Winnipeg Jets forward Gabe Vilardi is expected to miss four-to-six weeks with a strained MCL, head coach Rick Bowness announced Wednesday, according to the Winnipeg Free Press' Mike McIntyre.

Vilardi sustained the injury during the Jets' 5-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night. He went down awkwardly after taking contact from Kings forward and former teammate Blake Lizotte along the boards early in the first period and didn't return to the contest.

Lizotte received a tripping penalty as a result of the play.

Vilardi joined Winnipeg in June as part of the package that sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to Los Angeles. The new Jet has one assist in three games so far this campaign.

An 11th overall pick by the Kings in 2017, Vilardi spent the first four seasons of his career on the West Coast. He put up 41 goals and 78 points in 152 games with Los Angeles and enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2022-23 in which he scored 23 goals - including six game-winners - in 63 outings.

The 24-year-old signed a two-year, $6.875-million extension with the Jets as a restricted free agent in July.

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