| Eric Lindros OOnt | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hockey Hall of Fame, 2016 | ||||||||||||||||||||
.jpg) Lindros in 2016 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1973-02-28)February 28, 1973 (age 52) London, Ontario, Canada | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 240 lb (109 kg; 17 st 2 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre | |||||||||||||||||||
| Shot | Right | |||||||||||||||||||
| Played for | Philadelphia Flyers New York Rangers Toronto Maple Leafs Dallas Stars | |||||||||||||||||||
| National team |  Canada | |||||||||||||||||||
| NHL draft | 1st overall,1991 Quebec Nordiques | |||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1992–2007 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Website | www | |||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Eric Bryan LindrosOOnt (/ˈlɪndrɒs/; born February 28, 1973) is a Canadian former professionalice hockey player. He playedjunior hockey in theOntario Hockey League (OHL) for theOshawa Generals prior to being chosenfirst overall in the1991 NHL Entry Draft by theQuebec Nordiques. He refused to play for the Nordiques and was eventuallytraded to thePhiladelphia Flyers in June 1992 in exchange for a package of players and draft picks includingPeter Forsberg. During his OHL career, Lindros led the Generals to aMemorial Cup victory in 1990. Prior to being drafted in 1991, Lindros captured theRed Tilson Trophy as the Most Outstanding Player in the OHL, and also was named theCHL Player of the Year.
Lindros began hisNational Hockey League (NHL) career with the Flyers during the1992–93 season. He was an exemplarypower forward,[1] and averaged more than a point per game. His hard-nosed style caused him to miss significant time with injuries, and he had many problems withconcussions. Lindros captured theHart Memorial Trophy as the league MVP andLester B. Pearson Award as the most outstanding player after the lockout-shortened1994–95 season. In August 2001, Lindros joined theNew York Rangers via a trade. He then signed with theToronto Maple Leafs for the2005–06 season before finishing his career in2006–07 with theDallas Stars.
Internationally, Lindros representedCanada at theWorld Junior Championship three times (1990,1991 and1992), winning gold medals in 1990 and 1991. He was Canada's all-time points leader at the World Junior Championship with 31 points until surpassed by Connor Bedard in 2023, five points ahead ofJordan Eberle andBrayden Schenn. Lindros has also representedCanada's senior team at theWorld Hockey Championship, leading the squad in scoring at the 1993 tournament. InOlympic play, Lindros represented Canada three times (1992,1998 and2002), winning a silver medal in 1992 and gold in 2002. In 2016, Lindros was inducted into theOntario Sports Hall of Fame.[2] In 2016 Lindros was inducted into theHockey Hall of Fame.[3][4] In 2017, he was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.[5] Lindros jersey, #88, was retired by the Flyers in 2018.[6]
As a youth, Lindros played in the 1985 and 1987Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Toronto Marlboros and Toronto Young Nationalsminor ice hockey teams, respectively.[7]
As a teenagepower forward playing minor hockey, Lindros became nationally famous both for his scoring feats and his ability to physically dominate players older than himself. He attended Monarch Park and laterNorth Toronto Collegiate in Toronto. Both Eric and his younger brother Brett (Eric in 1988–89) played for theMetro Junior "B"St. Michael's Buzzers before moving up to the OHL. Lindros' play made him the most highly valued amateur player in North America and he was often nicknamed "The Next One", a reference toWayne Gretzky's moniker "The Great One."[8]
Throughout his career, Lindros has been tagged with various other nicknames, including "The Big E." The hype around Lindros during his early career led to an exclusive deal with sports card manufacturerScore. Attempting to leverage this arrangement as much as possible, he was even featured on abaseball card showing him as a third baseman for theToronto Blue Jays, although the closest he came to a professional baseball career was taking batting practice one day with the Blue Jays.[9]
Lindros refused to sign with theSault Ste. Marie Greyhounds after being drafted from St. Michael's. Greyhounds ownerPhil Esposito had drafted him anyway, enabling Esposito to sell his share in the team at a higher price. Lindros was traded to theOshawa Generals instead.He played parts of three seasons for the Generals from1990 to1992,[10] scoring 97 goals and 119 assists for 216 career points in 95 games.[11]
During the1990–91 season, Lindros won theEddie Powers Memorial Trophy as top scorer, theRed Tilson Trophy as MVP, theCHL Player of the Year award and theCHL Top Draft Prospect Award. The Generals returned to the Robertson Cup Final, facing Sault Ste. Marie. The series was one of the more dramatic in OHL history given Lindros' attitude toward the team, with fans from the Soo loudly booing him every time he touched the puck. The Greyhounds upset the heavily favoured defending champions in a six-game series, winning the last game on home ice.
