Ryan Reaves got the Scotiabank Arena crowd on its feet on Thursday when he overpowered Arizona Coyotes forward Liam O'Brien during the Maple Leafs' 4-2 victory.
After his convincing victory and getting love from his teammates when he returned to the bench from the penalty box, Reaves was asked about another enforcer who has been making headlines since making his NHL debut.
Matt Rempe, the 6-foot-7 superheavyweight with the New York Rangers, made his NHL debut in an outdoor game as part of the NHL's annual Stadium Series and he got into a fight. Five games after that, Rempe has been in three more fights.
"It's been a hot star, a good start for him," Reaves said of Rempe.
Asked if Reaves was thinking there was a good chance for a brawl between the two, the Winnipeg native smiled.
"I don't have the game script, but you never know," Reaves replied.
The 37-year-old Reaves sees a little bit of himself in the 21-year-old rookie from Calgary who has averaged 5.33 penalty minutes per game.
"He’s coming in the league trying to make a name for himself any way he can, that’s how I came in," Reaves said. "I wasn’t called up to add a scoring touch, for sure, it was to be physical and stick up for teammates and draw some energy and I kind of came into the league the same way.
"Good on him. He’s got some attention and we’ll see how long it lasts."
As for Reaves, his season has turned around after he sustained a knee injury and then spent a lengthy amount of time scratched, even though he said he was healthy. When he finally returned to the lineup in late January against the Winnipeg Jets, he scored a goal in his return. He has since beaten out Noah Gregor for a regular spot on the team's fourth line, skating with forwards David Kampf and Pontus Holmberg.
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