Penguins A to Z: What's next for Anthony Angello's brand of hockey?

With the Penguins’ 2021-22 season coming to a quick ending in the first round of the playoffs, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 54 individuals signed to an NHL contract — including those whose deals do not begin until the 2022-23 season — with the organization, from mid-level prospect Niclas Almari to top-six winger Jason Zucker.

Anthony Angello

Position: Right winger

Shoots: Right

Age: 26

Height: 6-foot-5

Weight: 210 pounds

2021-22 NHL statistics: Four games, zero points (zero goals, zero assists)

2021-22 AHL statistics: 44 games, 19 points (seven goals, 12 assists)

Contract: In the second two-year of a two-year contract with a salary cap hit of $725,000. Pending unrestricted free agent this offseason.

(Note: Angello is scheduled to become a Group 6 unrestricted free agent. Per Puckpedia, players with this designation must be 25 years old, have completed three or more professional seasons, have an expiring contract and have played less than 80 NHL games. For goaltenders, they must have 28 NHL games with more than 30 minutes of ice time.)

Acquired: Fifth-round draft pick (No. 145 overall), June 28, 2014

Last season: Anthony Angello had high hopes during training camp in September.

So high, that he even began speaking in the third person while boasting of playing “Anthony Angello Hockey” when he was asked how he could nail down a roster spot.

After an uneventful preseason, Angello cleared waivers Oct. 10 and was among the final round of cuts from the season-opening roster.

Poised to be a top-six winger with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Angello suffered an undisclosed injury upon reporting to that team and did not make his season debut until Dec. 11.

In late December, after seeing a surge in covid-19 cases, the NHL re-instituted taxi squad. That led to Angello being summoned to the taxi squad Dec. 31. After being shuffled between the NHL roster, the taxi squad and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a handful of times, Angello made his season debut at the NHL level Jan. 11.

Any hopes of seeing what Anthony Angello Hockey was all about were stymied, however, as Angello only saw 5:19 of ice time on eight shifts in a 4-1 road win against the Anaheim Ducks.

After being returned to the taxi squad Jan. 15 and then Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Jan. 18, Angello enjoyed his most steady deployment of the season over the next two-plus months.

While largely playing on a line with Alex Nylander and Sam Poulin, two former first-round picks, Angello appeared in 32 games and scored 15 points (six goals, nine assists).

Angello was recalled again to the NHL roster March 29 and appeared in three games, while primarily utilized on the fourth line. His biggest impact — literally — came during a 3-0 road loss to the New York Rangers when he injured Rangers forward Tyler Motte with a thunderous hip check.

After being returned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on April 11, Angello finished the season in the AHL. Appearing in five of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s six postseason games, Angello recorded one assist.

The future: Considering he played all of four NHL games this past season after appearing in 12 during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign, it’s hard to say Angello’s career is on an encouraging trajectory.

As one of the biggest players in the organization, Angello seems to possess plenty of the attributes that some members of current management seem to value. Namely, he is large and can play a somewhat hard game in a bottom-six role. And there aren’t many players in the organization who can claim they can do that.

Yet, when he has been given a sporadic chance to dress in an NHL game, he’s rarely been given a sufficient look by coaches.

At age 26, Angello is hardly a pressing priority for management this offseason and plenty of other forward prospects such as Filip Hallander and Radim Zohorna have surpassed him on the depth chart. Angello might just be allowed to walk without receiving a contract offer from the Penguins.

Regardless of the reasons, it certainly looks as if Anthony Angello Hockey will have to happen somewhere else next season.

Follow the Penguins all season long.