Forward Sean Avery is expected to play his first game with the Hartford Wolf Pack on Saturday.
The Dallas Stars assigned Avery to the American Hockey League team Tuesday and he has been practicing with his new teammates all week. A Wolf Pack spokesman says the team plans to use Avery when it hosts Manitoba on Saturday night.
Avery hasn't played since his NHL suspension in December for making a crude remark about other hockey players dating his former girlfriends. He completed treatment in a league counseling program last weekend and cleared waivers Monday.
The 28-year-old player spent parts of two seasons in New York before signing a $15.5 million, four-year deal with Dallas. The Stars are the only NHL team without a primary affiliate and could have sent him to any willing team. They have already said Avery won't return to the Stars.
