Düsseldorfer EG of Germany’s Deutsche Eishockey Liga have signed center/left winger Tyler Angle, per Tobias Kemberg of D.Sports. It’s a one-year deal for the Niagara Falls native, who heads overseas early in his career.
Angle, 23, had spent the last four years playing in the Blue Jackets organization. He played mostly for their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, but he did log two games with Columbus in each of the past two seasons.
Early on, Angle looked like he might be a gem after falling to the seventh round of the 2019 draft, selected on the heels of a strong season with the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires. With the OHL pausing its operations for 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Angle turned pro early on an amateur tryout with the Monsters. He immediately made an impact, posting 11 goals and 24 points in 23 games, leading the team in scoring during the shortened campaign.
Angle’s entry-level contract with the Blue Jackets went into effect in 2021-22, but the 5’10”, 172-lb forward never regained his scoring touch. His point-per-game production nearly halved, limited to 11 goals and 37 points in 71 contests the following year. By last season, Angle was no longer a fixture in the Cleveland lineup, only playing in 40 of 72 games and recording 16 points (eight goals, eight assists) with a -11 rating. On the heels of that performance, the Jackets opted not to issue him a qualifying offer when his ELC expired this summer, making him an unrestricted free agent.
His brief NHL usage did yield a goal, coming against the Sabres on April 14, 2023. He posted a -3 rating across his four appearances, five shots on goal, and an average of 9:54 per game while going 11-for-27 in the dot (40.7%).
