Tony DeAngelo Makes Big Decision For His Career

We heard reports in August that controversial defenseman Tony DeAngelo might be considering leaving the NHL and taking his career to Russia. On Monday, we got confirmation that the 8-year veteran of the New York Rangers, Carolina Hurricanes, and Philadelphia Flyers has indeed signed on with SKA St. Petersburg.

IT'S OFFICIAL ⚡️
Tony DeAngelo signs one-year contract with SKA #KHL pic.twitter.com/jjMazMNPe1
— Hockey News Hub (@HockeyNewsHub) September 23, 2024

DeAngelo had denied earlier in the summer that he was considering leaving North America, insisting he still had an NHL contract as his goal.

But there he was on Monday, in St. Petersburg.

"I'm excited to be here."

Tony DeAngelo on joining @hcSKA_News. pic.twitter.com/NInzIPiaot
— KHL (@khl_eng) September 23, 2024

"I'm excited to be here," said DeAngelo as he arrived at the rink. "I heard a lot about the history and all that comes with this city."

The 28-year-old right-shot D-man has had his contentious moments in the NHL, both on and off the ice, and his rough season with Carolina in 2023-24 seems to have paved his way out of the league. He was a healthy scratch on many occasions for the Canes in his second go-round with the team, and managed to play just 31 games.

Interestingly, DeAngelo becomes the sixth player on their SKA roster with past ties to the Hurricanes. He'll join his Carolina teammate from last season, Evgeny Kuznetsov in St. Petersburg.

The offensive blueliner DeAngelo had 210 points in 371 games in the NHL with a plus/minus rating of -23.