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Penguins won't knock Avery's injury

BY ARTHUR STAPLE | arthur.staple@newsday.com

8:54 PM EDT, April 30, 2008

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Sean Avery has few friends in the Penguins' locker room. Let's face it, he's got few friends in any locker room in the NHL besides his own.

But none of the Penguins who talked about Avery and his season-ending spleen injury Wednesday were happy that the Rangers' resident pest was going to miss Game 4 Thursday night and anything beyond that, should Pittsburgh fail to wrap up this series, which the Penguins lead 3-0.

"I don't know Sean away from the rink, and we've obviously had our comments through the media," said veteran Gary Roberts, who hasn't played yet this series but has sparred with Avery in the past. "But truthfully, when it comes to this kind of stuff, you just hope he makes a full recovery."

Avery and Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury exchanged slashes at the end of Game 2, but Fleury was similarly sympathetic to Avery's medical condition. "He's a guy you don't always like on the ice," Fleury said, "but he's still a hockey player. You don't like to see that."

No one has liked seeing Avery much this season, or throughout his six NHL seasons. He tangled with Roberts last Nov. 8, goading the 20-year veteran into a double-minor high-sticking penalty that helped lead the Rangers to a 4-2 win.

After that game, Avery had some snide remarks for Roberts. "Young guys are a little dumb, they don't know what's going on half the time," Avery said. "So a guy like , they take it a little bit more as an insult that how dare you disrespect them and all they've done for the game and how great they are."

After Avery's antics with Martin Brodeur in the Rangers' five-game first-round win over the Devils, Roberts was asked for a comment. "Here's my quote: 'He's an idiot,'" Roberts said.

Wednesday, there was none of that from the visitors' dressing room at Madison Square Garden. The 3-0 series lead helps, too.

"There's hockey, and there's life, your health," said Roberts, who may return to the lineup Thursday night with checking forward Maxime Talbot limping on a bruised foot. "You don't wish this on anybody."

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