PHILADELPHIA — The Flyers acquired defenseman Tony DeAngelo on Friday from the Carolina Hurricanes, and it was the wrong kind of move for the wrong kind of player for all the wrong reasons.
For DeAngelo and a seventh-round draft pick, general manager Chuck Fletcher and the rest of the Flyers’ leadership surrendered three draft picks — a second-rounder in 2024, a third-rounder in ‘24, and a fourth-rounder Friday — and any benefit of the doubt that they understand the dilapidated condition of the franchise and the time required to repair it.
DeAngelo is 26, a native of Sewell, N.J., one of the NHL’s better offensive-minded defensemen, a talented player who can quarterback a power play. None of these attributes are in dispute. Under certain circumstances, trading for such a player makes all the sense in the world. The problem for the Flyers is that none of those circumstances apply to them.
