Mere days after he was called up to the big leagues, New York Rangers forward Matt Rempe has an opportunity to make NHL history at the 2024 Stadium Series at MetLife Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The rookie, who has never appeared in a National Hockey League contest, has the chance to become the first player to make his league debut in an outdoor game, per NHL.com's Dan Rosen.
“That would be unreal, a [heck] of a story,” the 21-year-old said. “It would be unbelievable.”
Rempe got the call from the American Hockey League's Hartford Wolfpack on Friday, replacing Blake Wheeler after the veteran suffered a brutal injury that will cost him at least the rest of the regular season.
A former sixth-round selection by the Blueshirts in the 2020 NHL Draft, Rempe was lining up along with Barclay Goodrow and Adam Edstrom at practice on the ODR on Friday.
“I think I'd handle it well,” Rempe explained when asked about potentially making his debut on Sunday against the rival New York Islanders. “I play a hard, physical game that runs on adrenaline. I think I'm going to be juiced up to the max, so I think I'm going to be buzzing out there. It'd be unreal. How can you not be going with all the fans and outdoors? This is pure hockey.”
He's not wrong about that.