McKegney was born in Montreal, to a Nigerian father and Canadian mother, but was adopted soon thereafter, and raised by a white family in Sarnia, Ontario.

At age twenty, Tony McKegney signed a contract with the now defunct World Hockey Association’s (WHA) Birmingham Bulls, only to see the owner illegally renege on the deal after fans threatened to boycott the team for having added a black player to its roster.

[4] However, the WHA’s loss became the NHL’s gain, as McKegney would go on to score over 300 career goals, including 40 in the 1987-88 season.

His total of 78 points in one season would remain the highest ever recorded by a black player until Jarome Iginla's breakout 2001-2002 campaign.

He felt that he could be a veteran leader for the expansion club, but he didn't crack the roster and instead played 23 games with the San Diego Gulls in 1992-93 before retiring.