November 4: CapFriendly released the terms of Rempe’s contract today, and they read as follows:
2021-22: $750,000 salary + $80,000 SB
2022-23: $750,000 salary + $80,000 SB
2023-24: $775,000 salary + $80,000 SB
The three-year deal carries a cap hit of $838,333.
November 3: The New York Rangers have agreed to terms with another prospect, this time inking Matt Rempe to a three-year entry-level contract. The young forward was selected in the 2020 draft and is currently playing for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL.
Rempe, 19, may have been drafted in the sixth round but is no small fry. In fact, he stands 6’7″ and dwarfs almost all of his junior competition, using his huge frame to separate opponents from the puck on the regular. While there may be some questions about his offensive upside–Rempe has just 40 points in 65 career WHL games–he certainly has the size to succeed at the professional level.
The Rangers have coveted size since their front office switch, but there’s still a ton of work to do to make Rempe a legitimate NHL prospect. That entry-level deal will slide for this year and won’t kick in until 2022-23, meaning he’s now scheduled for restricted free agency in 2025. The team obviously believes he can be a valuable member of the organization though, so his progression this year for Seattle will be interesting to watch. In ten games, he has four goals.
The kid is 6’8 240 and only 19 power forward
Maybe better suited for D and become a possible Chara? Not sure how well of a skater he is, but he’ll need to be if his offense is limited at that level, unless he’s just a bruiser.
Both HockeyDB and EliteProspects have him at 6’9″-240lbs, so the Rangers’ site is a bit behind. Dear RangersTown – You don’t want to cheat a guy that big out of 2″ and 31 pounds! He’ll be the Richard “Jaws” Kiel of the NHL…
When Rempe was drafted, the scouting reports all questioned “why?”. Most Scouts didn’t even see him becoming a good player at the ECHL level and doubted that he would ever play even 1 game in the AHL. I haven’t been able to find any recent scouting reports on him. The reports out of the draft claim awful skating ability and super low to no hockey IQ. Just a big body to stick in front of the net. Although he was a late bloomer and earned his way into the WHL through dedication and hard work.
I don’t think it’s a stretch to think he could carve out an AHL career but the NYR obviously must like the improvements he’s made to this point to give him an ELC.