Report reveals why Flyers are struggling to trade Tony DeAngelo

Two days later and no trade in sight. The Philadelphia Flyers were closing in on a deal that would send Tony DeAngelo back to the Carolina Hurricanes over the weekend, but things have hit a snag.

Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that it is likely because of some hesitation from the NHL, over potential cap circumvention. DeAngelo was meant to go to Carolina with the Flyers retaining some salary, but since he was traded from the Hurricanes less than a year ago, it raised some red flags.

As LeBrun explains, this isn’t exactly a regular situation. The Hurricanes traded him as an RFA, meaning they didn’t sign this contract, and Daniel Briere, the Flyers’ GM, wasn’t in place yet when Philadelphia inked this deal. There’s no real circumvention here, just a player that has worn out his welcome and a team looking to create cap space.

The league is expected to meet with both teams in Nashville this week for the draft, where they will have to decide. Either sign off on it early or force the teams to wait until July 9, when the calendar year since last summer’s trade would be up.

It does still seem like things are headed in that direction, though a two-week delay can change things considerably at this time of year.