Jim Benning has done well to add some goalscoring wingers to the Canucks’ prospect pool in Brock Boeser, Nikolay Goldobin, and Jonathan Dahlen. If those players are going to see success in the NHL in the future, however, they’ll need a playmaking centre to get them the puck.
That’s one of the big reasons why the Canucks should look to pick a centre at fifth overall in this year’s draft. Another big reason is that there are a number of quality centres who should be available, from the highly-touted Casey Mittelstadt and Cody Glass to the slightly more under-the-radar Elias Pettersson and Martin Necas.
But the best playmaking centre available to the Canucks might just be Gabriel Vilardi.
McKeen’s rates Vilardi as the best playmaker of the draft, saying “Vilardi has eyes three seconds into the future.” His vision and ability to execute quick passes in tight quarters puts him at the top of this draft class in creating scoring chances for his teammates. He put that playmaking on display in the Spitfires’ successful bid to win the Memorial Cup, as he put up 7 assists in the 4-game tournament.
What aids him in his playmaking is his size and strength. International Scouting Services lists him at 6’3” and 201 lbs, so he already has NHL size, and he uses that to his advantage on the cycle, protecting the puck effectively and getting it to his teammates in front of the net.
He doesn’t just use his size to protect the puck, but regularly wins puck battles to get the puck in the first place, both defensively and on the forecheck. Off turnovers, he’s quick to create scoring chances, getting teammates the puck in shooting position or driving to the net himself.
Unlike some junior players who rely only on their size to dominate, Vilardi combines that size with sublime skill. McKeen’s ranks him third in overall skill behind only Nico Hischier and Nolan Patrick and he can beat defender’s 1-on-1 with his quick hands. Combine that skill with his size and it’s no wonder he’s a nightmare to divest of the puck, as he can easily keep the puck out of a defender’s range then drag it inside when they overreach.
In addition, he has great finish, whether tucking in pucks after a quick deke or on the wraparound, or beating goaltenders cleanly with the quick release on his snapshot. Combine his finish with his quick hands in close quarters and his ability to protect the puck, and you have one of the most dangerous players in the draft below the hashmarks.
Vilardi finished the season with 29 goals and 61 points in 49 games, but it’s not just his offensive game that scouts praise. He’s a well-rounded player, capable of playing both at centre and on the wing, though he seems most likely to land at centre in the NHL. He also plays in all situations and is reliable defensively, consistently making sound decisions without the puck. According to his coach, who tracks advanced statistics for the team, he's also an analytics darling: "The enhanced stats tell us [Vilardi] is the engine on this team because whoever plays with him, their Corsi numbers go straight up and are increased. Without him, they drop significantly."
Several draft rankings place Vilardi in the top-5. ISS and Corey Pronman have him third overall, while McKeen’s and Future Considerations have him at fourth. But even those who don’t see him as a top-5 pick have him in the top-10.
So, Vilardi is a highly-regarded intelligent power forward with a playmaker’s vision and a goalscorer’s finish, who competes hard at both ends of the ice and consistently wins puck battles in all three zones. On top of all that, he’s also one of the younger players in the draft: he doesn’t turn 18 until August.
What’s not to like?
There’s just one issue that keeps coming up in scouting reports: his skating. The reports are pretty much unanimous: he lacks both acceleration and top end speed. Even in highlight packages, you see him get caught from behind on breakaways.
That lack of speed is concerning: he’s effective on the forecheck in junior, but how effective will he be in the NHL if he can’t close down on defenders quickly enough? Can he find open space to create scoring chances in the NHL if he doesn’t have that footspeed? Without acceleration out of the corners, will he be able to beat defenders off the boards?
At the same time, we’ve seen great players overcome that lack of skating ability, whether it’s Bo Horvat turning the weakness of his skating into one of his biggest strengths, to elite players like John Tavares and Leon Draisaitl erase those concerns by proving themselves in the NHL.
Is Vilardi one of those players that can overcome his subpar skating to become a number one centre? That’s the question the Canucks will have to consider if he’s available at fifth overall.
