Kyle Capobianco had a rough final year with the Arizona Coyotes.
In the third round of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, the Coyotes elected to draft a young defenseman from Mississauga, Ontario. Kyle Capobianco would go on to play from the Sudbury Wolves in the OHL to becoming a significant part of the Arizona Coyotes’ AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners.
Games Played: 45
Goals: 2
Assists: 7
TOI/Games Played: 16:00
PP TOI: 25:38
PK TOI: 6:26
After years of going back and forth between the Arizona Coyotes and Tucson Roadrunners, Capobianco finally had a chance at the big league. He had to clear waivers if the team wanted to send him back to the Roadrunners, and they weren’t going to risk losing him for nothing.
Not only did the contract situation work in Capobianco’s favor, but injuries also decimated the Coyotes’ defensive group. It’s hard to think of a better situation for a defenseman looking to crack the roster.
Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Capobianco set career highs in games played (45), goals (2), assists (7), and points (9), but you would be hard-pressed to say he earned a spot with the Coyotes.
There were early signs that the team didn’t have much faith in Capobianco. The Coyotes called up most of the defensive prospects from the Roadrunners, and they played them over Capobianco.
J.J Moser and Dysin Mayo got games over Capobianco, despite Moser being a newly drafted player and Mayo having only played in the AHL. Additionally, the team called up Cam Dineen and Victor Söderström, who both played when Capobianco was in the press box.
When the season ended, it ended Capobianco’s time with the Coyotes. Cap was a restricted free agent who became an unrestricted free agent after the team elected not to tender him a qualifying offer.
Grade: D
Future:
Capobianco signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Winnipeg Jets last week that will see him earn $1.525 million if he spends both years in the NHL. Capobianco has shown that he can be a good AHL defenseman, and maybe he can make it work with a different team and a different system.
Unfortunately, it’s not hard to see why the Coyotes and Capobianco have gone their separate ways. Capobianco had issues with injuries in his previous call-ups and wasn’t able to make much of an impact this past year. So, combined with being drafted by a prior GM, it makes sense that the two are parting way.
Capobianco has been with the organization since being drafted in 2015, and he was a big part of the Tucson Roadrunners, so hopefully, he will have a great career with the Winnipeg Jets.