Faceoff Factor

Part 5: Caputi To Receive "Kennedy/Letang Treatment"

Eric Politowski | Pittsburgh Penguins

Sep 11, 11:46 AM | Hype this story!

Nearly three years ago, the Pittsburgh Penguins selected a left wing from Toronto, Ontario in the 4th round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Two seasons ago, 19-year-old power forward Luca Caputi finished his final junior season with the Niagara Ice Dogs, and was instantly inserted into the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton line-up, in the midst of a playoff series against the Hershey Bears.

It would only take ten minutes into the second period of play for Caputi to bury his first professional goal, five-hole. Then, with 15-seconds remaining in regulation, he set up W-B/S fan favorite Dennis Bonvie with what would end up being the final goal he would ever score.

That’s what Caputi does. He’s an impact player. He isn’t a game changer, like Malkin or Crosby. And he’s not expected to be. He excels at taking pucks to the net, and do the dirty work down-low that needs to be done to be successful. He also does not get rattled easily, which is good considering how much tougher the Atlantic Division, or even the East is getting these days.

Last season, his first official rookie year, had its fair share of ups and downs. He started the year off in a tiny slump, most likely due to his new role with a new team. He adapted quickly after the first month or so, and started impressing a lot of people.

At the mid-season mark, he had scored 28 points (10 G, 18 A), which kept him at the number 2 spot for overall rookie scoring. He went on to finish the year with 45 points (18 G, 27 A) in 66 games. A brief stint with Pittsburgh showed that he only needed exactly 2:03 total ice time to score his first career NHL goal.

On the day of the trading deadline, General Manager Ray Shero made a surprise move, demoting Caputi to the Wheeling Nailers of the East Coast Hockey League. This was a disciplinary move, simply to send a message and teach him a lesson. He would return to the AHL after playing in 3 games down there.

Many, myself included expect Caputi to make the team this year out of camp, depending on whether or not he has a strong preseason showing. It seems as if the organization will give the gritty forward the “Tyler Kennedy / Kris Letang treatment”.

To explain, he will follow in their footsteps in terms of being sent to the AHL for only a limited amount of games, and should see a permanent call-up soon afterwards.

Training camp kicks off on September 12th, and their first preseason game is only days away, September 15th.

Only time will tell if he is ready for “The Show”.