On March 6, 2008, the Generalsretired his jersey number 88, the second number to be retired by the franchise, and it was declared Eric Lindros Day inOshawa.[12]
Lindros was selected first overall by theQuebec Nordiques in the1991 NHL Entry Draft. Lindros had signaled in advance that he would never play for the Nordiques, citing the ownership.[13] Despite this, the team selected him anyway. Nordiques ownerMarcel Aubut publicly announced that they would make Lindros the centrepiece of their franchise turnaround, and refused to trade Lindros, saying that the only way he would play in the NHL would be in a Nordiques uniform. While he awaited a trade, Lindros spent the time playing with the Generals and also participated in the1992 Winter Olympics, winning a silver medal withCanada.
At the1992 NHL Entry Draft, the Nordiques worked out trades involving Lindros with both thePhiladelphia Flyers andNew York Rangers.[14] The Flyers trade had the Nordiques receivingSteve Duchesne,Ron Hextall,Kerry Huffman,Mike Ricci, the rights toPeter Forsberg, the Flyers' first-round picks in 1992 and 1993, and $15 million.[15] The trade with the Rangers had the Nordiques receivingTony Amonte,Alexei Kovalev,John Vanbiesbrouck,Doug Weight, three first-round picks (in 1993, 1994 and 1996) and $12 million.[16] Additionally, if Vanbiesbrouck was declared anunrestricted free agent,James Patrick would have replaced him in the deal.[16] The Flyers, believing they had consummated their deal with the Nordiques first, filed a complaint and the NHL announced an independent arbitrator was appointed.[14]
On June 30, 1992, 11 days after the draft,arbitrator Larry Bertuzzi ruled in favor of the Flyers.[15] Bertuzzi determined that the Flyers and Nordiques had agreed to a trade 80 minutes before the Rangers and Nordiques had reached their agreement.[16] Since the Flyers used the 1992 pick to selectRyan Sittler and Quebec had no interest in Sittler, the Flyers and Nordiques had to agree on a substitution for the pick.[15] On July 21, Bertuzzi ruled thatChris Simon and the Flyers' 1994 first-round pick would be added to the trade.[17]
After Lindros was officially traded to the Flyers, he stated that he had been wary of playing for the Nordiques primarily because of what he called a "lack of winning spirit" in the organization.[18] At the time they picked him, the Nordiques had finished dead last in the league for three years in a row. However, in 2016, he toldESPN that his objection to playing in Quebec was based "solely" on Aubut. While he didn't elaborate, he said, "I was not going to play for that individual--period."[13]
With his imposing physical strength and playmaking ability, Lindros established himself as the top player on a Flyers team that had perennially been in contention but always fell short. His time in Philadelphia saw him score points (for much of his first five seasons in the NHL, Lindros hovered around fourth all-time in points per game) and become one of the most feared and dominating players in the NHL. In September 1994, Lindros succeededKevin Dineen as Flyerscaptain. Along withJohn LeClair andMikael Renberg, he played on the dreaded"Legion of Doom" line. He scored over 40 goals in each of his first two seasons and won theHart Memorial Trophy as MVP in the lockout-shortened season of1995 after scoring 29 goals and 41 assists in 46 games and leading the Flyers to their firstplayoff appearance in six years.
