The New York Rangers have claimed Sean Avery off of waivers from the Dallas Stars!
Avery, who had been playing for the Hartford Wolfpack, the Rangers' AHL affiliate, will join the Blueshirts for practice on Wednesday, and is likely to play Thursday against the Islanders.
The Rangers will only have to pay half of Avery's contract, which runs through the next 3 years, with a salary cap hit of about $3.8 million per season.
Sean played 23 games for the Stars at the beginning of the season, registering 3 goals, 7 assists, and 77 penalty minutes. He was run out of town on December 2nd, after making some pretty hilarious comments about his extremely hot ex-girlfriend Elisha Cuthbert, who is now dating Calgary Flames' defenseman (and goofy looking dude) Dion Phaneuf.
My friends, Sean Avery was born to play on Broadway.
This guy NEEDS to be center stage. He LOVES the city. He CRAVES the attention.
And the Garden Faithful will give it to him. We're still in his corner.
Sure the guys a super pest... you know what? He's a flat-out asshole. But the guy can also play the game when he wants to, and THAT is what makes him so valuable.
in 76 games as a Ranger, Avery has recorded 23 goals and 30 assists for 53 points, plus 212 PIMS. In the PLAYOFFS, he has picked up 12 points in 18 games, which is not too shabby at all.
In Fact, in the 1 1/2 years Avery spent as a Ranger, the team was 50-23-13 with him in the lineup, and only 24-35-9 without him. This is not a coincidence, kids.
"But what about Tortorella? He ripped Ave's apart as an analyst, is he going to give Avery the slack he requires to be effective?"
He will. Because right now, Avery has the backing of G.M. Glen Sather- and we know now how invincible Sather is to the Rangers' brass.
However, you better believe that Sean is going to be on a VERY short leash in Tort's book. JT will not put up with any off-ice, attention grabbing antics, or any action that is detrimental to this team. Tortorella is not a "players coach", as Tom Renney was. This man is a WINNING coach. He wants W's, and W's are a team effort. He doesn't mind hurting a player's feelings. Sean will not receive any special treatment- he will produce, or he will not play.
But Tortorella WILL give Avery a clean slate, and the chance to prove himself.
''He doesn't have the history with Sean that we do,'' Sather said on a conference call last week. ''Over time, you learn to love him, just like I do.''
What does remain to be seen is how #16 will effect a NYR locker room that is seemingly very quiet and reserved. Who is there to hold Avery back?
Jaromir Jagr is gone. There's no Brenden Shanahan on the roster. Chris Drury just doesn't command the respect that the two aforementioned legends do.
The only PLAYER I can see keeping Sean reserved is Paul Mara, but who knows how much Mara can take?
Instead, this duty is going to fall to Coach Tortorella. I'm sure Avery will be called into the Coach's office on more than one occasion in the last 17 games of this season. The important thing will be to keep the two heads from clashing in a confrontational manner.
Good luck with that.
Still, the most important aspect of Avery's return to The Garden will be his play on the ice. The Rangers need the 28-year old to play his game. It is important for him to be his old sandpaper, tip-toe the line self against his opponents. At the same time, they need him to be careful and disciplined (to some extent), because if you don't think that he is going to be targeted by every Zebra on this side of the universe, you're off your rocker.
Now where will he fit in this lineup? I'm thinking something like this:
Naslund- Gomez -Zherdev
AVERY- Drury- Dubinsky
Prucha- Korpikoski -Callahan
Sjostrom- Betts -Orr
As you can see, in this scenario Nigel Dawes would be the odd man out. But you're better off believing that there are going to be some more changes in personnel come Wednesday's trade deadline (which comes before the Rangers' next game). So exactly who sits and who plays where is still very much To Be Determined.
As for Sean Avery, I hope he can get back up to NHL game-speed quick, fast, and in a hurry. The Rangers need him to be effective both in the heads of opponents, and on the scoresheet.
The only thing that can hold Sean Avery back right now... is Sean Avery.
UPDATE: Aaron Voros has reportedly been placed on waivers. Mazel Tov.
-For those of you wondering, the Rangers already opened a roster spot for Avery yesterday when they sent newly acquired Mark Bell to Hartford.
UPDATED UPDATE: Erik Reitz has also been placed on waivers.
-Rif
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