When Louie Caporusso, a senior alternate captain on the Michigan hockey team, was asked to appear in a video promoting a Valentine's Day contest sponsored by the university's athletic department, he agreed immediately.

Even if it meant being proclaimed a love expert on a 56-second video in which his acting skills were put to the test, portraying a "cheesy infomercial type of a guy" celebrating a holiday Caporusso acknowledged he isn't a big fan of.

"I didn't know it would be such a big hit," Caporusso said Thursday. "But I guess it's catching on."

That's putting it mildly. By Friday morning, the video has more than 14,000 views - a statistic that isn't likely to find its way into the box score this weekend when No. 13-ranked Michigan faces Ohio State at Yost Ice Arena (7:35 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Big Ten Network).

Caporusso's cameo appearance is part of a marketing promotion for a Valentine's Day contest promising a prize package that includes dinner at the Chop House and tickets to the March 5 Michigan-Michigan State men's basketball game at Crisler Arena.

The contest runs through Sunday.

The video was shot in one take - a challenge for Caporusso, who admitted catching items being thrown at him while looking into a bright studio light wasn't the easiest. But Caporusso's difficulties haven't kept the video from being an overnight hit, being shared on Facebook pages and other Internet sites.

"My family has laughed at it really hard," Caporusso said. "Friends and my family have probably given me more feedback on it than my teammates have."

So what does he think of being characterized as an expert on love?

"That should work well with the ladies, huh?" Caporusso said.

And possibly with his teammates.

In a video interview with The Michigan Daily, goalie Shawn Hunwick said he has already consulted with Caporusso in planning a special Valentine's Day outing.

"Louie is all over me making sure I've got everything right," Hunwick says in the interview. "Hopefully, I won't screw up."

Yet Caporusso, who is Italian and whose full name is Luigi, isn't overly fond of Valentine's Day, which arrives on Monday. As of yet, the 5-foot-10, 190-pound 2007 third-round pick of the Ottawa Senators, has no plans, making Caporusso wonder what kind of love expert can't get a date on his own for a day he's not completely sold on.

The key word being completely.

"I'm not a big fan (of Valentine's Day)," Caporusso said. "If you're going to be romantic, I think you should do it on your own day. You should create your own day. I don't think it's romantic to do it when everyone else is doing it.

"But the girls like it, so I guess I have to say I like it, too."

Jeff Arnold covers Michigan hockey for AnnArbor.com and can be reached at (734) 623-2554 or by e-mail at jeffarnold@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeffreyparnold.