New York Rangers forward Matt Rempe is under heavy scrutiny from NHL fans following his high elbow on Nashville Predators defenseman Nick Blankenburg during Sunday night’s game. The first-period hit at Madison Square Garden left Blankenburg visibly shaken and immediately sparked a fight between Rempe and Andreas Englund. Replays showed Blankenburg’s head snapping back into the glass, raising concerns about the severity of the hit and the possibility of a suspension from the NHL Department of Player Safety.
Many fans took to social media to demand a lengthy suspension, with some even calling for Rempe’s removal from the league. “He needs to be expelled from this league,” one user wrote on X, while another called for a permanent ban. Others took a more measured approach, acknowledging Rempe’s size as a factor in his style of play. “He’s just a little clumsy. It doesn’t look like he’s trying to be dirty, but he doesn’t have great body control,” one fan noted.
Critics also pointed to Rempe’s history of questionable hits and prior suspensions. Last season, he was suspended four games for an elbow on New Jersey Devils’ Jonas Siegenthaler. Earlier this season, he served an eight-game suspension for an illegal check on Dallas Stars’ Miro Heiskanen. Following that suspension—one of the longest on-ice bans in the past six years—Rempe admitted he needed to be more careful. “I’ve got to be a lot smarter. I’m a marked man right now,” he said at the time.
Despite the backlash, Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette defended Rempe, emphasizing his size and physical style of play. “Remps is just such a big man. He was forechecking,” Laviolette said. “When he hits, he’s just higher than everybody else. I don’t think he hit him—I think he maybe grazed him a little bit. That’s his game. He’s got to do it within the rules, but we also need him forechecking.”
Some fans echoed Laviolette’s defense, arguing that Rempe is unfairly penalized simply for his physicality. “Constant penalties on Rempe for just being tall and playing the game need to stop,” one fan posted.
The Rangers secured a dominant 4-0 victory over the Predators, but the controversy surrounding Rempe’s hit overshadowed the win. With the NHL Department of Player Safety expected to review the play, another suspension could be on the horizon for the Rangers’ enforcer. Meanwhile, the victory brought New York within two points of the Detroit Red Wings in the Eastern Conference wild-card race.
Leave a Reply