Near the start of the third period on Saturday night in Toronto, it finally – and inevitably – happened. Leafs’ tough guy Ryan Reaves squared-off at centre ice with Matt Rempe, the hulking New York Rangers rookie. Rempe, a 6ft 7in, 240lbs centre, has one goal and one assist in his first seven games in the NHL. He also has 37 penalty minutes, five more than he’s spent actually playing on the ice. He’s what most people would call an “enforcer” – a role that in recent years has been more or less phased-out of the NHL.
Matt Rempe is fighting the entire NHL. Will it boost or harm the league?
