It’s more than a little ironic that the Rangers find themselves operating without sandpaper winger Sean Avery for the next four weeks. On Saturday night, Avery was the victim of a hard elbow from Ottawa Senators forward Chris Neil, and he will miss approximately a month of action with a separated left shoulder as a result.

Expected to be among the frontrunners for the Eastern Conference title, the Rangers are icing their finest lineup — at least on paper — since 1997. But for all of the high-talent players on this year’s roster, from Jaromir Jagr and Henrik Lundqvist to newcomers Scott Gomez and Chris Drury, it’s widely believed that Avery is one of the team’s most important players. Despite falling far short of the aforementioned quartet where on-ice skill is concerned, the gritty forward has quickly won the love of the Garden faithful.

This situation is ironic, of course, because it was only two short months ago that Blueshirts GM Glen Sather took a peculiar hardball stance with the fan favorite, questioning his value to the team in an attempt to reduce Avery’s cost under the salary cap. While the maneuver made some sense from a fiscal perspective, it was also risky, the potential costs far outweighing the relatively minimal economic benefits.

Historically, arbitration hearings have a way of affecting even the thickest-skinned hockey players. And those who tend to be more emotional are affected even more dramatically. Back in 1997, then-Islanders GM Mike Milbury literally reduced goaltender Tommy Salo to tears with a vicious assault that delivered the desired economic result, but also did serious damage to the young net-minder’s confidence.

In Avery’s case, a lack of confidence wasn’t the concern. Rather, his checkered past left good reason to wonder just how he would respond to the contentious arbitration process. Would he now become a locker room problem for the Rangers, where last season he was unquestionably one of their most important solutions?

If Avery’s history with the Kings and Red Wings was any indication at all, the Blueshirts were absolutely playing with fire here. But as it turned out, Avery arrived in training camp an unquestionably good soldier, demonstrating newfound maturity and clearly willing to put the flammable summer proceedings behind him.

Instead, it’s an injury that will force the Rangers to explore life without their gritty forward, a more desirable circumstance from a long-term perspective but no less concerning in the immediate future. Last season, Avery’s arrival marked an immediate change in the Rangers’ on-ice identity, from that of a soft, skill-heavy team to a fearsome, hard-hitting contender. At least for now, talented Czech speedster Martin Straka will take Avery’s place on the second line alongside Scott Gomez and Brendan Shanahan, leaving the 38-year old Shanahan to do the line’s heavy lifting. This is not an ideal long-term solution, and it leaves good reason to wonder whether Shanahan will tire down the stretch as a result. Last season, his production dropped on a monthly basis, as he scored 23 goals in his first 40 games and only six goals in his final 27 appearances. To be fair, he did suffer a concussion on

February 17, but he’d already been far into his tailspin by that point. Meanwhile, on the top line, Marcel Hossa enters the Rangers’ lineup, substituting for Straka alongside Chris Drury and Jaromir Jagr. In Hossa, head coach Tom Renney gets an odd combination of elite-level talent and fourth-line production. Hossa, the younger brother of perennial All-Star Marian (of the Atlanta Thrashers), has never managed to harness his tremendous abilities and has instead toiled in the precipice between fourth-line duty and complete anonymity.

If Hossa steps up in a big way this month, demonstrating a willingness to pay the price in the corners and in front of the net, then it will go a long way toward sustaining the Blueshirts’ reputation as a difficult opponent, a reputation they earned during the months following Avery’s arrival last spring. But where Hossa is concerned, there are far more questions than answers. He has had numerous opportunities to secure a starting role with the Rangers since his arrival two years ago, and it’s telling that Renney chose not to put him in the lineup prior to Avery’s injury.

If Hossa begins to make good on his enormous potential, it would be Straka — and not Hossa — who’d be the odd man out upon Avery’s return. But given Hossa’s history of underachievement — and Straka’s historically strong first half performances — that scenario is fairly unlikely.

More likely, Hossa will flounder in his new role, quickly opening the door for Petr Prucha to regain some of the momentum he lost during a disappointing sophomore season. After tallying 30 goals in his 2005–06 debut, Prucha lit the lamp only 23 times last year, this despite the fact that he played in 11 more games.

No doubt, some of that production decline was due to Shanahan’s presence as the team’s premier right-shooting power play option. Just as in his rookie season, when an injury to Martin Rucinsky paved the way for Prucha to stick on Broadway, this represents a wonderful opportunity for the scrappy forward to reclaim his role. And with Avery out of the lineup, Prucha also gets the opportunity to regain his status as a MSG fan favorite.

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The Islanders’ power play has struggled mightily thus far, and so it came as little surprise when they announced yesterday that they have signed play-making defenseman Bryan Berard to a one-year contract worth $750,000.

The former Calder Trophy winner broke in with the Isles in 1996, and was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs two seasons later. While with the Leafs in the spring of 2000, he suffered a career-threatening eye injury when then-Ottawa Senators forward Marian Hossa struck him with the follow-through of a shot on goal. But Berard persevered, making a successful comeback with the Rangers in 2001–02.

For the last two seasons, Berard was a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets, during which he compiled an atrocious minus-33 rating over the course of only 55 games. Back ailments forced Berard out of the lineup for extended periods of time, but his play during the preseason for the Isles convinced the team that he’s back to full health.

Given Berard’s struggles in the defensive zone, head coach Ted Nolan can be expected to use him sparingly at even strength and while penalty killing. Without question, the 30-year old rearguard’s primary role — and perhaps, his only role — will be to run the point on the Isles’ power play.

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.