Sean Avery arrested for checking cop, sent to Hollywood penalty box

Sean Avery

((ht: tmz))

NHL bad boy Sean Avery of the New York Rangers had a rough morning this Friday after being arrested at his home in the Hollywood, California hills.

According to TMZ.com, Avery was arrested after he allgedly shoved a police officer. The officer was at his home after neighbors called police because of the noise coming from the house.

When the officer knocked on the door, Avery supposed shoved him, then slammed the door. They knocked again and Avery apparently realized what he did, but was arrested and booked for "Battery on a Police Officer.

We suspect Mr. Avery is very sorry for what he did. However, it doesn't excuse it. We also suspect the Police Department is less than thrilled about the whole adventure too. We'll see what the judge thinks about it when Avery is arraigned.

DEVELOPING: Richards Chooses Rangers

((HT: Sportsnet Radio FAN590))

Brad Richards has decided to sign a nine-year, $58.5-million contract with the New York Rangers. The contract will be a front-loaded deal, with Richards making $50 million in the first five years in New York.

A lot of pundits that the HQ watches and/or listens to thought that the Rangers wold, in fact, swoop in at the last minute, come up with the biggest deal, and grab him away from Toronto, LA, and everyone else...

And they did...

More when we know more...

2011 NHL Entry Draft Day One: Go Jets Go!

((HT: NHL on TSN/NHL/JHendrix70))

First, here's what unbridled enthusiasm sounds like...

This is how the official announcement came in from the True North folks on their new nickname...


Not that there isn't any coolness with bringing back the Jets or anything like that...

And, then, we go to pick 15 and the New York Rangers...
An absolutely class move by the Rangers in recognizing the late Derek Boogaard with his brother Aaron on stage...
((HT: Versus/TSN/NHL/youtube))


The draft continues today with Rounds Two through the end...

Boogaard Family Donating Brain For CTE Exam

((HT: MyFoxTwinCities))

The New York Post reported Saturday that Derek Boogaard had been receiving counseling in the NHL's substance abuse and behavioral health program in the weeks prior to his death, but there is no indication there were any immediate problems.

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Boogaard's family has now signed paperwork to send his brain to researchers at Boston Univiersity, where research is being done at the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy.

"They just felt like this is something that needed to be done," said Michael Russo, hockey reporter for the Star Tribune. "Brain trauma is big in pro sports. ... Derek had a season-ending concussion and multiple in his career."
Here's the update...

Family to Donate Boogaard's Brain to Docs: MyFoxTWINCITIES.com

Currently, there is no evidence to suggest that Boogaard suffered any syptoms that would lead to CTE.

MO\ore when we know more...

Rangers enforcer Derrick Boogaard found dead in his home

Derek Boogaard/Courtesy: thehockeynews.com

The 28-year old popular hockey player was found dead in his Minneapolis apartment around 6 p.m Friday night. An autopsy is planned as authorities have no idea what led to Boogaard's death.

Though known as a tough guy on the ice, Boogaard was one of the most respected and well liked players in the game. He started his career with the Minnesota Wild before signing a 4-year, $6.5 million contract with the New York Rangers in 2010.

From the Rangers Website: “Derek was an extremely kind and caring individual,” said New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather.  “He was a very thoughtful person, who will be dearly missed by all those who knew him.  We extend our deepest sympathies to his family, friends and teammates during this difficult time.”

More from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune RIGHT HERE

While many wonder about why Hockey needs people with the unofficial job title "Enforcer", it's a part of the game. The violence may be questioned at times, but the role is primarily to protect and make sure nobody takes cheap shots at the "Stars" on a given team. It was a job that many considered Derek Boogaard the best at.

Boogaard was known by many as "The Boogeyman" because of his propensity for scaring his opponents. He only played in 22 games this past season for the Rangers because of a severe concussion, a concussion severe enough that he apparently struggled to deal with the sunlight. The question now is, how much did that affect him?

Here's some video of Boogaard doing what the job he was paid for (Courtesy: Hockeyfights.com):

Your Nightly NHL UPDATE: Double-Double

((HT: NHL/Versus/ROOT Sports))

Two games in the NHL took a while to close off last night...
The Tampa-Pittsburgh and the New York-Washington games both went double overtime- the first for this post-season...

Here are your game-winners... both quite fluky bouncy...


And one of the cooler moments of the evening was in the Rangers-Caps game as the crowd at MSG tried to make a point to Caps head coach Bruce Boudreau...
((HT: NHL/Versus))


Gotta love Panger's response there...
And he's right...

In other games, the Ducks evened the series with Nashville and Detroit eliminated Phoenix in four straight. Now all we need to know is the future...

Which would need to be settled by late June...

NHL Recap: Hawks On The Edge, Carrie Underwood Cheers, And All The Others

((HT: NHL.com/TSN/NBC/FSPredators))

Vancouver puts the Blackhawks on the edge of elimination, Teemu Selanne scores twice in 30 seconds but Nashville wins anyway over Anaheim, Brandon Dubinsky makes the Rangers winners over Washington, but more importantly Carrie Underwood's husband got the game-winner from Sergei K...

