Touchdown: NHL reaction to Avery’s trash talk

Bad-boy Dallas Stars forward Sean Avery got himself in a load of trouble this week, by deliberately trash talking another player (Calgary’s Dion Phaneuf) and his ex-girlfriend, actress Elisha Cuthbert, in front of a bank of media microphones and at least one TV camera. The boneheaded move was an obvious Fumble, so we’ll just note that and move on. What IS worth talking about is how others within the NHL responded, notably Avery’s team-mates (who “refused to give him an opportunity to apologize”) and other prominent voices like Toronto Maple Leafs Coach Ron Wilson. “There's no room in the game for comments like that. I don't even know if there's room in the game on the ice,” Wilson added. “I don't know if you can or should even go there, when you start including girlfriends and wives. There are other things you can say that are funny that have a tinge of insult. “The age we are in today, the way movies are, comedies, there doesn't seem to be any boundaries, but there should be. That kind of comment on a sports channel, it's not the right thing. I'd go nuts if one of my players said something like that,” Wilson said. Those reactions, coupled with the pending word on exactly how long Avery will be suspended for the outburst, are a communications Touchdown for the NHL, as many voices make clear there is no room in their game for that kind of behaviour.