New York Rangers-Washington Capitals: It's Open Season on Sean Avery Again

The Washington Capitals' 4-0 win over the New York Rangers was as exciting as seeing Waiting For Godot on Broadway. The game promised to be as exciting as going to the Imperial Theatre to see Billy Elliot: The Musical. What happened?

If that game had a name, it would be “Who Killed Billy Elliot?”

Was it the most disappointing game ever? It’s just one game, as Chris Drury said. Capitals fans and Avery haters loved it, no doubt, but Rangers fans went home early.

The Caps were expected to win the series, so we should not be too surprised they won this game. The Caps ended the Rangers five game win-streak.

The Rangers won two on the road and now the Caps have won one on the road. It’s unusual but not unprecedented. Ovechkin and Green still didn’t get on the scoreboard. That’s very odd.

The Rangers blocked many shots and Lundqvist was a lot better than the final score suggested. The Rangers kept Ovechkin and Green from scoring, but Alex Semin scored instead.

Stan Fischler, writing for newyorkrangers.com, predicted a big goal for Sean Avery. Nik Zherdov is still looking for goal No. 100. Those things never happened.

Fishchler predicted a sweep, too. Lots of people were talking about a sweep, all of a sudden.

Before this series began, nobody said New York would win one game. After stealing two in Washington, it looked like the Rangers could win them all.

The Rangers dominated Game Two. The Caps dominated Game One, but lost, 4-3. They dominated Game Three and won 4-0. The Rangers dominated Game Two and won 1-0. What’s next?

Trends are not indicative. The Caps could get another road victory or it could be the Rangers turn to dominate, again.

Even so, there was something sad about Game Three. Maybe it was all about Avery.

Is it just me? I’ve been following No. 16 this year, and for most of his career, but did it look to you like it was open season on Avery, again?

The hockey player you love to hate got nailed for anything he did and a couple of things he didn’t do, and few got penalties for what they did to him.

After the game, The National Sports Review's headline was: “Officials singling out Avery?"

Bob Birge of The National Sports Review stated, "The NHL has to do its best to make sure Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals get back in their series against the Rangers.

How better to do it than single out Sean Avery, who was called for three penalties in the second period?” He added, “Avery seems to be a marked man."

The Caps hit Avery hard, again and again, expecially Green. Avery got dropped at one end of the ice, in front of the Caps net, jumped up, skated the length of the ice, hit somebody in front of the Rangers net, and guess who got the penalty?

"Avery, who was not available for comment after the game, was whistled five times alone in the game, including a questionable goalie interference call when he made contact with Simeon Varlamov at 17:45 of the second period," Katie Strang reported in Newsday.

He got three penalties in the second period and his play wasn’t even sloppy. Twenty thousand fans in the stands booed the referee.

“The crowd at MSG seemed to disapprove of the officiating. They chanted 'These refs suck' at the end of the second period,” according to Sarak Kwak, on Sports Illustrated.com.

George Bretherton, writing in the Hockey column in the New York Times reported "Referees Dave Jackson and Kelly Sutherland called seven two-minute minor penalties. Many were of the questionable variety, and five of the calls went against the Rangers.

More significantly, only six minutes 49 seconds of the 20-minute session was played with the teams at full strength."

"When the period was over, the Capitals were leading, 3-0, but the boos that rained down onto the ice were not for the Rangers. They were aimed at the referees for turning an exciting playoff game into a contest more suited for an officials’ training video."

That was the game, for me. The score was Avery, 0; referee, 3.

At the end of the game, Avery showed hisand his team’s frustration, and the frustraton of the ten thousand fans still in the stands, and he got a ten minute misconduct.

The ref won that game.

When Avery rejoined the Rangers, they went a few games before complaining about the incredible number of hits Avery took without drawing any penalties. Rangers coach John Tortorella complained to the media. A few games later, open season on Avery ended.

Avery scored some goals, after that, got in a couple of fights, which got good reviews, and then created a little controversy.

He made a difference in a positive way in every game he played, especially the last two games of the regular season and the first game of the playoffs.

In Game Two, the Caps tried to make Avery disappear, and it worked, apparently. In Game three, the ref took him out of the game.

As Yogi Berra said, “It was déjà vu all over again."

The game started dramatically with the Rangers fans turning Madison Square Garden blue with thundersticks they were given as they arrived. The game ended anticlimatically.

It was like going to see the new musical about Billy Elliot on Broadway and getting Waiting For Godot instead.

After the game, Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau had something positive to say about Avery. Pierre Lebrun, writing for ESPN.com, quoted Boudreau saying, “He's got a lot of courage. It takes a lot of courage to go in front of the net and do what he does. He probably got a little frustrated at the end, but he's a guy I worry about every night."