Three weeks after his splashy arrival in the National League, Matt Rempe is still the talk of the town. On Monday, the new strongman of the New York Rangers was ejected from a game for elbowing Jonas Siegenthaler in the head. After the game, Devils tough guy Kurtis MacDermid said he “lost a lot of respect” for Rempe.
In the Blue Jackets locker room, however, there is a player who, on the contrary, has nothing but respect for Rempe. It’s Mathieu Olivier, another one who doesn’t hesitate to drop his gloves when things get hot. On February 25, Olivier and Rempe came to blows, and Rempe came out with a bruised face.
Before jumping onto the Bell Center ice rink for his team’s morning drill, Olivier passed on his message about Rempe. In this era where the after-effects left by blows to the brain are better known, it is a delicate subject, he is well aware of it. But he tackles it head on.
I think it’s great. Not because it brings back fights, not because it brings back discussions that perhaps there were less of. I think it’s great because it’s a kid who is willing to do anything to stay.
Mathieu Olivier, in interview with The Press and NHL.com
“Maybe a lot of guys won’t agree with me and say it’s not an example, but I think it is. He is a young person who wants to achieve his dream, who is ready to do anything to stay and there is a great lesson to learn. The number of times we hear people say: I would do anything to play in the National League. There, a kid does it and suddenly it doesn’t work anymore? This is how he is going to surrender. Is it perfect? No. He’s going to make mistakes. But his intentions and his will are there. »
PHOTO FRANK GUNN, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Matt Rempe (73) and Ryan Reaves (75)
Olivier occupies the same type of role as Rempe. A thankless role which consists of playing limited minutes, and defending his teammates if necessary. The Quebecer made his first appearances in the NHL at age 22, but it was last season, at age 25, that he became a permanent fixture in the circuit, playing 66 games.
Rempe does it in an extreme version, that said. In 10 games, he has accumulated almost as many penalty minutes (54) as minutes of play (56). But three weeks after his arrival, he is still talking about him. An ESPN article even talked about “Rempemania”, which places the player in a strange category of people with the Beatles, Pierre Elliott Trudeau and Hulk Hogan.
Olivier sees the young sensation of the Rangers, at the age of 21, and envy him. In his first 10 matches, Rempe also fought Matt Martin, Ryan Reaves and Nicolas Deslauriers. In short, he attacked the top of the hierarchy of the most feared players on the circuit.
“I would have liked to do that the same, to be frank,” admitted Olivier. It might have taken me less time to establish myself. There is no hierarchy. There is always mutual respect, but everyone is fighting for their job. We all have different roles and he fits into that role and it’s part of what he has to do. »
Respect for Vincent
Like Michael Pezzetta with the Canadian, Olivier has divided his time between the ice and the catwalk this season. But on Tuesday, he will be part of the Jackets squad for a 12e match in a row. In 36 games this season, he scored 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists).
Olivier is not devoid of skills. Last season, against the Canadian, for example, he demonstrated that he had shooting skills.
But the violent aspect of the game is obviously part of its role. His confrontation with Rempe is an example of this. During the warm-up, Rempe “spent five minutes on the red line. At some point, if anyone has to do something, it’s me,” our man agrees.
PHOTO SUE OGROCKI, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Matthew Olivier (24)
Moreover, despite his respect for Rempe, he did not particularly appreciate this gesture from the Rangers giant. “It doesn’t really happen anymore. […] There’s no point wandering around the red line and trying to scare people first. Because if it doesn’t happen, you just look like a guy who’s bluffing. So I prefer not to speak and just to do it. »
Pascal Vincent, head coach of the Blue Jackets, appreciates the leadership of number 24. “We have recently seen that the fights have not necessarily gone away yet. But that’s just one aspect. Mathieu takes up a lot of space in the locker room with his leadership. »
“He was injured this summer and was a little behind, so it took him longer to become the Mathieu Olivier we knew again. There he came back. His forecheck is very effective. He has a presence on the ice that allows guys like Johnny Gaudreau, like Kent Johnson when he plays, to play hockey without having to worry too much. »
Evil tongues will say that with 45 points in 64 games and a record of -20, Gaudreau seems more like a guy who is struggling, but Gaudreau’s difficulties are a slightly more complex file that we will keep for another dissertation.