Seven Days Later....NHL News of the Week

When is Sean Avery going to learn to keep his mouth closed?

"Ex-girlfriend," "former lady," "a broad I was dating"—any of these would have exceeded the sloppy seconds remark.

Unsurprisingly, the rumours have already begun to spring about where Avery's next stop will be in the NHL. I'm trying to take my attention elsewhere, but the number of articles on this issue is just overwhelming.

A six-game suspension and anger management evaluation won't do the job in my opinion.

Scott Hartnell, Where is the Glove?

Last Monday, Ryan Malone was in all alone on Martin Biron in a match with the Philadelphia Flyers. With the final seconds of the game approaching, Scott Hartnell threw his glove towards the puck during the pursuit.

A penalty shot was awarded. Biron was there to bail Hartnell out and send the game to overtime. Mike Richards capped off a two-goal night with a power-play goal in overtime.

"It was just a desperation play," Hartnell said. "Looking back, it was stupid."

Flyers head coach John Stevens put Hartnell on the ice for the first shift in overtime. I know a couple of coaches that would have definitely benched him for the remainder of the evening.

It was a good sign, indicating that Stevens realizes the veteran made an uncharacteristic mistake. Next time, tapping your stick on the ice will do, Scott.

The Pizza Line Delivers

Dany Heatley, Daniel Alfredsson, and Jason Spezza literally delivered to their fans. I'm quite certain that if each of them scores during a home game, the crowd is rewarded with a slice of pizza.

Spezza seemed like the lost soldier before firing four goals in two matches, including his second career hat trick, which came against Pittsburgh. Heatley continued his great year with a goal, and four assists.

Alfredsson had an average week I'd say, with one goal, and two helpers. Splitting these three up on separate lines was never going to create any positives. Each of them bring different skills to the table, and complement each other's games tremendously.

San Jose Sharks are...well, Amazing

Men against boys. That's how it appeared when the San Jose Sharks hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs the other night. Everyone seems to be skating at an incredible pace, and producing numbers on a daily basis.

With the success comes expectations, though. Can the Sharks play this type of hockey when the postseason swings by? They haven't made it past the second round since the lockout ended.

The big question may be goaltending, as Evgeni Nabokov has looked shaky on a number of occasions. His latest effort—three goals against on 17 shots against the Oilers—wasn't too impressive. Brian Boucher should get his share of starts in the near future.

Will he? Probably not.

Old Face in the Same Place

Paul Maurice took over the coaching duties in Carolina last week after Peter Laviolette was relieved of his duties. His first assignment? Waiting on the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins.

Sidney Crosby's four helpers led his team to a 5-2 victory at the RBC Center. Maurice obtained success with the Hurricanes in the past, and will face the challenge of getting Eric Staal out his current funk.

Rod Brind'Amour's league worst minus-20 is also a worry. Cam Ward is the latest goalie to hit the injury bug. The goaltenders are going down like dominoes this season.

Fighting Turning into Wrestling

This has become a regular experience in hockey games. Two men will fight, one will be on the receiving end of fists to the face, and eventually wrestle his opponent to the ice in an attempt to prevent further damage.

Ole-Kristian Tollefsen squared off against Ryan Carter last night. It's no secret that Tollefsen is the favourite and should win the contest. After nailing Carter with a few right hands, the Ducks forward wrestled Tollefsen down to the ice.

With the helmets off, Tollefsen hit the back of his head on the ice. Some blood resulted, but the tough defender just needed some stitches. Why do fans applaud this wrestling?

Does this look like the WWE? A player doesn't win the fight by grappling. The victory is given to the fellow who landed the most punches. More damage could have been done if the slam was harder, and thankfully it wasn't.

For future reference, don't get in a bout if you can't stand up to the experienced heavyweights.

Evgeni Malkin, the Best Player in the NHL?

Often, you see the names Crosby and Ovechkin ranked as the top two NHL talents, with Evgeni Malkin in the rear view mirror. It may not be long before Malkin is considered the best of the best.

The Russian's shot is right there with Ovechkin's, and his passing abilities can be compared to Crosby's at times. His one-on-one abilities are tremendous, and the way he took off on that shorthanded opportunity in Ottawa to score was just mesmerizing.

One step, and he's off. Don't be surprised to see a trophy-filled year for Malkin—similar to Ovechkin's last season.