Avery Suspended Indefinitely by NHL for Crude Line

Sean Avery knows all about the punishment that comes with saying something inflammatory on the ice, from time in the penalty box to having a stick swung at him.

In this Nov. 20, 2008, file photo, Dallas Stars center Sean Avery moves the puck during an NHL...

In this Nov. 20, 2008, file photo, Dallas Stars center Sean Avery moves the puck during an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks in Dallas. The NHL has suspended Avery indefinitely pending a hearing with commissioner Gary Bettman. The league says the suspension was imposed Tuesday, Dec. 2, after Avery made "inappropriate public comments, not pertaining to the game."

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On Tuesday, he learned how harsh the league can be about things said off the ice.

Avery was suspended indefinitely by commissioner Gary Bettman for making "inappropriate public comments, not pertaining to the game." The punishment came down only hours after Avery used a crude term about his former girlfriends now dating other hockey players.

Avery missed the Dallas Stars' game against the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night. Because terms won't be settled until Avery meets with Bettman, likely in New York, he almost certainly will be out again Wednesday night when the Stars play in Edmonton.

"More than anything, he's let his teammates down," said Dallas co-general manager Brett Hull, who played with Avery in Detroit several years ago and was a driving force in signing him.

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Despite all the cajoling, snide remarks and other stunts Avery has pulled on the way to becoming the biggest pest in hockey, this is the first time he's been suspended by the NHL.

Avery's inflammatory line came following a morning skate in Calgary, Alberta.

Reporters were waiting to speak with Avery about disparaging remarks he'd made last month about Flames star Jarome Iginla when Avery walked over to the group and asked if there was a camera present. When told there was, he said, "I'm just going to say one thing."

"I'm really happy to be back in Calgary; I love Canada," he said. "I just want to comment on how it's become like a common thing in the NHL for guys to fall in love with my (former girlfriends). I don't know what that's about, but enjoy the game tonight." He then walked out of the locker room.

Avery's ex-girlfriend, actress Elisha Cuthbert of the television show "24" and the movie "Old School," is dating Calgary defenseman Dion Phaneuf; she also had been romantically linked to Mike Komisarek of the Montreal Canadiens.