Eastern Conference Eye Candy: Luca Caputi (Pittsburgh Penguins)

I'm certain it hasn't escaped any of your attention that Luca Caputi is fairly "easy on the eyes," so choosing him as our next Eye Candy is pretty much a no-brainer!!!




HOCKEY FACTOR:
Caputi began his hockey career in the minors for the Mississauga IceDogs (OHL) playing for four seasons (within which the IceDogs moved and became the Niagara IceDogs) - his final season being his most successful with 51 goals (ranking him third in the league) and 111 points (ranking him fourth in the league).

He was named to the OHL Second All-Star team in 2008.

He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the fourth round of the 2007 Entry Draft (111th overall).

Currently, in his second appearance on the Penguins NHL roster to fill the spot left while Chris Kunitz recovers from surgery, Cuputi has two point (1G, 1A) in three games, including his first goal of the season against the Atlanta Thrashers on January 5th; is averaging 11:56 minutes of ice time per game; has 26 points (13 G, 13A) in 36 games with the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Baby Pens (AHL); appeared in five games, posting one goal and four penalty minutes for the Penguins last season.

HOTNESS FACTOR:
Since Caputi is new to the NHL (and not much is written about them during their time in the AHL / OHL other than 'stats'), I couldn't find much about him as far as his personal life, but all we need to know may be what we see of him on the ice. He's a pretty sizeable forward (6'3, 209 pounds) and can keep up with Malkin on the second line.

His given name is Gianluca [Luca] Caputi.

Look at him and look at his team photo (above, not to the right) ... is that shadows created from his cheekbones or is that some type of zaney mustache / sideburns combo he has going on there?!! And he kept it for picture day?? BADASS!!!

He must also be a little bit of a "rebel-rouser" as he was reassigned to the Wheeling Nailers (ECHL) last season in March 2009 to be disciplined for "violation of team rules." According to the Citizens Voice Penguins Insider blog, that wasn't the first for Caputi to be disciplined (first offense was in January 2009). My question at the time was, "doesn't he know how good he has it? He's playing with the Penguins organization and was lucky enough to be called up - that was stupid!" Anyway, here's what HC Todd Reirden had to say about that incident:

"It’s a violation of team rules and that’s how it’s going to stay for now."

"It was a policy the players understood. … I’ve been in discussion with (Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma) during the matter as I am with the entire organization. I think our players understand how it will be dealt with now."

How long will Caputi and D'Aversa's stay in Wheeling? "That will depend upon how they do and how their work ethic and attitudes are at that level."

"In this case, the message we want to send to our players is it’s a privilege to be under an NHL contract, a privilege to be in an NHL organization, a privilege to be in the American Hockey and more importantly, it’s a privilege to be in Wilkes-Barre, which we think is the best place to play in the American Hockey League. For now, he’s been sent to Wheeling to learn from there."

DAMN STRAIGHT it's a privilege!! Honestly, I'd say he must've got his shit together to be recalled by the Penguins once again to fill in for Kunitz (good for him!)!! He's lucky (not many people get more than one second chance!)!!

It probably wouldn't surprise you, after reading the above, that he's a pretty good fighter that won't back down and has a few fights under his belt in the OHL and AHL. His latest was on December 9th VS Jonathan Sigalet (Syracuse Crunch). See more on the fight including video HERE at hockeyfights.com.