Should the Dallas Stars welcome back their super pest after his six-game suspension?
Think six games is not enough for Sean Avery? Too many?
Frankly I could care less if I ever saw him perform again, even though I think he's a pretty good player. He is simply more trouble than he is worth.
But never mind the suspension, handed down by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman for Avery's immature outburst in Calgary the other day. The six games and accompanying loss of salary is just the beginning of Avery's troubles.
Be clear about one thing, this six-game penalty isn't just for his immature outburst in Calgary. It is punishment for the litany of indiscretions Avery has authored the past few years.
"Mr. Avery has been warned repeatedly about his conduct and his comments which have too often been at odds with the manner in which his more than 700 fellow players conduct themselves," Bettman said. "Playing in the National Hockey League is a privilege, requiring a high standard of personal behavior. Mr. Avery forfeits that privilege for six games."
For now, Avery is a man without a team. And that may not change in the near future.
The Dallas Stars sure as hell don't want him. They made that much clear in the immediate aftermath of Avery's latest slip of the lip. Just in case you were on Mars the past week, what we're talking about is Avery's disgusting comment about other players enjoying his sloppy seconds, a reference to Dion Phaneuf of the Calgary Flames and Jarret Stoll of the Los Angeles Kings who are dating his ex-girlfriends.
Both goaltender Marty Turco and coach Dave Tippett made it perfectly clear Avery is no longer welcome in the Stars locker room. Tippett, who is normally very reserved, left nothing to the imagination when he said if it were up to him, Avery would never walk through the doors of his team's locker room again.
Co-GM Brett Hull met with the Dallas media Friday morning and said the team would not add anything to the six games the NHL handed Avery. He did, however, say the club supports the league's decision to force Avery to seek professional anger management evaluation. How would you like to be the physchiatrist that sits down with this nutbar?
By forcing Avery to seek professional help, the NHL has actually given the Stars an out concerning what they will do with him in the future. They can basically keep him away from the team for the remainder of the season and justify it by insisting it is in Avery's best interest that he continues getting professional help. They'll have to pay him, but at least he'll be kept away from the rest of the players on the team who loathe him.
The Stars are a team in crisis. The Avery situation notwithstanding, Dallas sits 27th overall and has arguably been the NHL's most disappointing team -- one year after losing in the Western Conference final to Detroit. The two-headed monster that is the team's co-GMs, Brett Hull and Les Jackson, has become a joke. It was all fun and games last season when the team was winning, but now it is a mess. A joke!
The fact is Hull was the one who wanted Avery and he is also the one who defended the decision to sign him right up until Sloppygate unfolded in Calgary. To his credit, Hull now takes the position Avery needs help. Regardless, if the team suspends him indefinitely or buys him out, it is a $10-$15 million boo-boo and you just know that is going to hurt is case if the team decides to pick one of Hull or Jackson to run the club moving forward.
Will six games off and professional help change Avery? Don't bet on it. This guy is an egomaniac of the highest order who probably deep down is loving all the attention he is receiving, regardless of the fact he has been exposed as a sexist Neanderthal. I cannot imagine any team -- at any level -- wanting this guy. It has been suggested the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League were asked if they would take Avery should the Stars decide to demote him and they flat-out said NO!
I suspect every other team in the hockey world will have the same reaction.