Lindros led the Flyers to the1997 Stanley Cup Final, handily defeating thePittsburgh Penguins,Buffalo Sabres and the New York Rangers in five games apiece. In the Finals, however, the Flyers were swept in four games by theDetroit Red Wings; Lindros' only goal came with 14 seconds left in the third period of Game 4. Detroit Head CoachScotty Bowman used the finesse-oriented defence pairing ofNicklas Lidström andLarry Murphy against Lindros' Legion of Doom line instead of sending out—as everyone, including the Flyers, expected—Vladimir Konstantinov to engage in a physical confrontation.[19]
In 1998, Lindros, at just 25 years of age, was ranked number 54th onThe Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players of all time. The only player of comparable age was 37th-rankedJaromír Jágr, who was 26 at the time.
Lindros' relationship with Flyers General ManagerBobby Clarke soon deteriorated. He and Clarke feuded in the media, with Clarke questioning his toughness; Lindros spent many games on the injured reserve and suffered a series ofconcussions, the first in 1998 from a hit delivered by Pittsburgh'sDarius Kasparaitis that sidelined him for 18 games.[20][21] Lindros suffered a second concussion in January 1999 that sidelined him for two games. During a game against theNashville Predators on April 1, 1999, Lindros suffered what was diagnosed as a rib injury. Later that night, the teammate he was sharing a hotel room with,Keith Jones, discovered Lindros lying in a tub, pale and cold. In a call to the Flyers, the trainer was told to put Lindros on a plane that was returning to Philadelphia with injured teammateMark Recchi. But Jones insisted that Lindros be taken to a nearby hospital and it was discovered Lindros had acollapsed lung caused by internal bleeding of his chest wall. Lindros' father wrote the Flyers a letter in which he stated that if the trainer had followed team orders, Eric would be dead, a statement supported by the doctors who treated him in Nashville.[22]
The1999–2000 season was Lindros' last as a Flyer. Having suffered his second concussion of the season (fourth overall) in March, Lindros criticized the team's trainers for failing to diagnose a concussion as he played with symptoms following a hit he suffered in a game against theBoston Bruins two weeks prior. Clarke then stripped Lindros of the captaincy for his actions. Lindros sat out the remainder of the regular season and suffered another concussion while rehabilitating for a return to the lineup. Lindros ultimately returned for Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final against theNew Jersey Devils; he scored the lone goal in a 2–1 Flyers loss. In Game 7 of the series, Lindros was coming over the blue line with his head down, when Devils defensemanScott Stevens hit Lindros with a shoulder check, knocking him unconscious and suffering yet another concussion. He was able to get off the ice with help from teammates. The Flyers lost Game 7, 2–1 and the series despite leading three games to one, and Lindros became a restrictedfree agent during the off-season. He refused to accept a two-way qualifying offer with a minor league provision from the Flyers, who still owned his rights. After Lindros was cleared to play in December, the Flyers refused to deal his rights to theToronto Maple Leafs, as he preferred, and Lindros sat out the entire2000–01 season.
Bobby Clarke eventually traded Lindros to the New York Rangers on August 20, 2001, in exchange forJan Hlaváč,Kim Johnsson,Pavel Brendl and a 2003 third-round draft choice (Štefan Ružička). The Rangers would also receive a 2003 first-round draft pick if Lindros were to suffer a concussion in the pre-season or the first 50 games of the regular season, and did not return to action for at least 12 months.[23]
In2001–02, Lindros averaged a little over a point a game with 37 goals and 36 assists for 73 points in 72 games. His impressive start also led to his seventh and final All-Star selection, but due to an injury he was unable to participate and was replaced by teammateMike York. Though2002–03 was the first injury-free season of his career, he struggled to match his previous season, scoring just 53 points in 81 games. In2003–04, Lindros's eighth concussion limited him to just 39 games, though he did collect 32 points. He again became an unrestricted free agent after the season.
