tournament but is trending in the right direction in advance of main camp.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Here’s another highlight from the best of Vilardi at rookie camp.
Injured Vilardi not participating in rookie camp, training camp - LA Kings Insider

Fans hoping to catch Gabriel Vilardi in action at next week’s rookie games against Vegas will unfortunately have to wait longer to see the club’s top draft pick in action. The Kings announced Thursday that Vilardi, the Windsor Spitfires forward selected 11th overall at the 2017 NHL Draft, will miss all on-ice activity at Los Angeles’ upcoming rookie camp and training camp due to a back sprain.

 

[johnjm22]

Every time I see this thread get bumped I click on it hoping for a positive update. Every time I'm dissapointed.

 

[HookKing]

Here’s another highlight from the best of Vilardi at rookie camp.
Injured Vilardi not participating in rookie camp, training camp - LA Kings Insider

He was at one of the camps last year. Because I watched him very carefully.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Every time I see this thread get bumped I click on it hoping for a positive update. Every time I'm dissapointed.

Nope, still just the same 10-15 people waiting with bated breath to say I told you so, and any positive news will be met with the same negativity.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

He was at one of the camps last year. Because I watched him very carefully.

I believe he took the ice to test himself, but he hasn't been a full participant in any camps and hasn't participated in any games or scrimmages.