Enforcer Matt Rempe Assigned to Hartford Wolf Pack

The New York Rangers have sent down tough guy and occasional fan-favorite Matt Rempe to the Hartford Wolf Pack with the American Hockey League.

It is hoped the 22-year-old will benefit from more consistent playing time in order to build his game. During the 2024-25 campaign so far, he only appeared in two games for the Rangers but the organization believes he's handled things the right way in terms of practice and his desire to be out on the ice. It is expected he will make his way back to the NHL later on.

The team announced the move after their 3-1 loss to the Florida Panthers, a game in which the 22-year-old did not skate. In the previously mentioned two games Rempe appeared, he logged five hits and one blocked shot.

The 6'9" player burst onto the scene last season with his physical play and penchant to get into scraps with the opposing team. In 17 games played, he's recorded two points — one goal. He did see 6:07 of ice time over 11 Rangers playoff games last season but did not dress for five of them.

This past offseason, the Canadien prioritized his skating and skills over his fighting.

“I want to be a player. I want to be a hockey player,” Rempe said after a rookie showcase, in a serious tone. “[Fighting] is a part of the game and it’s a nice tool to have, but I want to be a fast, physical player first.”

And Rempe has certainly showed his work ethic in practice this year.

Though, Rempe's lack of playing time and opportunity boils down to Adam Edstrom’s better all-around play on the fourth line since the start of training camp and coach Peter Laviolette’s preference to use Jonny Brodzinski instead of Rempe on a line with Sam Carrick.

This is not to say Laviolette isn’t a fan of Rempe’s, but he clearly prefers his better options at the moment.

The thing with Matt Rempe is he brings in an audience, and building him up is something to invest in — especially for fans who want to keep hockey aggressive.

It’s best for Rempe to play — and play a lot of minutes — in the AHL. With the work he put in this summer to improve his skating, offensive skill set, defensive game and, yes, fighting. Actually playing important minutes, whether its in the NHL or AHL, will really put his improved skills to the test.

Think big picture here for the Rangers. To leave this story with one last interesting note, I've never seen a rookie moving to the AHL cause this much commotion.