"4 games is absurd" "Deserved": Matt Rempe's 4-game suspension for elbowing Jonas Siegenthaler leaves NHL fans divided

The NHL Department of Player Safety announced on Tuesday the four-game suspension of New York Rangers rookie forward Matt Rempe for elbowing New Jersey Devils defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler on Monday.

The incident unfolded during the dying seconds of the second period when Rempe illegally elbowed Siegenthaler near the boards.

The six-foot-seven 241-pound Blue Shirts forward was assessed a five-minute major penalty along with a game misconduct and was subsequently ejected from the game.

NHL fans were divided about the suspension, though, with many reckoning it should have been for less than three games. Some, though, described it as the right punishment for the rookie.

One tweeted:

"4 games is absurd for an elbow that glances a guys head for a first time offender. 2 would’ve sufficed."

Another chimed in:

"Deserved, he was getting out of control"

Here are some of the other top reactions on X:

This is the first suspension for Matt Rempe in his brief 10-game career with the Rangers.

He will forfeit $17,083 under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, based on his annual salary. The money raised will benefit the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.

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Matt Rempe has been ejected twice against the same opponents

Ahead of his suspension on Tuesday, it was the second time that Matt Rempe was ejected from a game while playing the same opponent.

The 21-year-old rookie forward was ejected for the first time against the New Jersey Devils' Nathan Bastian. Following Rempe's elbow incident with Jonas Siegenthaler, the Blue Shirts rookie forward waived New Jersey players, infuriating Devils defenseman Kurtis MacDermid:

"He's a young kid in this league. He has a lot to learn still," MacDermid said. "You don't do things like that in your first year in the league. I lost quite a bit of respect for him tonight."

Since becoming the first player to make his debut in an outdoor NHL game last month, Matt Rempe has made a name for himself, not for his plays and skills on the ice but for dropping the gloves against the veteran players.

Rempe dropped the gloves for the first time and got into a fight with New York Islanders winger Matt Martin just 30 seconds into his debut. According to HockeyFights, Rempe has been involved in seven fights in his first 10 games in the league.