Avery Returns to the Saddledome

It has been less than a year since Rangers forward Sean Avery made the infamous comment about his former girlfriend, Elisha Cuthbert, dating Calgary defenseman Dion Phaneuf. If you recall, Avery was a Dallas Star at the time, and the team was in town preparing to clash with the Flames for a regular season contest. Before the game, Avery called somewhat of a press conference with TSN and other various Canadian sports media, when he proceeded to make this comment:

"I'm really happy to be back in Calgary; I love Canada," the Ontario native said. "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, but enjoy the game tonight."

This immediately grabbed the attention of Gary Bettman and the NHL, who sought to punish Avery for his actions, which they deemed "uncalled for". As we know, the punishment turned out to be an indefinite suspension from the league, as well as a several week stint of mental therapy.

The Dallas Stars were appalled at this and did not want him returning to the organization, so they placed him on re-entry waivers, where he was picked up by the Rangers. Aves played a few games with the Wolf Pack before being brought up to play under John Tortorella for the remainder of the season.

So, the question tonight is, has everyone really put this behind them like they have claimed? Or will the hard-hitting Dion Phaneuf be seeking revenge against the pesky forward?

Here is what Avery had to say about it courtesy of the Calgary Sun:

"I have zero interest in all the shenanigans built up around it," Avery said yesterday. "I've moved on from it."

"I called Elisha to apologize and explain myself, and she was great," Avery told the Post. "She was cool about it. She's great."

So, it seems that Avery has put it behind him, and I am sure therapy has helped with that. However, us Ranger fans know more than anyone that he is very unpredictable, so you never know what he will say out on the ice.

As for Phaneuf, he was not available to comment yesterday, but several of his teammates did.

Craig Conroy: "Nobody's even mentioned it in here," said Flames centre Craig Conroy. "I've forgotten about it. He'll be chirpy out there, as usual. That's what he does, tries to throw guys off their game and we can't let him get to us, but Dion's not afraid to throw chirps out there, too. I don't think anything will come of last year."

Brandon Prust: "It was a different team. Obviously, it's the same guy, but we'll see how it goes. I think it's kind of in the past and everyone has put that behind them, but we'll see what happens. Obviously, if he's acting that way out on the ice, then things are gonna change."

Former Ranger Fred Sjostrom: "He's a good guy, I think," Sjostrom said. "At least, he's put it behind him, the past, and I think we've kind of moved on from that now. It was a bit of a circus earlier, but nobody has been talking about it, so I don't think it's going to be a big deal."

We will see what comes of it, but I doubt that Phaneuf will want revenge for such a stupid comment. In my opinion, the whole situation was blown up by the NHL and media to an extent that it should never have reached. They could have just let it slip, but instead, they made a whole big deal of it. Whatever the case may be, Avery is now a Ranger, and we know that his game will not be any different against the Flames as it has been all season.

(Image courtesy of AP Photo)