Due to his offensive abilities and strong season for the Rangers last year, many in the hockey community were shocked to see the Rangers place defenseman Tony DeAngelo on waivers this morning. That was however, until reports came out regarding an altercation between DeAngelo and goaltender Alexandar Georgiev. Reports say DeAngelo attacked Georgiev in the tunnel while heading to the locker room. It is believed the disagreement spurred due to a miscue on ice between the two that eventually led to Crosby’s OT GWG.
Here's the miscommunication between DeAngelo and Georgiev from last night's overtime + the Penguins' game-winning goal that he was on the ice for #NYR pic.twitter.com/KhlJJPtrL8
— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) January 31, 2021
Dating back to his time in juniors, DeAngelo has had his issues both on and off-ice the ice from inappropriate slurs to an altercation with an official. While the Rangers have tried to curb his inappropriate behavior, this seems to be the last straw for DeAngelo in New York.
Drafted by Tampa Bay, DeAngelo would go on to play for the Syracuse Crunch, Arizona Coyotes, Tucson Roadrunners, Hartford Wolfpack, and the New York Rangers. He found his home in New York after a breakout 2018-19 season.
When asked to comment on the situation, Rangers Coach David Quinn had this to say:
#NYR coach David Quinn on waiving Tony DeAngelo: “Things happen in pro sports and that was a decision the organization made.”
“it’s part of the business. It’s a decision we made. We’ll see how it plays out.”
Asked if performance related,
“I don’t want to get into specifics”— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) January 31, 2021
Although it is unconfirmed, there is some belief Ranger forward Chris Kreider stepped in to diffuse the situation and Kreider himself got involved physically with DeAngelo. Regardless, DeAngelo is on a 2-year, 4.8 million dollar contract. Although he could be a good addition for a team needing more offense from the back end, it is unlikely many teams will be willing to deal with the issues that have come with DeAngelo; thus making his NHL status questionable going forward.
