Um, NO!
- Crushers68

Um, yeah. Scott Stevens went out of his way to injure people. Incredibly dirty player

Having said that, I also don’t buy all the “Rempe is a good kid” BS. Dude has been in the league for 15 minutes and has been responsible for a handful of very dirty plays.

If he’s going to get challenged every night he’s eventually going to have to say no. McDermid is a poop fighter anyway. He already went with the guys that establish himself as a tough guy. The hit was an accident but being 6’7” he’s going to have to make sure this accident isn’t an on going thing. I think he’s good for the game and am rooting for him.

Eklund: The Rangers and Matt Rempe. Good or Bad fror the NHL?
- Eklund

As a hockey writing, isn't spelling and grammar really import?

Or is that only Fror us

As a Rangers fan, I'm love any player that brings toughness and can get a crowd going. It can be positive. I do not see anything wrong with toughness in a game, or even fighting, as long as the plays are clean and fair. With Rempe's size, he needs to work on keeping his arms down, and that may come with more experience. I feel he deserved this suspension and I am hoping it will also be a wake-up call to himself. He also has to be careful not to put his team shorthanded all the time either, because that could lead to losses.

I understand how Devil fans are feeling, because if I was in their shoes, I may feel the same way. I'm still angry at the Tom Wilson incident and still feel that was never resolved properly by the Rangers.

Overall, he does not seem to be a bad kid and perhaps emotions ran him wild last night. Intentional? I don't think so, but that's speculation. If he controls himself and plays clean, he could be effective. Otherwise, he won't last in the NHL very long....with any team, if he has constant hearings.

Looks like Rempe got 4 games, per ESPN.

Thus guy is a big, dumb p.o.s. douchebag.... period....
- angryagain

You wish your team had him

Um, yeah. Scott Stevens went out of his way to injure people. Incredibly dirty player

Having said that, I also don’t buy all the “Rempe is a good kid” BS. Dude has been in the league for 15 minutes and has been responsible for a handful of very dirty plays.
- AxlRose91

Yeah, Stevens was as malicious as it gets. Great player, but viciously dirty. Rempe already tried targeting Lyubushkin's high on that massive launch into the boards. This was a deliberate and unnecessary elbow. He should get suspended and he is clearly trending towards malicious intent to injure.

He’s a good kid?

Macdermid challenged him in the first period and he conveniently declined. So much for “the code,” huh? Then he goes out and throws an elbow into the head of a guy who’s had concussion issues in the recent past. Then, he refuses a second challenge immediately after said elbow and acts like a clown waving goodbye on the way out.

I’m all for the “make hockey violent again” crowd, but I’m not for trying to end careers and essentially turtling, then acting like Tie Dummy with the heavyweight belt shenanigans.

The league would do better to be a little more like Matt Rempe, but not LIKE Matt Rempe. And the refs protecting a goon…and yes, he is a goon at this point, not a misunderstood teen…sets a horrible precedent. It will ultimately lead to bigger problems.
- Franken30

Your problem is with players like MacDermid. If Rempe had to take every challenge from tomato cans like MacDermid he'd never get to finish a shift. MacDermid was pissed because he knows he's nothing in the NHL without someone to fight. When Rempe told him "no" it really got under MacDermid's skin because now everyone knows who the imposters are on each team in the league.

Yeah, Stevens was as malicious as it gets. Great player, but viciously dirty. Rempe already tried targeting Lyubushkin's high on that massive launch into the boards. This was a deliberate and unnecessary elbow. He should get suspended and he is clearly trending towards malicious intent to injure.
- jfkst1

Sounds like you’re describing Matt Cooke

Um, yeah. Scott Stevens went out of his way to injure people. Incredibly dirty player

Having said that, I also don’t buy all the “Rempe is a good kid” BS. Dude has been in the league for 15 minutes and has been responsible for a handful of very dirty plays.
- AxlRose91

No it's been 1 dirty play. Every fight he has been in was instigated by the opposing player challenging him. Again 1 dirty ( illegal) play that deserves a suspension

Was Matt Petgrave kicking Adam Johnson's neck with his skate blade good for hockey? Because it brought a lot of attention to the sport.
- jfkst1

All sports journalists in unison: Neck guards, neck guards, neck guards.

Sounds like you’re describing Matt Cooke
- Slimtj100

You think Cooke was a great player? That would explain a lot of your player evaluations. He was good for depth. Never remotely close to Scott Stevens. Both were malicious and did a good job manipulating the rules in their favor.

That wasn’t a mistake….he laughed about it

No it's been 1 dirty play. Every fight he has been in was instigated by the opposing player challenging him. Again 1 dirty ( illegal) play that deserves a suspension
- hfc355

One suspension worthy play. The hit on Bastian was borderline and the hit on Lybushkin was very dirty

Bad for the league, takes away from the sport.

It's best to watch when players are playing fast, skilled hockey. That the league allows 'grit' to combat that is gross.
- mkrisnosky

I'm hoping for sarcasm here...

One suspension worthy play. The hit on Bastian was borderline and the hit on Lybushkin was very dirty
- AxlRose91

Nothing borderline on the Bastian hit at all. Totally clean hit refs blew that big time. What was wrong with the Lybushkin hit?, This is hockey

He will end up with brain damage drinking his dinner through a straw. Look at all the "enforcers" that died way too young. Its his choice to play that style of game. Fun for everyone now, a sad story later.

