Matt Rempe starting to show he’s more than just a Rangers’ enforcer

It was only a three-second glimpse, but Matt Rempe, finally, showcased offensive strides. The ones he started talking about in the preseason — after a summer’s worth of work — and kept doubling down on, even when he fluctuated in and out of the Rangers lineup and shuttled back and forth to AHL Hartford.

The ones that, over time, will help him morph into more than a physical fourth-line forward.

In the early minutes of the third period Tuesday, Rempe found space alongside Adam Edstrom on a rush, collected a pass and flipped the puck into the Senators net with his backhand moments later, giving the Rangers a three-goal lead. It marked just the third goal of Rempe’s career and first of the campaign.

As a winger with a hulking 6-foot-8 ½ frame, his job description doesn’t typically include that. He’s far from a 20-goal scorer.

At this pace, he’s far from even being a five-goal one, too.

But Rempe still wants to change that.

Fifteen hours after the goal, he essentially had the ice to himself during the optional practice before a home match against the Flyers on Thursday.

He worked on using his body to shield pucks and create chances. He focused on skating. Everything, really, centered around offense.

“I want to be a really good power forward one day,” Rempe said, “and I think that’s just gonna be a work in progress.”

His vision hasn’t shifted, even after trips to AHL Hartford, inconsistent playing time and an eight-game suspension interrupted the flow of his second season.

Rempe has remained in the lineup for the past seven games, with the Blueshirts collecting a point in each, and has only taken 11 penalty minutes — with all of those crammed within the past two games.

He has avoided costly penalties. He has strayed from the kind of hits that would end up with him at the Department of Player Safety and could lead to another suspension.

And with his season just starting to find some rhythm and stability, Rempe teased the offensive impact he hopes will follow, too.

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“There’s no question that he’s gotten better,” Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette said, “and there’s no question that he still has work to do to get better.”

When Rempe returned from his suspension, he exuded caution.

He referred to himself as a “marked man.” Another violation, another reckless check, another hearing with the league could lead to a “huge suspension.” Rempe knew he needed to pick his spots. But he also knew he couldn’t lose his physical edge. With offensive contributions rare, that sat at the crux of his role.

Rempe has collected 17 hits since returning while mostly staying out of the penalty box, with the exception of a fight against Arber Xhekaj on Sunday and a four-minute stint for roughing while defending goaltender Igor Shesterkin — who Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk rammed into the post — on Tuesday.

“I think I haven’t taken any bad penalties,” Rempe said, “but I still think I’ve been very physical. Just being a bit smarter, trying to use my stick a little bit more, but still want to be very physical — and I think that I have been.”

And Tuesday, he fell 16 seconds shy of his second-high in ice time with 9:26.

Rempe’s first goal, 11 months ago in Philadelphia, only unfolded when a puck ricocheted off his shin and into the net. In the Rangers’ playoff opener last year, Rempe scored their first goal when a puck popped out from behind the net and he smacked it in. This time, though, it was more than just a right-place, right-time goal.

Rempe knows that the offensive layers of his game remain works in progress.

That’s why he turned an optional skate into essentially a solo workout. Laviolette said young players are “constantly learning.” Rempe, given his complicated history with the Rangers, already has plenty to learn from.

At different points, the results could start to trickle out. A goal here. An assist there. Smart approaches to hits.

And when that happened Tuesday, when Rempe heard the Garden crowd chanting his name again, it captured the motivation behind why he wants “to become a lot more than I am.”

“He feels that here in New York,” Laviolette said of the reaction. “He’s pretty loved by the fans in the city, his teammates and what he brings to the table. … From a confidence standpoint, that makes you feel good, like you can be a contributing factor, and he has. He’s done well. He puts in the work. He’s trying to get better.

“There has been improvement. And he has impacted the game like he did [Tuesday].”