Getty New York Rangers rookie forward Matt Rempe is getting scratched but pretty happy.
The New York Rangers failed to beat the Carolina Hurricanes for the second consecutive time on Monday, May 13, even though they welcomed back rookie Matt Rempe to the lineup after the enforcer missed the past two games entirely as a healthy scratch.
The Rangers will have to keep playing second-round hockey for at least one more game after the Canes defeated them 4-1 in Game 5.
The win had Carolina cutting New York’s series lead to 3-2 as the matchup will return to Raleigh in three days. On Monday, however, the Rangers took a 1-0 lead but then allowed four unanswered goals in a historic collapse.
Mark Messier talking about a Matt Rempe Shift. The Kid can play. #NYR
Rempe returned to the Rangers lineup for Game 5. New York ruled out Filip Chytil for Monday’s contest and head coach Peter Laviolette decided to use the rookie instead of fellow forward Jonny Brodzinski.
This appearance marked the first one for Rempe after sitting out the prior two games, although the rookie didn’t sound bothered after becoming a healthy scratch on back-to-back games heading into Game 5.
“I can’t say enough good things about Lavi and how great he’s been to me,” Rempe told reporters after the Rangers’ morning skate Monday, May 13, via Mollie Walker of the New York Post.
Matt Rempe is Back With the Rangers… But for How Long?
Truth be told, the writing was on the wall for Rempe becoming a healthy scratch at some point during the second-round series against the Hurricanes.
Rempe saw his time on ice cut on a steady basis as the first-round series against the Washington Capitals progressed. Then, after barely playing in the first two games of the second-round matchup, Laviolette made Rempe healthy for Games 3 and 4 in Carolina.
“The opportunities [Laviolette] has given me and how much communication he’s had with me every single day, like, I love him,” Rempe told reporters before Game 5. “I’d go to war for him every day. He’s the best.
Rempe had skated with the rest of his teammates before all games he was ultimately scratched from, staying ready in case Laviolette came calling at some point.
That moment arrived on Monday with Chytil not overcoming his illness and getting ruled out for Game 5, as well as Brodzinski getting scratched in favor of rookie Rempe.
“Conversations have been great, (he’s) just telling me, ‘Don’t read into [getting scrateched], don’t think too much, stuff like that,… just keep working.’,” Rempe said ahead of Game 5.
New York Rangers Collapse in Game 5. Will Matt Rempe Pay for It?
Rempe played with the fourth line of forwards in Game 5 as the Rangers took a 1-0 lead with the rookie playing 6:01 minutes across the full game, according to Natural Stat Trick.
The rookie skated 8 shifts but only one of them in the third period. That last shift only took place at the end of the contest with the outcome already decided and Carolina getting back home with a 4-1 victory.
Rempe was his usual self on the ice, engaging in physical and extracurricular activities–mainly with former Rangers defenseman Tony DeAngelo in the first period–while not providing actual production outside of casual skating.
With the series back to Raleigh, it’s fair to assume Rempe will be a healthy scratch once again as the Rangers won’t have the last change.
Laviolette cited that fact as the main reason for Rempe’s prior scratches, so it’s possible he does the same in Game 6 whether that means reintroducing Chytil or Brodzinski, depending on the former’s health.
Will New York Rangers Surrender their 3-0 Series Lead?
Never say never.
The Rangers entered the second-round series against the Hurricanes as the underdogs because of their “bad” regular-season statistics and advanced analytics, but they flipped the narrative quickly taking an indisputable 3-0 lead over Carolina.
Now, entering Game 6, the Canes have made this matchup a series winning back-to-back games and returning home with the series at a much closer 3-2.
On Monday’s Game 5, Jacob Trouba scored the Rangers’ only goal in the second period during a short-handed situation with New York’s penalty-kill unit on the ice dealing with Carolina’s man advantage.
Jordan Martinook, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Jordan Staal scored goals for the Hurricanes in the third period. Martin Necas added the cherry on top of the come-from-behind win with an empty-net goal.
Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin was a wall through the first 40 minutes but he couldn’t do anything to stop the Canes during the final period of play. He finished with 24 stops on 27 shots.
On the other net, the Hurricanes deployed Frederik Andersen as the veteran went on to stop 20 of the 21 shots attempted by New York.
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