Anytime two different organizations give up on a player before their 23rd birthday it should be a major cause for concern. Considering teams rely on first-round picks as either assets or a pipeline to quality talent, giving up on one is a major taboo. In fact, it’s why former first-round picks hang around in the league for so long, teams will give them the benefit of the doubt.
In the case of Tony DeAngelo and the New York Rangers, it’s been an uphill climb over these two years with the organization. As a former pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning organization, the New Jersey native was obviously talented as an amateur player.