Strange Silence Surrounds Sean Avery

A strange silence surrounds Sean Avery these days.

Despite a flurry of reports in the media, neither the Dallas Stars nor the New York Rangers would comment on a report that the Rangers have had front-office talks about the possibility of bringing back the suspended Stars forward.

Avery has been uncharacteristically silent on the issue, too.

Nothing has been heard from the formerly outspoken NHLer since he apologized for the public comments he made regarding his ex-girlfriends and other NHL players at the start of last December.

Avery was in the news fairly frequently for comments he made on and off the ice while he played for the Detroit Red Wings, L.A. Kings, New York Rangers, and Dallas Stars. From the moment he broke into the league with the Detroit Red Wings and was taken under the wing of Brett Hull, he was known as an outspoken hockey player.

Since being suspended indefinitely by the NHL, there has been only one report of an "Avery sighting." The New York Post reported that Avery showed up at Bungalow 8, a fashionable New York night club, on New Year's Eve.

There was nothing to gossip about as he showed up on the arm of his brother, Scott Avery.

The Avery brothers reportedly spent the night hanging out with former teammates Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Nigel Dawes, and Markus Naslund.

Since Avery was silenced by the suspension, it seems everybody else in hockey has been talking about his trash talk.

Avery was suspended at the start of December, made his apologies immediately afterward, and has not been quoted in the press since then.

He was denied an opportunity to apologize to his Stars teammates. His public apology came from his personal publicist, not the team.

When Avery was suspended, he told the Stars he needed help dealing with anger issues. He went to an undisclosed location seeking treatment through a voluntary program set up by the NHL Players' Association.

Now, with all parties uncharacteristically quiet, hockey fans await news of Avery's fate.