In a matchup between the New York Rangers and the Washington Capitals kicking off the playoffs for both franchises on Sunday, a rookie got the best of a veteran.
The Rangers beat the Capitals 4-1 in Game of their first-round series on April 21 and Matt Rempe opened the score for the hosts… after delivering a hit that sent him to the box on his first shift.
Asked if his mother Janice, who was attending a game at Madison Square Garden for the first time on Sunday, added “juice” to his performance, Rempe told reporters after the game: “I’ve always got juice.”
After more than 24 minutes of no-goals hockey, Rangers’ enforcer Rempe opened the scoreboard tipping in a pass by teammate Jimmy Vesey from behind the Capitals net.
It was Rempe’s second goal of the season and his first in the playoffs, where he made his debut on Sunday. He finished Game 1 with that goal (on two shots) as well as a plus-2 rating, two minutes in the penalty box, 8:33 of ice time, and the win.
Rangers’ Matt Rempe Got the Best of Tom Wilson & Washington
Before Game 1, Rempe praised Capitals’ veteran Tom Wilson and claimed to “get fired up” when he was still an amateur player by watching video highlights of Wilson “blowing guys up.”
Wilson issued a response to the Rangers’ rookie while getting ready for the first-round matchup against Rempe and the Rangers. The veteran enforcer, however, couldn’t do anything on Sunday to stop his student.
The Rangers made the most of Rempe’s goal, rallying to score two more goals in a span of 2:06 on their way to building a 3-goal lead that Washington had no answer for.
Artemi Panarin scored 33 seconds after Rempe, followed by a goal by Jimmy Vesey, and then, in the third and final period, a rushing Chris Kreider added the final goal for New York in their 4-1 Game 1 victory over the Caps.
“I know my game,” Rempe said after the win. “I know I could skate well, be physical, and I’m built for the playoffs.
“I think I play real hard and can be a pain to play against; protect pucks down low and go to the net. I think I’m built for the playoffs. I think that’s where you want to play, and I was happy with how tonight went.”
Rangers’ Coach Peter Laviolette, Teammates Praise Matt Rempe
Rempe’s postseason debut wasn’t nice, but it’s fair to say it went down exactly as you would have expected. Right off the bat, Rempe hit the ice running and Capitals’ left winger Beck Malenstyn from behind just 34 seconds through his first shift.
The refs blew the whistle and Rempe was sent to the penalty box for a couple of minutes in disbelief. The Rangers’ penalty-kill unit did its job without trouble and kept the scoreboard intact by the time he returned.
With Rempe on the ice, New York had 76.44 percent of the expected goals on five-on-five play, according to Natural Stat Trick.
“Any game he’s in the lineup, he’s had an effect,” Vesey told reporters after the game when discussing Rempe’s impact on the Rangers performances.
Rangers’ head coach Peter Laviolette shared similarly positive words on Rempe after Game 1, one in which the veteran gaffer made history himself as he became the only coach in NHL history to lead six teams to the Stanley Cup playoffs, according to the Associated Press.
“I can’t think of a player that’s come in and had that impact on a team, on a fan base, on a city (like Rempe has),” Laviolette said after the win. “If you watch him and look at him, he just smiles. He’s just happy. Loves being here. Loves to play the game, and he’s been great.”
Rempe has made the headlines more times for his non-productive actions such as fighting, instigating brawls, and suspensions than he has for his contributions to the scoreboard, but that wasn’t the case on Sunday.
“I have belief in myself, and I’m just going to continue to work,” Rempe said. “I’m just getting started.”
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