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Former Syracuse Crunch captain Mike Angelidis will play for the Stockton Heat in 2016-17.

(Scott Schild | sschild@syracuse.)

Former Syracuse Crunch captain Mike Angelidis is moving west for the next stage of his AHL career.

Angelidis said Monday morning that he has signed a 1-year, AHL deal with the Stockton Heat. Stockton is affiliated with the Calgary Flames.

Angelidis, 31, said he had some offers from Europe but didn't want to go there at this point in his career.

"I wasn't getting worried,'' Angelidis said of going so deep into the summer without a deal. "They (Stockton) had talked to us for the longest time. They had always been in play. I can look forward to playing and getting ready for the year. It seems like a good fit and we'll see how it goes.''

Angelidis had been the Crunch's captain for all four years of its affiliation with Tampa Bay. He was an unrestricted free agent and the Lightning declined to offer him another deal.



Angelidis said this will be the first AHL-only deal of his career. Such pacts contain no NHL component and are generally given to players outside the realm of an NHL team's immediate plans.

"I just wanted to play,'' Angelidis said. "If I do well, maybe they switch me to an NHL deal.''

The deal moves Angelidis to the new frontier of the AHL. Stockton is one of the second-year western franchises and draws Angelidis a long ways from his hometown near Toronto. Stockton is also one of the Pacific Division teams that plays just 68 regular season games, compared to 76 most of the rest of the AHL.

"It was always nice being in Syracuse, being near home,'' Angelidis said. "Hopefully I do well in the west. It will probably be a different style of game. I think it's going to be a different experience. It will be different going out there. I think it will be exciting for my family.''

The signing also likely deprives Crunch fans of an Angelidis homecoming. It's doubtful Syracuse and Stockton will play in the regular season, and since they are in opposite conferences could only meet in the Calder Cup Final.

"It would have been nice to play the Crunch, but, hey, you never know,'' Angelidis said. "Maybe we can meet in the playoffs.''

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