Lempemania is still on hiatus.
The Rangers are scheduled to play the Jets on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden, fielding the same 12 forwards as the previous four games, with Matt Lempe remaining as a healthy scratch.
Tuesday was Rempe’s first game of eligibility after serving a four-game suspension for elbowing the Devils’ Jonas Siegenthaler in the head.
Given the fact that the Rangers have won three of the last four contests with the same lineup, Peter Laviolette opted to remain in the group, but head coach said Lempe would play again in the future. guaranteed that it would.
“Right now we have 13 forwards,” Laviolette said after the morning skate in Tarrytown. “So, for me, I want to keep all 13 forwards here playing. So I’m making some decisions here to make sure the guys are in the lineup. I think Rempe played well.
“He brought something to our team, he played a physical role. He played the game well. He’ll be back there again. After the last game. I looked at how we played, especially the bottom six, and knew it was best to go back with the same lineup. I’m going to move guys around, not because anyone is hurt. We’re going to keep 13 players and be ready for the playoffs.”
As a result, Johnny Brodzinski is expected to remain in the lineup as a third-line left wing alongside Alex Wennberg and Kaapo Kakko.
Rempe made a name for himself in the NHL in 10 games with his earth-shaking hitting and fists.
He has one goal, one assist, 54 minutes of penalty time, and two sending offs.
