One name few people figured they’d hear pop up on trade deadline Monday was Tony DeAngelo of the New York Rangers. A player most insiders had forgotten about because his playing days with the team are pretty much over and done with, his name did make it into the conversation and in an interesting way.
Prior to the deadline closing, DeAngelo’s name came up as a potential option for the Montreal Canadiens. According to TSN’s Darren Dreger, the New York Rangers were willing to mutually terminate DeAngelo’s contract to allow him to pass through waivers and sign as a free agent. The idea was to free him up so he could sign with the Canadiens on a low-cost, team-friendly deal. If he’d done so, the Canadiens would have added an offensive defenseman on the cheap and DeAngelo would have had an opportunity in the NHL to rebound a little and make himself more attractive in the offseason.
Obviously, it didn’t pan out.
Dreger notes that DeAngelo opted not to accept the deal and chose instead to be bought out of his contract this summer. He had over $2.7 million reasons not to go for it. If DeAngelo has agreed to terminate his deal, he would have lost out on $1 million this year and $5.3 million next year. The other option was to be bought out by the Rangers — which most assume will happen in the summer — and he’ll lose $3.53 million (2/3 of next year’s $5.3M Salary). While he won’t get the chance to play NHL hockey, he saved himself close to $3 million by staying put.
What Would The Canadiens Have Done With DeAngelo?
It’s not clear what the Canadiens would have been offering on a short-term deal, but it likely wasn’t going to be much. The team didn’t have much cap space to work with and they weren’t looking for a top-four defenseman. In fact, he might not have played every game had he signed there.
This would have been a short-term rental play by GM Marc Bergevin to add a small piece that had some potential upside. If it worked, he’d have looked like a genius. If it didn’t, no harm, no foul.
More must-reads: