Sean Avery has the complete support of his teammates in the wake of an alleged incident that, yesterday, cost him a $2,500 fine and the Rangers a $25,000 penalty.
Avery has been accused of making nasty remarks about the condition of the Maple Leafs’ Jason Blake, who was recently diagnosed with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia. The comments were alleged to be part of a pregame trash-talking binge by Avery before Saturday’s game in Toronto.
“It’s not true,” Ranger teammate Brendan Shanahan said yesterday after practice, which Avery missed to attend a meeting with NHL VP Colin Campbell in Toronto to discuss the player’s habit of instigating ugly pregame incidents.
“He didn’t say that, and that was confirmed by Toronto players.”
The support for Avery was expected since he is credited with being a big part of the Rangers’ second-half resurgence and playoff run last year after being acquired in midseason. While Avery has proved he can contribute with his performance on the ice, his value to his team also has been attributed to his ability to get under the skin of his opponents.
“I’m constantly reminding Sean to toe a certain line,” Shanahan said of Avery, who may file a lawsuit against Toronto radio personality Howard Berger, who reported the alleged comments over the air. “You’re never going to get him to stop talking. Sean’s game is all about playing on the line.”
Still, there is a sense that Avery the Agitator needs to rein in the trash talk and renew his focus on hockey.
Coach Tom Renney said Avery knows how he has to play to be effective.
“We got the player because we trust in the kind of player he is,” Renney said.
The Avery saga overshadowed the fact the Rangers have won seven of their last nine games and have climbed into second place behind the Flyers in the Atlantic Division.