Here's every goal from Sunday in a minute and a half...

Ryan Callahan Nets 4 In Rangers Win

((HT: NHL/NBC))

Here's to hoping the folks attending the Rangers boat race of the Philadelphia Flyers at MSG Sunday brought disposable hats...

Ryan Callahan gets three of the team's first four and four of the team's first five as the game was never, really, in question after the first 51 seconds...

Doc and Edzo have the highlights of the 7-0 win...


Don't want to be in the Flyers locker room or team plane after this one...

At...
All...

Briere Fined $1,000 For Bench Punch

The NHL fined the Philadelphia Flyers' Danny Briere $1,000 for throwing a punch from the bench at the New York Rangers' Brandon Prust Sunday.

Here's the punch... good catch Joe Micheletti...
((HT: NHL/MSG/Youtube))


Briere has been suspended three games in 2010/11 - costing him nearly $238,000 in salary. He was also looked over for the all-star team even though he is tied for fifth in the NHL with 24 goals.

Sean Avery starts a Pier 6'er....again....

Agitator/pest/annoying hockey guy Sean Avery was again at the crux of a Hockey fight on Sunday that ended up being a full-fledged slobberknocker. He checked -----Colin Fraser into the wall, Fraser skates away and  a teammate skates in to his defense. Avery decks him in one shot.

After the fight, Avery is being escorted off the ice when a couple of Edmonton players skate over, something gets said and before you know it, everyone on the ice picks a dance partner and they're Kung Fu Fighting.

Check out the video from hockeyfights.com:



Because we just lucked out and found it get your Carl Douglas fix right here:

Del Zotto Breaks A Camera With A Wrister

((HT: MSG/NHL.COM))

See, this even happens in hockey...
With smaller cameras...
It took great aim to pull this off...

The Rangers are off and running this year...
Michael Del Zotto... between two devils, and into the lens...Boom!

Wisniewski Out Avery-ies Sean Avery

Which the HQ thinks is pretty damn funny...

Just watch...
((HT: NHL/MSGPlus/Hockeyfightsdotcom))


Maybe he was telling Avery he needed to use a fluoride toothpaste...
Or something...

Sean Avery Thinks Max Talbot Is A Sub-Standard Fighter

((HT: FSN Pittsburgh/NHL))

We've shown you Sean Avery's exploits before...

He's one of the best pests in the league. You hate him when he's playing you. You love him when he's on your team.

He goads. He pokes fun. And he gets the other guy to go with him into the penalty box. Last night against the Penguins, he told Max Talbot what he thought of his "paint the fence" fighting style...

Daniel-san, Talbot certainly was not...

NHL Silly Season Begins: Habs Land Gomez

((HT: TSN/CP))

Getting a jump on the free agent market, the Montreal Canadiens moved to secure their centre ice position via trade, making a deal with the New York Rangers Tuesday and taking on a whole lot of salary in the process.

The Canadiens acquired centre Scott Gomez ((pictured, thanks Scott Audette/Getty)), winger Tom Pyatt and defenceman Mike Busto from the New York Rangers in exchange for winger Chris Higgins and defencemen Doug Janik, Ryan McDonagh and Pavel Valentenko.

Gomez, 29, is coming off a down season for the Rangers, finishing with 58 points, his lowest total since 2002-2003.

"We are extremely pleased to have acquired a player of the caliber of Scott Gomez. He is an outstanding playmaker and an excellent skater. Having won the Stanley Cup twice with the New Jersey Devils, he brings to our team a lot of playoff experience. Scott is an elite player who will certainly contribute to the success of our team for years to come" said Canadiens GM Bob Gainey.

A two-time Stanley Cup winner with the New Jersey Devils, Gomez was a blockbuster free agent signing for the Rangers in the summer of 2007. Gomez is signed through 2013-2014, at a salary cap hit of more than $7.35-million, so he represents a significant investment.

In 706 career games, Gomez has 148 goals, 430 assists and 578 points, adding 81 points in 114 career playoff games.

Higgins, a 26-year-old restricted free agent winger, also struggled in 2008-2009, scoring a career-low 23 points in 57 games as he missed a combined 25 games with hand and groin injuries.

Prior to last season, however, Higgins recorded three straight seasons of at least 20 goals and he'll be a more economical option for the Rangers as he earned $1.7-million last season.

McDonagh, 20, was Montreal's first-round pick in 2007 and recorded 16 points in 36 games as a 6-foot-1, 212-pound sophomore at the University of Wisconsin in 2008-2009.

Valentenko, 22, has good size at 6-foot-2, 202 pounds, but left the Canadiens' farm team in Hamilton early last season to play for Moscow Dynamo in the KHL, where he finished with one assist in eight games.

Janik, a 29-year-old journeyman acquired from Dallas last season, will be an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

The minor leaguers coming to Montreal aren't considered elite prospects. A six-foot, 185-pound forward, Tom Pyatt is a 22-year-old who put up 37 points in 73 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL last season and was a fourth-round pick in 2005.

