Decisions By Leafs and Rangers to Dress Reaves, Rempe Could Indicate a Rough Outing Expected

Tonight's matchup between the Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Rangers will feature two of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. It will be a star-studded affair with the likes of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, Artemi Panarin, Adam Fox, and Igor Shesterkin all taking part. However, one matchup to keep a close eye on will be that of Reaves and Rempe.

Rempe joined the Rangers last year and brought about a lot of media attention with his fights, major penalties, and 71 PIMs in just 17 games. He's only suited up for 1 game this year but he will re-enter the lineup tonight with the Leafs leaving Max Pacioretty in the press box and opting to leave Reaves in the lineup against New York.

These two heavyweights dropped the gloves during the third period of their matchup on the 2nd of March last season. It wasn't as electric as some of Rempe's previous fights, but it was a marathon nonetheless and Reaves stood his ground and delivered several blows to the 6'9 rookie, who also had 7 inches and 30 pounds on the veteran enforcer.

Both Reaves and Rempe have yet to drop the gloves this season. In fact, neither of them have even taken a penalty to this point. However, with both in the lineup and the game being played in Toronto on a Saturday night, it wouldn't be all too surprising to see the two reacquainted for round 2.

The 3-1-0 Maple Leafs will be looking to extend their winning streak to 4 games, while the 3-0-1 Rangers will be looking to keep their modest 2-game winning streak alive, let alone their 4-game point streak. It will truly be a battle of heavyweights tonight, both on the ice and in the standings.