Sean Avery, New York Rangers Reportedly Cut Ties

Monday on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live, a late-night talk show, Avery joined the crew and answered questions from viewers. In the answer to one of those questions, he retired from the game. We think. Maybe.

And with that, the illustrious hockey career of Sean Avery came to a close. Perhaps he was joking? Agent Pat Morris told the Canadian Press his client was joking, but according to the New York Post ...

Katie Strang at ESPN New York reports that the Whale has informed Avery that he will not be placed on their postseason roster. The Connecticut team told Avery that he is no longer required to report, either for practices or for games. He has not appeared in a game for the Whale since Jan. 27.

Avery is currently in the final year of a four-year contract with the Rangers.

But now that Rupp is back from his injury, Avery is a disposable piece. He hasn’t played since December 10, and in his 15 total games with the NHL club this season, Avery has just three points. He’s not been an impact player for the team like he has been in the past, and he’s clearly fallen out of favor with John Tortorella.

For more on this year’s game, head over to SB Nation’s Rangers blog Blueshirt Banter and Flyers blog Broad Street Hockey. For everything Winter Classic in the build-up to the game, head over to our NHL Winter Classic StoryStream.

So instead of welcoming their team home prior to the home opener, a bunch of them jeered the team over No. 16’s demotion, chanting “We Want Avery!” during the game and unfurling a big banner at the arena.

Here’s a picture of that banner, via The New York Rangers Blog:

Head coach John Tortorella confirmed to the media at practice that he’ll be going with the same lineup he employed in the Rangers’ win over Anaheim on Monday night at Madison Square Garden, and that’s obviously a lineup that doesn’t include Avery. Blueshirt Banter explains:

Avery only played two games in the AHL with the Rangers’ affiliate, the Connecticut Whale, and both games occurred this past weekend despite Avery being sent down weeks ago. Avery scored an empty net goal to seal a win for the Whale at Adirondack on Friday night, and he also played in the teams 3-2 shootout win at Worcester on Saturday.

We’ll see come Thursday night if he actually plays for Torts.

For more on the Avery and the Rangers, be sure to check out the SB Nation blog Blueshirt Banter.

The move frees up about $1.9 million in cap space for both the Rangers and Stars, and that’s possibly the most interesting result of Avery reporting to Connecticut. Essentially, a Rangers roster move puts the Stars in jeopardy of falling below the salary cap floor. The extra space doesn’t help Dallas at all considering they’re so far below the cap that they’re actually nearing the lower limit of mandatory spending, $48.3 million.

Thus, he’s still a member of the New York Rangers organization, and now the decision on what’s next for Avery hangs in the balance. Coach John Tortorella was pretty clear on Tuesday, saying that Avery doesn’t have a place on the roster and that “we have better players than Sean Avery.” Yikes.

We’d have to assume they’ll likely send him down. If he’s not playing in the NHL, there’s no point in still having him around the NHL team. If he does go down, he’ll likely stay there since he’d have to clear re-entry waivers on the way back up.

Blueshirt Banter, SB Nation’s Rangers blog, doesn’t like the decision.

Maybe the maneuver has nothing to do with Avery. It’s possible that with his $1.9 million cap hit, as opposed to the $925,000 cap hit that Christensen comes with. With Marc Staal injured and the need for another defensemen possibly on the horizon, the $1 million in savings could be the real impetus for waiving Avery. At the same time, given those cap hits, it seems slightly more likely that Avery could clear waivers than it would for Christensen to do so.