The Capitals have placed defenseman Vincent Iorio on waivers for the purpose of reassignment to AHL Hershey, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet relays Wednesday afternoon. Iorio’s active roster spot will likely go to fellow rearguard Dylan McIlrath, who’s expected to come off injured reserve later this week, head coach Spencer Carbery said (via Katie Adler of Russian Machine Never Breaks).
Iorio, 23 next month, was a second-round pick by the Capitals in 2021 and made his NHL debut with Washington in 2022-23. He’s only made nine NHL appearances in the years since, none of which came last season. In those nine games, the 6’4″ righty has managed an assist with a +1 rating while recording six blocks and five hits. He averaged just 11:20 per game but was looking to advance the puck, posting 18 shot attempts and getting half of them through on goal. His raw possession metrics weren’t promising, only controlling 41.8% of shot attempts at even strength despite seeing advantageous offensive zone deployment.
Waiver-eligible for the first time this year, Iorio brings an intriguing profile to the wire. He made Washington’s opening night roster as a healthy extra – and presumably the Caps felt they had a greater chance of sneaking him through if they avoided waiving him during the late-preseason rush. His recent minor-league performance, though, offers insight into why they’re comfortable taking the chance of losing him. His offense hasn’t developed since turning pro three years ago, recording around 20 points in 65 appearances each year. He had a 5-15–20 scoring line in 67 games in 2024-25 with a career-worst -4 rating. Should he clear successfully, he’ll be looking to build on those numbers in Year 4 in Hershey.
He’ll make way for McIlrath, who continues to stick around on Washington’s NHL roster. The past couple of years have been a rebirth for the former top-10 pick, who spent the bulk of his prime in the minors and was even Hershey’s captain from 2022-24 but stuck with the Caps’ top group all of last season. He was used sparingly as a No. 7/8 rearguard, recording two assists in 17 appearances, but that was still the most time at the top level he’d seen since making a career-high 34 appearances for the Rangers way back in 2015-16. The 33-year-old is effectively Washington’s enforcer and has 161 career penalty minutes in 92 games since making his NHL debut in 2013-14.
I have no idea what Washington’s management sees in McIlrath. Yeah he’s big and tough, but he’s slow, and handles the puck like a grenade. I guess they want Iorio to play, and not sit for weeks, and they don’t care if McIlrath doesn’t play. That is, if Iorio doesn’t get claimed.