By: Camryn Meece | Follow me on Twitter / X @MeeceCamryn
Sean Avery knew how to get under an opponent’s skin. Throughout his National Hockey League (NHL) career, the forward used trash talk, physical play, and on-ice confrontations to make life difficult for the players lined up against him. Standing 5-foot-10, Avery has said that being one of the league’s smaller players shaped his approach to the game.
Avery finished his NHL career with 1,533 penalty minutes in 580 regular-season games. He also led the league in penalty minutes twice, with 261 in 2003-04 and 257 in 2005-06. That puts Avery among the top 150 players in NHL history for penalty minutes, and it certainly earns him a place among the NHL’s most aggravating players. Avery faced the Boston Bruins several times throughout his career, leading to fights, heated exchanges, and a few memorable run-ins.
March 17, 2007: Marc Savard
The Bruins faced the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on March 17, 2007, in a game Boston would rather forget. New York dominated the matchup, winning 7-0, while Sean Avery finished with a goal and three assists. Avery also got into it with Bruins forward Marc Savard in the third period, roughing him up in an exchange that drew penalties, but Avery did not receive a fighting major.
The Savard incident wasn’t the only confrontation that night. Later in the third period, Rangers forward Ryan Callahan and Bruins forward Chuck Kobasew dropped the gloves, and both received fighting majors. With Boston down 7-0 and tempers flaring late, it was a night the Bruins would want to put behind them.
November 1, 2008: Andrew Ference
The Bruins faced the Dallas Stars on November 1, 2008, in a game that got physical in the third period. After Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference delivered an open-ice hit on Dallas forward Steve Ott, Avery stepped in to defend his teammate. Avery and Ference dropped the gloves at 4:54, and both players received five-minute fighting majors.
That wasn’t the end of Avery’s run-ins with Boston that night. Later in the period, Avery drove Bruins forward Milan Lucic face-first into the boards, prompting Marc Savard to step in and defend his teammate. Avery received a boarding penalty and a 10-minute misconduct, while Savard was assessed a roughing penalty. Unlike the Ference incident, the official penalty sheet didn’t record this confrontation as a fight, but it gave the Bruins another reason to take issue with Avery’s physical play.
November 1, 2009: Zdeno Chára
Avery found another way to get under the Bruins’ skin on November 1, 2009, when Boston faced the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. During pregame warmups, Avery chirped at several Bruins players, catching the attention of captain Zdeno Chára. Chára skated over to confront him and warned that if he got the chance to hit Avery, he would put him on his backside.
Chára got that chance in the first period, delivering a hit that knocked Avery to the ice. The Rangers went on to win 1-0, but the pregame exchange had already given the matchup a slight edge.
October 23, 2010: Mark Stuart
Avery’s next fight against a Bruins player came on October 23, 2010, at TD Garden. Early in the first period, Bruins defenseman Mark Stuart delivered a big hit on Rangers forward Ruslan Fedotenko near the blue line. Avery came over to defend his teammate, and the situation quickly turned into a fight between Avery and Stuart.
Avery received a five-minute fighting major, a two-minute instigator penalty, and a 10-minute misconduct. It was the first of three fights in the opening period. The Rangers eventually won 3-2, ending Boston’s four-game winning streak.
March 26, 2011: Gregory Campbell
Avery’s last confirmed fight against a Bruin came on March 26, 2011, at TD Garden. Just 2:44 into the first period, Avery and Bruins forward Gregory Campbell dropped the gloves away from the play, interrupting a breakaway chance for Brad Marchand. Both players received five-minute fighting majors. The Rangers went on to win 1-0, with Derek Stepan scoring the only goal and Henrik Lundqvist stopping all 26 Boston shots.
Avery played for four NHL teams during his career: the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers, and Dallas Stars. Over 10 NHL seasons, he built a reputation that followed him from team to team, and his matchups against the Bruins offered a few examples of how he got under opponents’ skin without always having to drop the gloves.
“It’s horrible to play against him. It’s like that gnat, that fly, that won’t go away. The most annoying thing in the world is having some guy in your face yapping at you, slashing you, running you. It gets you off your game.”
– Jeremy Roenick, Los Angeles Kings
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