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Sean Avery is back in the New
York Rangers lineup and back to playing the type of hockey he needs to so that
he can be effective. Down the stretch of
the season there was a lot of discussion about not only his role this year, but
his future with the Rangers organization.
Avery was a healthy
scratch in five of the Rangers' final 11 games, as well as the first game of
the playoffs. Since being inserted into the
lineup for Game 2 he has played like the Sean Avery of the past in that his
energy level has been consistently high, he has been effective on the forecheck
and caused havoc for the opposition. He has logged 19:07 of ice time in the two
games.
There
is still the lingering possibility that on any shift Avery is on the ice there
is the risk he could explode and hurt the team with a bad penalty, but he has
played smart disciplined hockey in the series and has helped to make his line
with Brian Boyle and Brandon Prust the Rangers best line.
Avery
has impressed to the point that the Rangers sent Mats Zuccarello down the AHL
because he was not going to get back in the lineup. His play has been so effective that it led
coach John Tortorella to praise the winger.
Matt Ehalt of ESPN.com
had the following quote:
"I
think in the minutes he played (in Game 3), he was pretty consistent, as far as
getting in on the forecheck, getting around the net, finishing his
checks," Tortorella said. "Sean's biggest assets are his legs. If he
starts thinking, he hurts himself. He just needs to go play and use his
legs."
That
quote from Tortorella is accurate, but also speaks to the way Avery has been
mismanaged this year. Avery is a player
who has to play on the edge and without overthinking the game. The problem is when the coach makes it clear
that any mistake or bad penalty will lead to him sitting on the bench, then you
end up with a player who does not do the things that makes them most effective.
In the series Avery has been able to strike
the balance between the energy the team needs and the discipline that
Tortorella demands. The Rangers need
that balance to continue if they are going to even the series this evening as
the Avery, Boyle, Prust line sets the tone for everything New York wants to do
in this series.
