Vincent Iorio claimed off NHL waivers by San Jose Sharks
Vincent Iorio is headed to California.
The 22-year-old defenseman was claimed off NHL waivers by the San Jose Sharks on Thursday and will immediately head out west to join his new team. Iorio was waived by the Washington Capitals on Wednesday so that the team could have an open roster spot to activate veteran defenseman Dylan McIlrath from injured reserve.
The Coquitlam, British Columbia native made the Capitals’ Opening Night roster for the first time in his career but was a healthy scratch in all four of the club’s games to begin the 2025-26 campaign.
Iorio, the Capitals’ top pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, won back-to-back Calder Cup championships with the AHL’s Hershey Bears in 2023 and 2024 and has played in 190 career AHL games. He has gotten into nine career NHL games for the Caps.
Iorio made his NHL debut against the Sharks in March of 2023, assisting on an Alex Ovechkin goal in an 8-3 Capitals win. He joins a San Jose defense corps already occupied by former Capitals teammate Dmitry Orlov. The Sharks had an open roster spot after placing defender Timothy Liljegren on injured reserve.
If the Sharks were to place Iorio back on waivers and the Capitals are the only team to make a claim, they could send Iorio straight to the AHL’s Bears.
We’re all Hendrix Lapierre about the Vincent Iorio waiver claim
If there’s one person who took the news harder than anyone else on the Capitals, Hendrix Lapierre would be the guy. A longtime teammate of Iorio’s in the minors, Lapierre posted a sad face emoji on his Instagram Story along with a goodbye post from the Hershey Bears shortly after the news broke at 2 pm.
Lapierre’s sadness is well-founded. Lapierre began his professional career with the Hershey Bears at the same time as Iorio. The two were roommates there, dedicating much of their off-ice time to improving and reaching the NHL together.
“I think we talked for the first time at Canada’s World Junior Camp,” Lapierre told RMNB in 2023. “I knew Vinny was a draft pick of the Capitals, so I introduced myself and he introduced himself too, and we kind of clicked from there.”
“We share the same mindset in a way,” Iorio added.
The skaters both played crucial parts in the Hershey Bears winning back-to-back Calder Cup championships in 2023 and 2024. And like an old married couple, they could seemingly complete each other’s sentences.
While Iorio didn’t have much of an NHL future in Washington, he will now be able to live out his dream with the Sharks. And while that’s great, it doesn’t completely take the sting, or I guess bite, out of it.
Ravens Legend Ray Lewis Urges NFL to Investigate Referees After Steelers’ Controversial Loss to Bengals: “They Got Robbed, and the League Can’t Ignore This.”
Cincinnati, OH – October 14, 2025 — Even the fiercest rival the Pittsburgh Steelers have ever known couldn’t stay silent after what unfolded on Thursday Night Football. Ravens Hall of Famer
Ray Lewis — the face of Baltimore’s defensive legacy — has broken his silence following the Steelers’ heartbreaking 31–33 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, calling for an official NFL investigation into what he labeled
“a disgrace to the game.”
“No one wanted the Steelers to lose more than I did — but not like this,” Lewis said. “The Steelers got robbed, and everyone who watched that game knows it. Those calls weren’t just wrong — they stole what this team fought for.”
His words echoed across the league, igniting an instant storm online as fans and analysts questioned the officiating that tilted momentum in Cincinnati’s favor. Two pivotal calls have since drawn heavy scrutiny — both shifting the outcome of one of the AFC North’s most heated battles.
With 2:52 left in the fourth quarter, quarterback Aaron Rodgers launched a deep pass toward DK Metcalf that was intercepted by Bengals corner Jordan Battle. Replays revealed the throw sailed inches beyond Metcalf’s fingertips before contact, appearing
uncatchable. Despite the magnitude of the play, referees refused to initiate a review, handing Cincinnati possession that led to the game-winning field goal.
Aaron Rodgers has ~words~ for the officials after this is ruled an INT
pic.twitter.com/vFav3z5qm6 — Jori Epstein (@JoriEpstein) October 17, 2025
The moment sparked outrage across X under the trending tag #RiggedTNF, with analysts calling it one of the season’s biggest officiating failures.
“That’s a play that changes standings, playoff implications, and locker rooms,” said former ref analyst Terry McAulay. “If that’s not reviewed, what is?”
Earlier, a questionable holding call on center
Zach Frazier in the third quarter erased a key conversion and killed a promising Steelers drive. On film, Frazier appeared to anchor perfectly — no grab, no twist, no pull — yet the 10-yard penalty forced a punt.
“That call was soft,” wrote ESPN’s Mina Kimes. “You can’t penalize clean blocking in that moment.”
Even Bengals fans admitted online that something felt off, noting the 11–4 penalty imbalance
that consistently pushed Pittsburgh backward. And while Cincinnati celebrated, Ray Lewis’ unexpected defense of his long-time rival stole the postgame spotlight.
“You don’t have to wear black and gold to see what happened,”
he said. “You don’t cheat the game to win it. If the NFL ignores this, then the message is clear — fairness is optional.”
The league has yet to release any official statement on the officiating controversy, but pressure is mounting for the NFL’s competition committee to review the tape.
As Lewis concluded, “The Bengals got the win. The Steelers got robbed. But what really lost tonight — was the integrity of football itself.”
