DROPPING THE GLOVES with ANDREW BOGUSCH - 12/3/08

One of Sean Avery's many antics during his career

It was crude and unnecessary, but it was also hilarious (and not to mention true). It should be remembered as one of the better bits of trash-talking in recent memory. It should not have led to Sean Avery being suspended indefinitely pending a hearing with Gary Bettman.

The Stars winger unleashed this barb on TSN hours before Tuesday night’s game in Calgary: “I just want to comment on how it’s become like a common thing in the NHL for guys to fall in love with my sloppy seconds. I don’t know what that’s about. Enjoy the game tonight.”

Hey, Dion, how are you?

As you know by now, Flames defenseman Dion Phaneuf is dating (super-hot) actress Elisha Cuthbert, whom Avery dated in the past. The remark was only going to make this game more interesting since it was the teams’ first meeting since Avery called Jarome Iginla boring. Instead, the Commissioner took Avery off the ice for the all-encompassing “conduct detrimental to the League or the game of hockey”.

But what is so detrimental about a guy running his mouth? It is safe to assume Phaneuf did not crumple into his locker stall in hysterics upon hearing Avery’s words. Ms. Cuthbert certainly does not need Mr. Bettman to defend her honor. This, coupled with the shot at Iginla, should have been settled on the Saddledome ice. And it would have been, because, to his credit, Avery understands the repercussions of his actions and is willing to drop his gloves when necessary.

There would also have been some fallout inside the Stars locker room. Mike Modano has already called out Avery (and Steve Ott) for his antics during an early November loss to the Bruins. In the wake of this drama, team owner Tom Hicks said the team would have suspended Avery if the league had not. And a handful of players failed to defend Avery, clearly fed up with his behavior. Mending those bridges should have been the bulk of Avery’s punishment.

And this is not about freedom of speech – that argument should only come into play for important things like race or religion. Simply put, this is the stuff that gets the game discussed on SportsCenter, on the web, and on national radio, like it or not. That’s not to say the League should promote such comments, but it does not have to punish people for them.

Did the NBA intervene when Shaquille O’Neal tore apart Kobe Bryant in a freestyle rap last summer? Google O’Neal’s “performance” and see how much meaner, crasser and more outrageous his words were compared to Avery’s. But David Stern did nothing because they were only detrimental to the speaker, not his league or his game.

Commissioner Bettman should have let us love or hate Avery more for what he said. He should have given Phaneuf or Iginla or whatever Flame a chance to shut Avery up. Instead, he did the only thing he should not have done.

P.S., I’d pay good money to be in the room when Avery and Bettman sit down to discuss this…

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This week’s column was originally going to commemorate Claude Lemieux’s return to professional hockey with a list of the NHL’s best pests. The 43-year-old Lemieux signed a tryout deal last week with the Sharks’ AHL affiliate in Worcester, Massachusetts. As of Tuesday afternoon, Lemieux had one goal, one assist and (surprisingly) only 2 PIM through three games. Avery would have been #1 on our annoying list, with his big mouth as one of the main reasons. The other players that were to be “honored” were (in no particular order): Alex Burrows, Milan Lucic, Ian Laperrierre, Jordin Tootoo, and Jarkko Ruutu.

The Shootout…No team had won 21 of its first 24 games until last night, when the Sharks took care of the Maple Leafs, 5-2. San Jose has scored 13 more goals than anybody else and is tied for 4th in goals-against. The power play and penalty kill are Top 7 units. Joe Thornton, Devin Setoguchi and Patrick Marleau are Top 10 scorers. And Todd McLellan is the early leader for Coach of the Year. All of that, though, does not matter. The Sharks’ recent history has been dominated by postseason failure. Until they win the Western Conference, the numbers are just numbers…

Brian Burke inherits a Maple Leafs team that is not as bad as most people predicted coming into the season. Going into Tuesday’s game in San Jose, Toronto sits ahead of Ottawa and Tampa Bay in the standings, and is only two points out of 8th place in the Eastern Conference. Mikhail Grabovski and Matt Stajan have been more than solid down the middle. If their defense can stay healthy, if Vesa Toskala can steady himself, and if Burke pulls off a shrewd deal or two, the Leafs should stay in the playoff chase…

A shrewd move Burke apparently cannot make is re-signing Mats Sundin. Burke said at his introductory press conference that his new team did not fit Sundin’s list of requirements. Whether that is true or not, some think we are very close to a Sundin decision. And those same people think once Sundin picks a team, we will get a flurry of trades from those that lose out on the Swedish center. Marion Gaborik and Jay Bouwmeester are the biggest chips that could move in the wake of a Sundin signing.