On August 11, 2005, after theNHL labour dispute had cancelled the 2004–05 season, Lindros signed a one-year, $1.55 million contract with the Maple Leafs for the2005–06 season.[24] After a steady start to his tenure with Toronto in which he recorded 22 points in 30 games, Lindros suffered a tear of a ligament in his left wrist against theDallas Stars on December 10, 2005. After a 27-game absence, Lindros returned to the Toronto lineup on February 28, 2006, his 33rd birthday, against theWashington Capitals. His return was brief, however, as he re-injured his wrist while taking a slapshot in a game against theOttawa Senators on March 4, effectively ending his season. He had surgery on the wrist at the Hand and Upper Limb Centre in London, Ontario, two days after the game.
Lindros signed a one-year contract for the2006–07 season with Dallas on July 17, 2006.[25] He played in 49 regular season games collecting 26 points, and three games in the2007 playoffs.
Lindros officially announced his retirement on November 8, 2007, in London at the age of 34.[26]
Played forCanada in:
On the day of his retirement, November 8, 2007, it was also announced that Lindros had donated $5 million to theLondon Health Sciences Centre. This donation supports programs such as the Fowler Kennedy Sport Medicine Clinic, and is one of the largest personal donations by aCanadian sports figure.[27]
On November 11, 2007, three days after his retirement, theNational Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) appointed Lindros to the newly created position of NHLPAombudsman. Lindros had been involved with the organization throughout his career.[28] Lindros cut ties with the NHLPA, however, on February 3, 2009, resigning as ombudsman after 15 months on the job.[29]
On May 9, 2010, Lindros, along with his mother Bonnie, supermodel/actressMonika Schnarre and a few other Canadian notables, helpedHabitat for Humanity Toronto by recognizingMother's Day by building homes.[30]
On December 31, 2011, he played in the2012 NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game between the New York Rangers and the Philadelphia Flyers.
In April 2016 Lindros supported Rowan's Law. This was concussion-education legislation named in memory of a teen rugby player from Ottawa who died during a game. The legislation was privately sponsored byNepean-Carleton MPPLisa MacLeod.[31] Later MacLeod revealed she knew of rumours relating to alleged sexual misconduct byPatrick Brown, thenOntario Progressive Conservative leader. In 2018 she acknowledged her source had been Lindros.[32]
In June 2016, Lindros was announced as one of four appointees to the 2016Hockey Hall of Fame induction class, joined by the latePat Quinn, goaltenderRogie Vachon and Russian wingerSergei Makarov.[3]
On January 14, 2017, Lindros reunited with his former"Legion of Doom" linematesJohn LeClair andMikael Renberg to play in the 50th Anniversary Alumni game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers.[33]
In a 2017 interview on French Canadian television, he opened up about his time being drafted by the Nordiques. He later stated that he had no problem with Quebec City or the people, stating that his wife is French Canadian. He stated that the real reason was he did not respectMarcel Aubut and would never play for him. At the end of the interview, he was given the Nordiques igloo and fleur-de-lys jersey at last, 26 years after the saga began.[34]
On January 18, 2018, the Flyers retired Lindros's no. 88 jersey in apre-game ceremony at theWells Fargo Center.[6]
The oldest son of Carl Lindros and Bonnie Roszell-Lindros,[35] Lindros hasSwedish heritage. The name "Lindros" means "rose of thelinden tree." His great-grandfather Axel immigrated to Canada fromBredaryd, a small village in Sweden, and Eric is the third generation of the Lindros family to be born in Canada. His father Carl Lindros received aBachelor of Arts degree from theUniversity of Western Ontario (where he played football, well enough to be drafted 30th overall by theCanadian Football League'sEdmonton Eskimos in the1970 CFL College Draft), and became achartered accountant. Lindros's mother Bonnie is a registered nurse. Lindros has one brother,Brett, and one sister, Robin.[35]
Lindros's younger brother Brett played for theNew York Islanders and retired early on May 1, 1996, due topost-concussion syndrome.
