Matt Rempe wasted no time making his mark in the NHL.
Watching him throw down the gloves, it quickly became clear that he’s not afraid of anyone. Particularly in view of the fact that he rubbed shoulders with some big guys in his NHL debut.
After all, he went toe-to-toe with Matt Martin, Nicolas Deslauriers, Mathieu Olivier, Ryan Reaves and Kurtis MacDermid within a month and a half of his recall from the AHL…
The Rangers’ big forward is taking advantage of his off-season to improve his fighting technique for next season, and he’s well surrounded to make it happen.
When I say he’s well surrounded… I mostly mean that Georges Laraque is helping him by giving him lessons on how to fight on the ice.
The former habs pugilist shared a photo on Twitter, showing him with Rempe, among others:
We know that Georges Laraque taught Matt Rempe a few things last season.
Georges admitted as much on the Stanley25 podcast, hosted by Maxime Truman and Jean Trudel.
But the difference was that it was done from a distance. Georges Laraque had been in contact with the Rangers striker to entrust him with certain things, but that was all .
Here, Rempe had the luxury of being able to train with Georges Laraque on the ice, and it was a completely different experience.
In fact, having coached him face-to-face, Georges Laraque is convinced that Rempe will be “a problem” in the NHL in 24-25 :
If you thought Rempe was a problem this year in the NHL, wait until you see him next season… – Georges Laraque
It’s special, and Georges Laraque is the perfect guy to give tips to younger players.
He’s regarded as one of the best fighters in history, after all… And the good thing is that he doesn’t hesitate to help the younger guys, because he wants them to be well protected when they fight.
The health of the players comes first.
Let’s see if Matt Rempe will be a better fighter on the ice next season.
Let’s hope for his sake that he’s learned to defend himself better… Because his face was pretty banged up after his first few NHL fights.
Overtime
– The list is not very elegant.
