New York Rangers defenseman Tony DeAngelo (77) gets in front of Buffalo Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe (19) with the puck in the first period at KeyBank Center on Jan. 28, 2021.Mark Konezny/USA TODAY Sports via Reuters
Tony DeAngelo was sent to the New York Rangers’ practice unit Monday, one day after the team waived the high-priced defenceman, who was on the ice as his team surrendered four goals in a 5-4 overtime loss Saturday to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
DeAngelo, 25, signed a two-year, US$9.6-million contract extension in October after a season in which he scored 15 goals and had 53 points, both career highs, in 68 games. He had only one assist and a minus-six rating in six games this season for the Rangers, who were 2-4-2 before Monday’s scheduled game.
According to multiple news reports, DeAngelo and goaltender Alexandar Georgiev had a physical confrontation after Saturday night’s loss. Just before Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby scored the winning goal, DeAngelo and Georgiev appeared to have a miscommunication over handling the puck behind the Rangers’ net.
“We had an incident that happened,” Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton said. “It’s in our room, we’re dealing with it. This is one of the ways we’re dealing with it. Our team is ready to move on.”
After DeAngelo cleared waivers Monday, the Rangers had the option of sending him to their AHL affiliate in Hartford, Connecticut, assigning him to the Rangers’ practice team or releasing him outright.
Assigning DeAngelo to the Hartford Wolf Pack would have subtracted US$1.075-million from his US$4.8-million salary-cap hit. The Rangers have no opportunity to buy out the remainder of DeAngelo’s contract until the summer.
Instead, the Rangers will pursue a trade.
“He has played his last game for the Rangers,” Gorton said. “What happens going forward, I don’t have the answer for that. He’s been assigned to our taxi squad. We’ll look right now to see if there’s another place for him to play.”