Former Philadelphia Flyers defenceman Tony DeAngelo clears unconditional waivers and the top 10 NHL goaltending prospects for 2023-24

After a stalled trade involving the Carolina Hurricanes, the Philadelphia Flyers have placed defenceman Tony DeAngelo on unconditional waivers with the intention of buying him out.

And on Saturday, DeAngelo cleared waivers making him a free agent and able to sign with any team.

Philadelphia was given a 72-hour window following the resolution of a pending arbitration case with Noah Cates to execute a buyout. Waiting for the Hurricanes to make a deal was cutting it too close, as Carolina was also looking to possibly acquire Erik Karlsson. This move does not terminate his contract but grants him free agency.

Despite the blueliner having a decent offensive season scoring 11 goals and 42 points in 70 games, his defensive play was lacking as he ranked last among all NHLers in defensive goals above replacement with -15.1, resulting in the ninth-worst overall GAR with -9.5. He also began to have troubles off the ice clashing with head coach John Tortorella. The consequences saw DeAngelo healthy scratched on seven occasions throughout the season.

This is the defenceman’s second time being bought out by a team, making him the only player to have ever been bought out twice. In 2020-21, he was bought out by the New York Rangers after appearing in only six games. He was waived during the season.

Here’s more details on the move reported by Daily Faceoff’s Scott Maxwell:

DeAngelo, 27, had one year remaining on his two-year, $5 million contract that he signed with the Flyers in the 2022 offseason after they acquired his signing rights from the Carolina Hurricanes. His buyout would come with a cap hit of $1,666,667 for the next two seasons, still saving the Flyers $3,333,333 in cap space in 2023-24.

NHL’S top 10 goaltending prospects for 2023-24

In recent years fans have seen no shortage of high-quality puck-stopping talent grace the creases for teams across the NHL.

Stuart Skinner of the Edmonton Oilers, Philadelphia Flyers’ Carter Hart, Vancouver Canucks’ Thatcher Demko, Florida Panthers’ Spencer Knight, Minnesota Wild’s Filip Gustavsson, New York Islanders’ Ilya Sorokin, New York Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin, and Boston Bruins’ Jeremy Swayman are all prime examples of the more recent high-end opinions that have emerged in recent years.

But, the future is among us and it could possibly have a huge impact on prospect’s respective teams. There’s plenty of depth across the league and this may be one of the most fascinating prospect pools in a while.

Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis has compiled a list of the top 10 NHL goaltending prospects that are under 23 years of age, and have fewer than 25 games played. Here’s a quick look at the top three prospects from that list.

1. Jesper Wallstedt, 20 (Minnesota Wild)

Wallstedt almost feels underrated by the average fan, and he shouldn’t be. Taken 20th overall in 2021, the 6-foot-3 goaltender had a strong first year in North America with Iowa. His numbers don’t come close to Dustin Wolf’s, but an 18-15-5 record with a .908 save percentage as a rookie No. 1 is nothing to sneeze at. Stylistically, Wallstedt has everything going for me. He’s mature, controls his movements as well as anyone and has the size NHL teams love. Another year in the AHL won’t hurt, but just about every scout I’ve talked to thinks Wallstedt is going to be a certified NHL star before too long.

3. Yaroslav Askarov, 21 (Nashville Predators)

Like Wolf, Askarov has a bit of competition on the main club he has to overcome before getting his big break. Drafted 11th overall in 2020, the 6-foot-4 goaltender made a big impact in his first year in North America, putting up some of the best numbers in the AHL. He also made his NHL debut in January, losing 4-3 to Montreal. Still, it was a good showing for someone who just needed playing time after losing some key action due to COVID-19 and strong competition in the SKA St. Petersburg system the past few years. He got that in Milwaukee, and it won’t be long until he’s gunning for the No. 1 job in Nashville – assuming he isn’t trade bait. For what it’s worth, I think the top three goalies here are extremely close.

5. Sebastian Cossa, 20 (Detroit Red Wings)

Cossa’s first pro season saw the 6-foot-6 keeper thrive with the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye. Playing 46 games as a 20-year-old is no small feat, and he even got into some AHL competition in the first half with Grand Rapids. He had some interesting outings, to say the least, but he’s athletic, competitive and uses his size to his advantage. He’s still a work in progress, but with the right coaching, the upside is incredible.