Player Profile: Francesco Vilardi
Francesco Vilardi: Centre / Sudbury Wolves / 5’11″ 165 / 1/09/96
OHL Draft Ranking: 57th Overall
Selected: 3rd Round, 56th Overall
2012 Club Team: Greater Kingston Jr Frontenacs
Vilardi is a offensive minded forward who shows strong vision with the puck. He is a dynamic player in the offensive zone, showing strong finishing ability around the net. His natural instincts seem to indicate more of a shoot first player, but he does have some good play making ability and vision in the offensive zone. He is an excellent skater who shows explosive first few steps and very strong acceleration. He has some room to grow with his positional play in his own zone, improving his coverage and playing tighter man to man. He chases the puck a bit in all three zones, and need to improve his three zone positional play. He can also struggle in traffic; he does not play as well when he is consistently under duress. Would like to see him play with more of a chip on his shoulder and engage more often below the red line. He projects out as a top 6 forward, but one who may need some time in Tier II during the year.
