Matt Rempe took his first shift with the Rangers after being called back up from AHL Hartford and proceeded to drop the gloves with a former foe from his minor league hockey days.
The Rangers heavyweight went toe-to-toe in a center-ice slugfest with Dylan McIlrath less than three minutes into the game against the Capitals.
The two traded heavy blows against one another before they knocked each other’s helmets off as the punches continued.
McIlrath eventually took Rempe to the ground eliciting cheers from the Capital One Arena crowd.
Rempe could be seen saying something to McIlrath after they got up from the ground and the linesmen separated them.
The two have a history with one another that stems back to their days in the American Hockey League when McIlrath was with the Hershey Bears, the farm team of the Capitals, and Rempe was with Hartford.
The two last dropped the gloves back on Nov. 22, 2022, in a game in Hershey in what was also a pretty physical throwdown between the two.
Rempe had been sent down to the AHL last week by the Rangers, but had been quickly brought back up to the NHL.
The fight was Rempe’s first of the season.
Rempe became a cult hero last season among Rangers fans for his fearlessness in dropping the gloves against some of the NHL’s heavyweights and his physical brand of hockey.
The Rangers lost to the Capitals 5-3 on Tuesday night in Rempe’s return to the NHL.
Will Cuylle, Chris Kreider and Filip Chytil each scored for the Rangers in the loss.
Rempe played 5:01 on Tuesday and registered one hit.