Circle your calendar for APRIL 3RD!!! Devils at Rangers, "LITTLE" GARY BETTMAN WILL BE THERE ALONG WITH BILL DAILEY, COLON "CANCER" CAMPBELL AND GEORGE "DO YOU LIKE MY CHANEL DRESS AND GUCCI HEELS) PARROS!! For that game, "LITTLE" Gary will have his secret service agents, he requested the NATIONAL GUARD, and the FBI to be their!!! The Rangers will have their names on the back of their jerseys, but NO NUMBERS, JUST A BIG TARGET ON THEIR BACKS. THE DEVILS DON'T NEED A NET TO SHOOT AND SCORE, THE WILL SLAM THEIR SHOTS AT THE RANGER PLAYERS AND REMPE WILL BECOME THE NEXT STEVEN MOORE, GAME SET MATCH!!

CTE is the real issue. Fighting has not been good for a number of former fighters. I think it’s time to ban fighting. Clean hard body checks are not the problem.
- ses111

The staged off the draw fighting I could agree with you on. The heat of battle in a scrum, I say let them goo.

No it's been 1 dirty play. Every fight he has been in was instigated by the opposing player challenging him. Again 1 dirty ( illegal) play that deserves a suspension
- hfc355

I would agree with this assessment.

As a Devils fan, I actually found myself rooting for Rempe a bit after that first week or so. It was clear to me that he could carve himself a solid bottom-line role given his ability to skate as a big man, with decent enough hands and skill to keep the play moving up ice, chip pucks in, bang the body, get in front of the net and get to work. You don't see many of his size and type come into the league that often and, as a fan of a team that's grown notorious for being small and soft, I was admittedly jealous of the prospect of it all.

I thought the narrative that "somebody needs to tell him he doesn't need to fight every night" was silly, simply because those situations unfolded pretty organically and he stepped up as a young player trying to prove himself and endear themselves to his teammates/fanbase. He did just that and, honestly, it was a job well done. It didn't seem like he was thinking "this is the only way I can stick around".

When he hit Nate Bastian, I was willing to give Rempe the benefit of the doubt since it was a pretty unusual hit on player who can hold his own and is listed at 6'4 205 lbs on nhl.com. Both players could have done better to avoid being in that scenario, but he was tossed from that game nonetheless. That alone is a punishment in itself and should send a message to tighten it up a bit, but life goes on.

As mentioned I was willing to give Rempre the benefit of the doubt for that hit, so I was completely fine with him turning down Kurtis MacDermid early in the game yesterday. He's trying to earn that role as somebody who can actually play and contribute, so fighting early doesn't help him establish that credibility.

That said, the hit of Jonas Siegenthaler clearly deserved retaliation and calls for Rempe to answer the bell from MacDermid. We can get into whether or not Rempe meant to actually get the elbow up or prepare for impact on the boards since he assumed he might miss Siegenthaler, who had begun the process of trying to avoid contact, but the result ultimately requires a player of his stature to answer the bell.

Obviously, the refs did their best to ensure the fight didn't take place, but I do think it was clear Rempe had no intention of working his way to MacDermid to answer for his actions. He was very content to stay amongst the crowd as MacDermid was kept outside the pack.

I don't have an opinion or care who wins that fight. I'd hope both sides will tell you in that scenario, it's not necessarily about who wins, it's about the code of hockey at that point.

Most fans will tell you, once that fight is over, it is considered the great equalizer and essentially pays the price for the dirty hit. When unanswered, a team with more heart and grit than the whipped dog Devils would likely begin taking questionable runs at the Rangers star players, especially given their place in the standings. That's ultimately a lesson that should have been taught to Rempe last night, but wasn't due to the state of the 2023-2024 Devils.

Overall, I think Rempe is and can become an impact player for the Rangers, assuming he cleans it up. I was just surprised he didn't answer the bell after a couple of incidents with a rival team. One would hope he'd man up for that type of incident. The mocking wave goodbye was a choice as well considering all he did was put his team in a terrible spot at that point, but I completely understand why Rangers fans would love the gesture haha
- SteveJ123

Well said Steve!

Scott Stevens stood people up with clean hits..... open ice hits.... please don't compare this dbag to Stevens who led his team to multiple championships including sweeping my Wings in 95 when Stevens destroyed Slava Kozlov with a clean open ice hit.... a real hockey play... punks comparing a defensive legend to this punk waving as he left the ice....

Same rags fans cried over Wilson ....... now they get a disrespectful punk and make excuses....and Stevens would destroy either of them with a clean open ice hit......

As a Rangers fan, I'm love any player that brings toughness and can get a crowd going. It can be positive. I do not see anything wrong with toughness in a game, or even fighting, as long as the plays are clean and fair. With Rempe's size, he needs to work on keeping his arms down, and that may come with more experience. I feel he deserved this suspension and I am hoping it will also be a wake-up call to himself. He also has to be careful not to put his team shorthanded all the time either, because that could lead to losses.

I understand how Devil fans are feeling, because if I was in their shoes, I may feel the same way. I'm still angry at the Tom Wilson incident and still feel that was never resolved properly by the Rangers.

Overall, he does not seem to be a bad kid and perhaps emotions ran him wild last night. Intentional? I don't think so, but that's speculation. If he controls himself and plays clean, he could be effective. Otherwise, he won't last in the NHL very long....with any team, if he has constant hearings.
- musicnutz

^ This

Thank you. Not often I agree with a Rangers fan. 👍

Both are bad for hockey.
- Theathletic is for libs

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