Forward Gabriel Vilardi, one of the Winnipeg Jets` key offensive players, is making progress towards returning to the lineup.
Vilardi, sidelined with an upper-body injury, skated during warmups for Sunday`s Game 4 matchup against the St. Louis Blues but ultimately did not dress for the game. Jets head coach Scott Arniel had indicated on Saturday that a decision on Vilardi`s availability would be made just before game time.
Vilardi last played on March 23 against Buffalo. Following that game, he was initially given a week-to-week prognosis for his return.
Despite the injury absence, the 25-year-old had a strong season, achieving career bests in goals (27) and assists (34) for a total of 61 points over 71 games.
His path back to the ice included participating in a non-contact practice session on Monday, before moving to wear a regular jersey during Saturday`s practice.
In a separate roster move on defence, Hadyn Fleury entered the lineup for Game 4, replacing Logan Stanley.
Game 4 commenced at 1 p.m. ET/noon CT. The series is scheduled to return to Winnipeg for Game 5 on Wednesday, with faceoff set for 9:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. CT.
