Rangers’ Matt Rempe to be heard after the elbow defender

New York Rangers forward Matt Rempe has been offered an in-person hearing with the NHL’s Department of Player Safety following a game violation for elbowing Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen on Friday night.

Rempe is considered a regular member of the department. He was suspended four games last season for elbowing New Jersey Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler in March.

The hearing is scheduled to be held on Sunday via Zoom.

The NHL offers a player and his representatives an in-person hearing when a suspension could be six or more games, which would make it eligible for an appeal to a neutral arbitrator after an initial appeal to commissioner Gary Bettman.

At 7:13 of the third period, Heiskanen played the puck with his back to Rempe. The Rangers forward skated in, raised his arm and drove Heiskanen’s head into the glass, causing the Dallas defenseman to fall to the ice and the players to join in a skirmish.

Rempe received a major penalty and a game foul for elbowing, forcing the Rangers to kill a five-minute major penalty with a 2-1 lead in the third. New York won the game 3-1. Heiskanen finished the game for Dallas.

This was Rempe’s first game for the Rangers since Nov. 25, after being recently recalled from AHL Hartford. He racked up 17 penalty minutes in 5:32 of ice time, registering one shot on goal and zero points.

Rempe became a sensation in 17 regular-season and 11 playoff games last season for the Rangers thanks to his size (6-foot-9), big hits and energetic games. He earned 71 penalty minutes in 17 games, but also the adoration of Rangers fans who chanted his name at home games despite averaging 5:37 per game. match.

He said before the season that he had spent the summer perfecting his overall hockey skills rather than just his fighting skills, doing 1½ months of power skating practices in preparation for this season. But Rempe has appeared in just five games for New York, not registering a point in earning 24 penalty minutes. He had three goals and two assists in 18 games with AHL Hartford.

The Rangers host the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday afternoon.