They’re often toothless, carry big sticks and like nothing more than a all-out bloody brawl. But that hasn’t prevented hockey players from scoring with hot Hollywood starlets, top models and pop stars since, well, the dawn of the Zamboni. And we can add another beauty-and-the-bruiser pairing to the list of hot hockey wives. Just this week, The Post’s Richard Johnson reported that former New York Rangers star Sean Avery, 33, got engaged to supermodel Hilary Rhoda, the 26-year-old face of Estée Lauder. The gorgeous brunette will have good company at any NHL reunion. Here’s a look.
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1. Carol Alt and Ron Greschner
Dubbed “The Face,” supermodel Carol Alt married Rangers defenseman Ron Greschner in 1983. The Blueshirt and the SI swimsuit model parted ways in 1997. (Greschner wanted to have children, and she wasn’t ready.) Things turned icier in 2008, when Alt filed a lawsuit against her ex, saying he cheated her out of profits from investments. Greschner, 58, now lives with his wife, Lori, and their five children, while Alt, a 52-year-old cancer survivor is a raw-food disciple and lifestyle guru.
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2. Kim Alexis and Ron Duguay
They both enjoyed flowing locks and have graced the pages of magazines (Sports Illustrated for Alexis, Interview magazine for Duguay). Alexis, then an elite model, met the spotlight-loving, Studio 54-hopping playboy Ron Duguay on a modeling shoot and married the Ranger in January 1993. It was a second marriage for both the former model, 53, and the 56-year-old center who was famous for not wearing a helmet. The pair, who each have two children from previous marriages, have one son together.
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3. Janet Jones and Wayne Gretzky
The “Great One” and the “Flamingo Kid” actress, now both 52, met on “Dance Fever” in 1984. But they didn’t get together until three years later, after running into each other at an LA Lakers game. The pair married in Edmonton, in 1988, and it was dubbed “The Royal Wedding” by the Canadian press. They spent a reported $1 million on the wedding — a whopping $40,000 for her gown alone. A month after their nuptials, Gretzky was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to Los Angeles Kings, a move many blamed on Jones, who they said was looking to further her acting career. They have five children, including Maxim favorite Paulina Gretzky, who is engaged to professional golfer Dustin Johnson.
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4. Elisha Cuthbert and Dion Phaneuf
When the Toronto Maple Leaf took up with the Canadian “Old School” actress, Cuthbert’s ex, Sean Avery, then with the Dallas Stars, remarked that Phaneuf had his “sloppy seconds.” The NHL suspended Avery for six games, and it resulted in Dallas cutting ties with the mouthy iceman. But the drama has subsided for the pair, who married this summer in an elaborate ceremony on Prince Edward Island, where Phaneuf has a waterfront vacation home.
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5. Hilary Duff and Mike Comrie
The star of Disney’s “Lizzie McGuire” met the Canadian-born former New York Islander on a 2007 flight to Idaho, where the pair were headed for a vacation with a mutual friend. They began dating immediately, and the former kid actor has said she read “Hockey for Dummies” to get up to speed on his profession. The 26-year-old put that knowledge to good use, becoming a fixture at Comrie’s games until the 33-year-old retired in 2012 after being plagued by hip injuries. The pair married in 2010 in Santa Barbara, Calif., and have a son Luca Cruz Comrie, who was born in the spring of 2012.
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6. Carrie Underwood and Mike Fisher
The country cutie was introduced to Fisher in 2008 through her bass player, who thought they’d get along. While Underwood, who won “American Idol” in 2005, was skeptical of falling for a Canadian hockey player, she agreed to meet Fisher, who was then playing for the Ottawa Senators. They were immediately besotted. They married in 2010 and Fisher, 33, was traded to the Nashville Predators. Passionate Ottawa fans blamed Underwood, 30, and one radio station there even banned her music.
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7. Candace Cameron and Valeri Bure
She was the star of “Full House” and younger sister of teen heartthrob Kirk Cameron. He was a Russian hockey star and younger brother of an NHL Hall of Famer Pavel Bure. They met through Cameron’s “Full House” co-star Dave Coulier at a charity event. Bure, 39, who played 10 seasons in the NHL, married the pretty 37-year-old former child star in 1996, and they have three children.Â