"Ban him forever" "Throw him out of the league": NHL fans react as Rangers’ Matt Rempe offered in-person hearing for elbowing Miro Heiskanen

By Ankit Kumar

Modified Dec 21, 2024 17:59 GMT

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Matt Rempe of the New York Rangers has been offered an in-person hearing for elbowing Dallas Stars' Miro Heiskanen. The incident happened during the third period of Friday’s game when Rempe hit Heiskanen from behind with his elbow making contact with his head. He was given a five-minute major penalty and got ejected — his fourth ejection in just 22 NHL games.

NHL Player Safety announced on X on Saturday that Rempe would face an in-person hearing for boarding/elbowing Heiskanen.

"NY Rangers’ Matt Rempe has been offered an in-person hearing for boarding/elbowing Dallas’ Miro Heiskanen. Date and time TBD," NHL Player Safety tweeted.

Fans reacted strongly to the news of Rempe's scheduled hearing.

"Throw him out of the league!" one fan wrote.

"Ban him forever. There is no need for what he does in the game," another fan said.

"The NHL is not serious on hits from behind. This player is allowing you to correct course. The refs allow far too many hits from behind. Give him at least 10. Every other pro league protects its players, but the NHL lets 4th liners run around and take players out," one fan said.

However, some fans came in Rempe's support.

"He's being penalized for his size," a fan wrote.

"Don’t think this is hearing worthy. Wasn’t that bad," another fan wrote.

"That’s full of shit. He got a 5 minute major and a 10 minute misconduct. If this was ANYONE else they wouldn’t be doing this. Plus with his size the #NHL has no idea how to call games against him… same as Aaron Judge with the Yankees. @NHL #NYR," one fan commented.

Peter Laviolette's comment on Matt Rempe's hit

Matt Rempe had five hits and 17 penalty minutes in 5:27 of play against Dallas. Prior to the Stars' game, the Rangers were on a three-game losing streak. They had hoped Rempe would bring energy, but the ejection was not expected. Since it happened at 07:13 in the third period, it didn’t affect the Rangers, who were leading 2-1 at that point.

New York coach Peter Laviolette praised Rempe’s effort.

"I thought he had a big impact in the game." Laviolette said after the game. "I would like to stay away from the five-minute major, but he's doing his best to hit bodies and make a difference in the game. Our guys really rallied around that, as well."

The Rangers killed the penalty and won 3-1, with Chris Kreider scoring late. They will be back in action on Sunday when they face the Carolina Hurricanes.