Towering Rangers forward plans to ‘come back with vengeance’ after lost season

Matt Rempe’s demeanor off the ice typically is upbeat, featuring a boyish charm that endeared him to New York Rangers fans since he burst on to the NHL scene back in 2024. But at Rangers breakup day on Friday, Rempe appeared subdued and serious, discussing his frustrating season marred by one significant injury and a pair of surgeries.

The hulking six-foot-nine forward played 26 games this season, though really was only healthy for the first nine. He scored one goal and was limited after returning from October thumb surgery. He finally was shut down for good following a second surgery on his thumb in February.

“Being hurt since October, obviously very disappointing for myself,” Rempe told reporters. “I think I started the year well, then I missed 60 games because I’m hurt and have two surgeries, and when I came back, that wasn’t me at all because I needed another surgery to get done. So, that was a frustrating period there. That wasn’t me.”

Don’t expect this lost season to keep Rempe down, though.

“I’ve got a lot of hunger for next year,” he said. “I’m sure I’ll come back with vengeance.”

It’s the same approach Rempe displayed last summer, when challenged by the Rangers hierarchy to become a more complete and disciplined NHL player. He met the challenge and quickly earned the trust of first-year coach Mike Sullivan during training camp.

That carried into the start of the 2025-26 season, when Rempe teamed with Sam Carrick and Adam Edstrom to turn New York’s fourth line into an identity line. They played a hard, fast north-south game, ferocious on the forecheck, and committed defensively in the neutral zone and in their own end of the ice.

Rempe continued to be an intimidating presence and threat, but didn’t needlessly drop the gloves as he’d done in his first two season. That’s why it’s so ironic that his first — and only — fight of the season submarined everything for the popular 23-year-old.

He tore up his thumb in that bout with San Jose Sharks enforcer Ryan Reaves on Oct. 23, had the first surgery, and returned to the Rangers lineup two months later on Dec. 15. Though he played 17 of the next 24 games, Rempe wasn’t, well, Rempe. Unable to grip his stick, not allowed to tangle with opponents, much less drop the gloves and fight, Rempe wasn’t helping himself nor his team by being in the lineup.