Sean Avery's Karma as Former King of Agitators

Sean Avery returned to the New York Rangers a milder man, less likely to get in a fight or even take a penalty, but still an aggressive fore-checker who hits hard, plays with a lot of energy, and yaps or chirps to get his team's opponents off their game.

The NHL has welcomed him back with hit after hit, while referees appear to look the other way.

Avery led the league in penalties for two years with the Los Angeles Kings but cut his penalty minutes in half when he went to the Rangers. He became the leading pest or agitator, instead, and was called the "super-pest" or "King of the Agitators."

Now agitators on other clubs have called their teams' "Sean Avery," and it looks like they all want a shot at their namesake's crown. In game after game, Avery takes hit after hit.

Statistics record hits given but not hits taken, otherwise he might be the leader in that category too.

In the second round of the Playoffs last season, Avery was hit so hard and so often by the Pittsburgh Penguins that he suffered a lacerated spleen. He was rushed to the hospital after a game in New York and reports surfaced that he was dead or dying, though they proved to be untrue.

Last year's Rangers coach Tom Renney reported that Avery "played his heart out" (or at least his spleen out) for the team. A Rangers fan went on record saying he was the "spine of the team."

On Sunday, the Ottawa Senators' agitators, or "Sean Avery's," lined up to take on their old nemesis. Chris Neil and Jarkko Ruutu both have a history of fighting with Avery.

The night before, the Buffalo Sabres' bad guy had his turn and tried to get Avery to fight. Before that, on St. Patrick's Day in Montreal, it appeared that all of the Canadiens wanted a piece of him, not just their tough guys and enforcer.

After one huge hit, Avery did not get up for a few seconds, but the referee just looked the other way and the game went on with Montreal looking like they were on a power play with a one-man advantage.

The same thing happened in the Rangers' double-header with the Philadelphia Flyers last weekend, and in games with the Nashville Predators and Carolina Hurricanes the week before that. Avery has been hit hard and often since he rejoined the NHL eight games ago.

He was treated much the same way when he was playing his way back into game shape in the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack. Future NHL players tried to make their reputations as tough guys by hitting the former king and attempting to provoke him into a fight.

In Hartford, the Wolf Pack came to Avery's defense. His old friend Don "Sugar" Sugden, the team's enforcer, had his back. But the Rangers' enforcer, Colton Orr, is not getting much ice time these days.

Avery is averaging 15 minutes per game and played over 20 minutes against Ottawa—He had close to 10 minutes in the first period alone. Yet despite all that burn and abuse, he appears to be healthy and happy.

He is not complaining about officiating or the level of violence. He just tells reporters he is grateful for the opportunity to play with the Rangers again in the NHL.

It looked like his karma was changing when he was promoted from the third line, the usual home of the team's agitator, to the first line, where one is expected to score goals.

He responded with a goal-a-game pace for three straight contests, as he had one in Nashville, another in Philadelphia, and then two at home in New York in another game against Philly.

In the Rangers last game, Avery looked like he had been reincarnated as a goal-scorer. He seemed to be in heaven with the NBC star-cam following him as he earned the first star in the Game of the Week.

Of course, after that, he did not get a goal or an assist in Montreal and was dropped to the second line for the games against Buffalo and Ottawa. He earned an assist on the Rangers' lone goal against the Senators and was rewarded with lots of ice time.

Avery has very few penalty minutes since rejoining the Rangers, as he has not retaliated or dropped his gloves. He has stayed away from the "sin-bin" and is no longer the kind of hockey player who is at home in the box.

Those who believe in karma say we have a series of small deaths in this life and are born again at a higher or lower level, depending on what we have done. I guess if a hockey player led the league in penalties and eventually became the king of the agitators, he might return as a scorer on the first line.

But apparently there is still hell to pay for the sins of previous lives.