23-year-old Busto is 6-foot-1, 210 pounds and registered 11 points and a minus-7 rating in 54 games with Charlotte of the ECHL.

Rangers Sent Home in Game 7 Loss To Caps

((HT: TSN/NHL))
The collapse is complete...
The New York Rangers had a 3-1 lead in their opening round Eastern Conference series against the Washington Capitals. A third-period goal by Sergei Fedorov sent the Broadway Blues home after a 2-1 in DC.

Here's TSN's coverage with "Ms. Dude"- Jennifer Hedger.

Brashear Suspended For Six

((HT: TSN))

Washington Capitals forward Donald Brashear ((pictured, thanks Bruce Bennett/Getty))was suspended for a total of six games by the National Hockey League for two separate incidents in Game 6 against the New York Rangers.

Brashear had a hearing on Monday to discuss his exchange with New York's Colton Orr in the warm-up prior to the game and his late hit on Rangers forward Blair Betts in the first period. Brashear got one game for the incident with Orr and five additional games for his hit on Betts.

The Rangers announced on Monday that Betts suffered a broken orbital bone as a result of the hit and is out indefinitely.

"Brashear delivered a shoulder hit to an unsuspecting player," said Senior Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell in a release. "It is also my opinion that the hit was delivered late and targeted the head of his opponent, causing significant injury."
Brashear will start serving his suspension in Game 7 and it will extend through Washington's next five playoff games, or the 2009/10 regular season depending on how long the Capitals are in the playoffs.

The Capitals defeated the Rangers 5-3 on Sunday to force Game 7 on Tuesday.
Here's what everyone was using as evidence, thanks to the NHL and NBC

Do Not Anger John Tortorella

((HT: TSN/NHL))

It really doesn't matter if the New York Rangers are winning or losing under the tutelage of John Tortorella. If you ask a stupid question, you get a stupid answer back and you're called out for being an idiot.

Rightfully so...

If you dump a beer on the guy, expect the horns...
Kinda like Friday night against the Washington Capitals...
Jim Schoenfeld was the voice in reason in all of this...???
See for yourself...

Ovie Just Wanted To Piss Torts Off

From the Dan Steinberg creation- the DC Sports Bog- over at the Washington Post and Puck Daddy over at yahoo sports...

We have a little gamesmanship before game 3 of the Caps-Rangers series. And it stars none other than Alexander himself ((pictured, thanks Steinberg himself)).

"...all the media members buzzed quietly when Alex Ovechkin came out to watch the Rangers' morning skate. This, several veterans said, was slightly unusual. Then they buzzed again, when Ovechkin was tapped on the shoulder by a Caps' PR staffer and abruptly left.
Turns out Rangers boss John Tortorella((actually it turned out to be a Rangers official)) had apparently asked Ovechkin to vacate the bench. The Caps PR folks offered Ovie a seat in the stands instead.

He declined.
Playoff hockey is fun for all.
UPDATED: Tarik and I pretty much took care of asking the principals what they thought. I bit the bullet on Tortorella:
"Oh, God, I didn't even know," he said. "This is the first I've heard of it. Ask me a question about the game, not that [bleep]."
Tarik took care of Ovechkin:
"I just [wanted] Tortorella [to get ticked] off -- and he was," he said, explaining his motivation. "Because they afraid of me," he added, when asked why he was made to leave.
And last, Boudreau:
"I think it was more of a lack of knowing the rules, that's all," Boudreau said. "They asked him to leave; he left. He just went out there and he wants to be around the rink. I don't think he had a pen and paper, writing down line combinations or anything, but I can understand, I've gotten into the same arguments with different people when I want privacy in my practice, so I can understand what John was going through as well. As long as he's out there at 7 o'clock, we're fine."

Here's the Ovechkin presser
The answer comes at the 4:25 mark...
((HT: Caps365/NHL))

Sean Avery Instigates Everyone Including Jack Edwards

((HT: NESN))

Those of you who follow the puck on a normal basis know two things:

1) Sean Avery is a worthless piece of garbage when he doesn't play well with others and,
2) When play-by-play guy Jack Edwards is prodded, his comments can be incredibly funny, homeristic, and usually right on- even if embellished...

Today's example is when Avery accidentally-on-purpose hit Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas in the back of the head. Square dancing ensued, and Edwards and color commentator Andy Brickley were, understandably, pissed- broadcastingly speaking...

Enjoy... The weekly Edwards "Soliloquy On The State Of The Game" is at the 3:20 mark...

Sean Avery To Be Placed On Waivers

((HT: TSN/Darren Dreger))

The Dallas Stars will place Sean Avery on re-entry waivers on Monday.

The New York Rangers are expected to claim him, failing a rival bid from a team lower in the NHL standings.

If no team claims Avery, picking up half of his remaining salary, then the Stars will consider one of two options:

They will allow him to continue playing in the AHL with Hartford.

Or...

They will allow him to leave while continuing to pay him for not playing.

Dallas will then officially cut ties with Sean Avery by buying him out during the buyout period this summer.