"It's been brutal," Cunningham said of his recovery. "It's been an incredibly tough challenge. Basic tasks that you never thought would be hard have become hard for me. It's been a difficult experience but things are really moving along for me now. I'm up and running and walking and working out, getting back to feeling like myself."
The Coyotes have hired Cunningham to scout Pacific Division teams in the NHL and AHL, and to help develop young players within the organization. Recently, he attended Hockey Operations Department meetings to get a sense of his new role.
"It's going to be a bit of a learning process for me to start," Cunningham said. "I think everyone kind of has their own philosophy for ways of doing things, and you kind of have to figure it out yourself as you go … I think I'm ready for it. I've been around pro hockey now for six years playing, and I think you learn a lot about, while you're playing, how the business side of it works. I'm excited about the opportunity ahead. It's a great way for me to stay involved in hockey, and it's something else for me to strive and push forward for."
Cunningham is grateful to the Coyotes for this opportunity. He first joined the team in 2015 when they claimed him off waivers from the Boston Bruins. He played 29 games for the Coyotes at the NHL level, and 63 NHL games overall.
"Laying in that hospital bed a couple months back, (I didn't) really know what the future held for me, what I was going to do," Cunningham said. "The Coyotes presented this opportunity and it gives me a chance to stay in the game of hockey … It's obviously not exactly what I had hoped to be doing at this time, but things happen in life. I think this is the next step for me, and I'm hoping that I can bring a lot to the table and try to help improve the organization as much as I can."
Cunningham appears to be approaching his new gig with the same drive that helped him reach team captain status in the AHL last season.