Matt Rempe may be NHL’s villain, but he’s vital for Rangers
NY Post
WASHINGTON — The NHL’s Public Enemy No. 1 took a seat in his stall in the back corner of the room following his team’s optional practice Saturday and drew chuckles from the assembled audience by spinning a tale about being killed 68 times in Halo by Chris Kreider following the previous night’s Game 3.
The Rempe Police probably would have been horrified by the scene. The vigilant constables want this 6-foot-8¹/₂ menace in cuffs. They think he is too big. They think he hits too hard. They think the Rangers should not be allowed to have a player like this who does not assume the position just because that’s the way it’s always kind of been done,
It’s unfortunate that Trevor van Riemsdyk sustained an injury on the hit he took from Rempe that was called interference midway through the first period, but the blow in fact was probably legal — and hardly venal. It happens all the time with a player taking a hit a half-second after releasing the puck, but it’s not routine for that hit to be delivered by a player of that size and who skates with that force.
That hit, in fact, is The Rempe and doing The Rempe has the Rangers up 3-0 in their first-round series seeking to complete the sweep over the Caps and move on to Round 2. The series has been less a demonstration of sheer skill than focused will for the Presidents’ Trophy winners, who have maintained their attention through a 180-minute taffy pull in which time and space has expectedly been at a premium.
Remember when it appeared it might be too risky for head coach Peter Laviolette to have Rempe in the lineup for the playoffs if No. 73 were picking up undisciplined penalties and couldn’t be trusted on the ice?
The Rangers have won their last 12 games with Rempe in the lineup. The Rangers are 17-2-1 overall with Rempe in the lineup since he made his debut in the outdoor game Feb. 18. There is value there and it is palpable and the Rangers are riding his wave.
TORONTO — The clutch gene, as Paul Pierce called it, might not show up on a DNA test. But Jalen Brunson passed the eye test.
TORONTO — Jalen Brunson is again putting together a season worthy of All-NBA consideration, carrying the Knicks with his scoring, leadership and, more than ever, his passing.
The Islanders did Rocky one better.
Jim Edmonds will not return to the St. Louis Cardinals television broadcast booth this upcoming season.
Mason Crosby is hanging up his cleats.
The gamble — or possibly bluff — by Mets officials is a Pete Alonso-less lineup can still produce enough to keep the team competitive in what should be another strong NL East field.
NEW ORLEANS — Harrison Butker knows that you might not agree with his core beliefs, because some of his own teammates don’t.
Once in a while across the endless basketball winter, you get one you need to circle, the better to remind yourself later on. So circle this one. Use your brightest red pen. Circle it again. Put it away in a drawer somewhere.
NEW ORLEANS — Patrick Mahomes has been chasing greatness from the moment Andy Reid tapped him on the shoulder and handed him the keys to the Chiefs kingdom, and he has chased it so feverishly and so furiously that he already finds himself chasing down Tom Brady.
Mathew Bowyer, a bookmaker for Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter, said he felt guilty for not stopping the interpreter from betting over his head and took action from Pete Rose in an exclusive Post interview.
Jalen Brunson scores 42 points to fuel Knicks’ furious rally for win over Rockets without OG Anunoby
Jalen Brunson so often receives beckoning “MVP” chants around Madison Square Garden.
Myles Garrett doesn’t envision his NFL future in Cleveland.
NEW ORLEANS — As New Orleans church leaders braced for the fallout from publishing a list of predatory Catholic priests, they turned to an unlikely ally: the front office of the city’s NFL franchise.