Tony DeAngelo has a history of trying to get into fights with players from the New York Rangers both when he was on the team and now that he’s a part of the Carolina Hurricanes.
DeAngelo’s plight to find a dance partner continued on Thursday night when his Hurricanes team fell in Game Three to the Rangers. During a TV timeout, DeAngelo seemingly challenged the entire Rangers bench to a fight as he dropped his stick, took his gloves off, and laid them on the ice in front of him.
All he received in return was looks of confusion and a laugh from Rangers forward Will Cuylle.
This isn’t the first time during the series that DeAngelo has tried to goad members of the Rangers into a bout with him. During Game Two in New York, he reportedly said that he’d fight anyone on the team’s roster. The same roster that includes the hulking Matt Rempe.
ESPN cameras and mics caught a specific mid-bench interaction during that game involving DeAngelo and K’Andre Miller where DeAngelo tells Miller that he’d fight him any time.
DeAngelo got no takers on his offer then or in Game Three. The Hurricanes would go on to lose a second straight game in overtime on Thursday night and now face elimination in Game Four on home ice.
The only real contribution Carolina got from DeAngelo in the game was a late, bad slashing penalty on Jacob Trouba. He also made a bad pinch on a puck in the third period which directly led to Alexis Lafreniere’s goal.
Maybe with less pressure on New York to win Game Four, DeAngelo will finally get his fight. The potential series-deciding game is scheduled for a 7 pm puck drop in Raleigh on Saturday.
