Cirella joined the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) at the age of 17[3] and served as team captain as the Generals won the J. Ross Robertson Cup as OHL champions in 1983.
He was traded along with Claude Loiselle from the New Jersey Devils to the Quebec Nordiques for Walt Poddubny on June 17, 1989.
[5] Cirella played for the Rockies, Devils, Nordiques, New York Rangers, Florida Panthers and Ottawa Senators during an NHL career that lasted 14 seasons.
He was the last former Colorado Rockies player in the NHL at the time of his final game.
He retired in 1997 after playing one year in Germany with the Kölner Haie of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga.