The Hockey News and Puck Daddy agree with Strange Deadfellows on Avery

Ken Campbell of The Hockey News had this to say:

"The Dallas Stars, who were only too happy to sign him, expressed their disgust, saying they would have suspended him themselves if the NHL hadn’t seen fit to do so. A number of commentators are calling for Avery’s head, saying the NHL should use its broad moral powers to kick Avery out of the league or the Stars should invoke a morality clause to void his contract. A 10-game suspension for this nonsense is expected.

So, I ask, where was all this moral indignation when Bryan Allen two-handed Henrik Zetterberg and broke his leg a few years back? Why isn’t everyone scrambling to occupy the moral high ground when players are getting stepped on and having their heads driven into the boards?

Just so we all have this straight: John Zeiler gets three games for his boarding/check-from-behind/headshot to Adam Foote and Mike Mottau gets two games for a flying elbow at the head of Frans Nielsen. Funny how nobody ever talks about how potentially ending another player’s career is 'detrimental to the league or game of hockey.'

Then you have commentators on all-sports stations rebuking Avery as though Cuthbert was their own daughter. Please. These are the same outlets that, moments after expressing their disgust with Avery, chose to replay the tape of his comments dozens of times. If it were so offensive, why did they have to keep showing us what Avery said?"

Two insightful blog entries from Puck Daddy:

Link 1

Link 2

Also, have a read-read over at JSBM:

JSBM

Sean Avery met with the "long arm of the law" at NHL HQ in New York today. We'll find out later today or early tomorrow what the verdict is.

Sean Avery Fiasco -- John MacKinnon: Get over yourself

The Publishing Rules Media Covering the NHL

Player F-bombs? Not published in the newspaper.

Coach explosions? Sometimes.

Sean Avery? Without exception.

With all due respect to John MacKinnon and his professional career as a journalist, his article "Avery crosses line -- again" is exactly the sad, crappy reporting I was talking about in my post yesterday. This is the same cardboard cutout version splashed across sports sections across North America that attempts to dismiss Avery's call to attention as self aggrandizing while simultaneously maintaining that call to attention by publishing all his words in a shamelessly self-contradicting manner.

This sad excuse for journalism is why Sean Avery gets "the sort of media attention he seems to believe is his due" in all the newspapers and media.

Why would Avery make a point of saying something so base mere minutes after his own coach, Dave Tippett, a good man acting in good faith, defended the Dallas Stars' agitating winger, suggesting coverage of Avery's history of misbehaviour was overblown?

I'll tell you why: he just proved his point by the subsequent attention that was thrown his way. And you media yuppies all ate it up.

So get a grip on yourself John MacKinnon, I know it just makes you feel better about yourself to pick on Sean Avery because it makes you feel morally superior. If you don't think its newsworthy, don't write about it. If you're going to report the story then don't judge the subjects involved - they're giving you something to do. But by God, don't lecture about something you're making a big deal about when the lecture was about how small a deal it should be, otherwise you're the pot calling the kettle black.

For the record, I don't think the NHL is in the wrong to take action against Sean Avery. But the people who cover the story make their own responsible decisions about what they print and what they report and if they don't make a good one, they're no different than Sean Avery.