New York Rangers center Matt Rempe and defenseman Marc Del Gaizo shoved each other along the boards near the end of the first period of the team's first intrasquad scrimmage of training camp on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026, at the Madison Square Garden Training Center in Greenburgh, N.Y. No punches were thrown and teammates skated over to separate the two after Del Gaizo's helmet came off, according to the report of the two-period scrimmage.
Rempe and Del Gaizo scuffle in Rangers' first training camp scrimmage
New York Rangers center Matt Rempe and defenseman Marc Del Gaizo shoved each other along the boards near the end of the first period of the team's first intrasquad scrimmage of training camp on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026, at the Madison Square Garden Training Center in Greenburgh, N.Y. No punches were thrown and teammates skated over to separate the two after Del Gaizo's helmet came off, according to the report of the two-period scrimmage.
Del Gaizo, listed at 5-foot-11, checked the 6-foot-9 Rempe along the boards, prompting Rempe to shove back as the teammates moved in, the report said. The report described the skirmish as the closest the Rangers came to tensions boiling over in camp and as the lasting image of physicality in a practice filled with it at the start of a condensed preseason.
Other contact in the session included Will Cuylle decking rookie defenseman Alberts Smits in the corner, and J.T. Miller shoving Carey Terrance to the ice, according to the report.
When the Rangers unveiled their first set of lines on Thursday, Rempe rotated in as an extra, while Tye Kartye, Joe Veleno and Jarslav Chmelař skated on the fourth line. The report described that rotation as a sign, with a small sample size, that Rempe likely has to play his way into the lineup. Training camp runs to the Sept. 29 season opener against the Bruins.
Rempe has fought 12 times across his NHL career, according to HockeyFights. Last season he broke his thumb, underwent surgery, had another procedure done in January and faced a long path back to the lineup, the report said, adding that he struggled to win puck battles and with shooting, and that gripping his stick became challenging.
Del Gaizo is a defenseman and a Basking Ridge, N.J. native, according to the report.
- The source does not state the score or any statistics from the scrimmage.
- The source does not state whether Rempe, Del Gaizo, the Rangers or the league took any action or issued any comment after the scuffle.
- The source does not state what procedure Rempe underwent in January or the details of the thumb injury he sustained last season.
- The source does not state whether Rempe will be in the lineup for the Sept. 29 opener against the Bruins.
- The source does not state which players made up the other lines beyond the fourth line.
- The source does not state the number of players remaining in camp or when the roster will be set.
Read the original at New York Post