Matt Rempe has been a joy to watch in his first five NHL games. He dropped the gloves with veteran Matt Martin in his first-ever NHL game — in which he also became the first player in NHL history to make his debut in an outdoor game — and since then, that’s been pretty much the theme since.
In the first period of Sunday’s game in Columbus, between the Rangers and the Blue Jackets, Rempe did what he’s been doing for every game except one: Fought.
Rempe dropped the mitts with Mathieu Olivier early in the first period, and he’s going to have to get used to this.
Every heavyweight in the league wants their go with Rempe, who has had four fights in five career games. Rempe traded punches with Mathieu before Olivier landed several tough blows, eventually sending Rempe to the ice. Rempe was sent to the locker room but returned before the first period ended.
Rempe is already a huge fan favorite in Manhattan, and it’s rare to see a tough guy enter the NHL in the same fashion as Rempe has done.
But now, voices are concerned that Rempe may need to be more selective with his opponents going forward.
Everyone loves a great fight, but if Rempe continues to accept every fight, it could harm him. And if the Rangers want his physical presence on the ice, he can’t spend most of his games in the penalty box or the locker room, getting stitched up.
Sportsnet’s Mark Spector took to X, formerly Twitter, to ask the Rangers to ”take better care” of Rempe.
”This kid shouldn’t be doing this every day. Someone in the Rangers org needs to take better care of this young man,” wrote Spector.
”He does not always have to say yes. It’ll be a short career if he does.”
In the comment section, many agreed with the take.
”Love his toughness; he won’t have much of a career if this happens all the time. Rangers need to pull him back a bit,” one said.
”Ya that’s a lot of big shots lol. He’s gotta cool it,” another said.
”He’s made a name for himself already. Probably time to chill,” a third said.
