MAD CHATTER
1. SEAN AVERY, Rangers He is never at a loss for words. Avery (above, right) will start chatting you up in the pregame warmup and will still be doing it when he lines up against you for a last-minute face-off. He's also an equal-opportunity chatterer. Stars and role players alike suffer his verbal attacks.
2. ALEX BURROWS, Canucks He is a solid player, but he knows how to start trouble with his body as well as his mouth. Because he's usually on a line with the talented Sedin twins (Daniel and Henrik), the winger often plays against the opposition's best defenders, so he gets to needle the same guys over 60 minutes.
3. STEVE OTT, Stars Here's the perfect example of a superpest. Ott skates well and trash-talks even better. He loves to antagonize the opposition's best players, and for years he has driven Calgary's Jarome Iginla nuts. His smack is usually very witty too.
4. VERN FIDDLER, Coyotes He is a defensive matchup man, so he gets into verbal jousts to get opposing stars off their game. His understanding of the league and other players is deep—he loves to quote stats to players who are slumping.
5. CHRIS PRONGER, Flyers He is a cerebral player and knows how to tweak opponents, especially in scrums around his goaltender. He is often a target for opposing trash talkers, but that usually backfires. Pronger can turn the tables on his attackers and drive them crazy with his taunts.
PHOTO
LOU CAPOZZOLA