Matt Rempe exits Rangers game with upper-body injury after fight with Ryan Reaves

The New York Rangers injury woes continued on Thursday as they lost another player in the first period of play, and the hope is that it isn't something that will be a long-term loss.

Matt Rempe leaves game with upper-body injury following fight with Ryan Reaves

Rempe engaged in a spirit bout with former Blueshirt Ryan Reaves, and despite having a noticeable size advantage, he took a considerable amount of punches from the veteran pugilist.

As of this writing, HockeyFights.com has the fight scored at 69% in Reaves' favor, 19% in Rempe's favor, and 13% as a tie. This is the second time that the two have fought, with the last bout taking place at Scotiabank Arena while Reaves was with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Tonight was Rempe's ninth game of the season, and to this point he'd averaged 11 minutes per game while scoring one goal and logging just one minor penalty. He's been an effective part of the team's bottom six, and an important winger on an identity line with Sam Carrick and Adam Edstrom.

Jonny Brodzinski would be the next man up for Rangers

The hope is that the Rangers are holding Rempe out as a precaution, and if he were to be injured in a considerable fashion, Jonny Brodzinski would likely be the next man up. Brodzinski has appeared in just two games this season, and he skated in 51 games for the Blueshirts last season and scored 12 goals while adding seven assists for 19 pointa. It was his second season in a row in which he tallied 19 points, and the journeyman winger has quietly become a quality bottom-six contributor for the Rangers.

The Rangers are playing their final home game tonight, and will start a road trip which will see them visit Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest between Sunday, October 26th to Saturday, November 1st.