Tony DeAngelo opens up on fight with Alex Georgiev
Tony DeAngelo is telling his side of the story as he opens up on a fight with New York Rangers teammate Alex Georgiev in 2021 got him dropped from the team
Love him or hate him, controversy has followed Tony DeAngelo throughout his hockey career. From being suspended in junior hockey for an incident involving a teammate, to being suspended for assaulting a referee, DeAngelo is no stranger to being under the spotlight for negative reasons. Now, the unrestricted free agent is opening up on one of the most talked about incidents of his career.
Back in January of 2021, DeAngelo was put on waivers by the New York Rangers following what was reported to be an altercation between him and then Rangers goaltender Alexander Georgiev. With no one claiming him, DeAngelo was sent to the team's taxi squad, with then Rangers GM Jeff Gorton saying he would never play another game for the team. He didn't, and in July he was bought out of the remaining time on his contract.
Until now, DeAngelo had never publicly discussed the incident. But, in a new interview with "Morning Cuppa Hockey," DeAngelo confirmed the altercation and described what happened following a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
So, if I didn't yell at Georgie, Georgie wasn't going to turn around and do anything. That's a fact. So, obviously, I started it."
DeAngelo said he was surprised by Georgiev's reaction, which was to deliver him a headbutt with his goalie mask still on. DeAngelo said the headbutt left a small cut on his face. He admits he then hit Georgiev on the goalie mask with his stick, and the altercation was then broken up by teammates and not discussed further in the locker room. The next day, both were told not to come to the rink for practice.
DeAngelo said he found out about the waivers from Elliotte Friedman on X, which was known as Twitter at the time. Despite how he found it out, DeAngelo said it wasn't a total shock. He insisted he and Georgiev were fine with each other following the incident, adding they were never the best of buddies, but could have gotten past the incident if given the chance.
DeAngelo said Georgiev came up to him the next season while DeAngelo was playing for the Carolina Hurricanes and said hello, shook his hand, and hugged him. DeAngelo said that's what hockey players do, and he would do it right now if he saw Georgiev somewhere.
| POLL | ||
Do you think the New York Rangers were right to cut ties with Tony DeAngelo following the incident with Alexander Georgiev? | ||
| Yes | 78 | 68.4 % |
| No | 23 | 20.2 % |
| Not sure | 13 | 11.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