The bookFire on Ice, co-written by Randy Starkman and published in October 1991 byHarperCollins, chronicled the life and early hockey career of Lindros.
In 2012 Lindros married Kina Lamarche, a nativeQuebecer and former president of the North American wing ofTravelex.[36] They have three children: Carl Pierre, and twins Sophie and Ryan.[3] Lindros and his family currently reside in Toronto. They are close friends withGoldie Hawn andKurt Russell, with both families owning a cottage onLake Rosseau inMuskoka, Ontario.[37]
Lindros was made a Member of theOrder of Ontario for the class of 2022.[38]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1988–89 | St. Michael's Buzzers | CJBHL | 37 | 24 | 43 | 67 | 193 | 27 | 23 | 25 | 48 | 155 | ||
| 1988–89 | Canadian National Team | Intl | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Detroit Compuware Ambassadors | NAHL | 14 | 23 | 29 | 52 | 123 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Canadian National Team | Intl | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Oshawa Generals | OHL | 25 | 17 | 19 | 36 | 61 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 36 | 76 | ||
| 1989–90 | Oshawa Generals | M-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 12 | ||
| 1990–91 | Oshawa Generals | OHL | 57 | 71 | 78 | 149 | 189 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 38 | 93 | ||
| 1991–92 | Oshawa Generals | OHL | 13 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 54 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | Canadian National Team | Intl | 24 | 19 | 16 | 35 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 61 | 41 | 34 | 75 | 147 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 65 | 44 | 53 | 97 | 103 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1994–95 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 46 | 29 | 41 | 70 | 60 | 12 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 18 | ||
| 1995–96 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 73 | 47 | 68 | 115 | 163 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 43 | ||
| 1996–97 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 52 | 32 | 47 | 79 | 136 | 19 | 12 | 14 | 26 | 40 | ||
| 1997–98 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 63 | 30 | 41 | 71 | 134 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 17 | ||
| 1998–99 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 71 | 40 | 53 | 93 | 120 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–00 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 55 | 27 | 32 | 59 | 83 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2001–02 | New York Rangers | NHL | 72 | 37 | 36 | 73 | 138 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | New York Rangers | NHL | 81 | 19 | 34 | 53 | 141 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | New York Rangers | NHL | 39 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 33 | 11 | 11 | 22 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 49 | 5 | 21 | 26 | 70 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| NHL totals | 760 | 372 | 493 | 865 | 1,398 | 53 | 24 | 33 | 57 | 122 | ||||
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Canada | WJC | 7 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 14 | |
| 1991 | Canada | WJC | 7 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 6 | |
| 1991 | Canada | CC | 8 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 8 | |
| 1992 | Canada | WJC | 7 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 12 | |
| 1992 | Canada | OLY | 8 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 5 | |
| 1993 | Canada | WC | 8 | 11 | 6 | 17 | 10 | |
| 1996 | Canada | WCH | 8 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 10 | |
| 1998 | Canada | OLY | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2002 | Canada | OLY | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| Junior totals | 21 | 12 | 19 | 31 | 32 | |||
| Senior totals | 44 | 25 | 20 | 45 | 43 | |||
| Year | Location | G | A | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Madison Square Garden | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 1996 | FleetCenter | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 1997 | San Jose Arena | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 1998 | General Motors Place | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 1999 | Ice Palace | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2000 | Air Canada Centre | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| All-Star totals | 3 | 2 | 5 | ||
| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| Jack Ferguson Award | 1989[39] |
| Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy | 1991 |
| Red Tilson Trophy | 1991[39] |
| OHL First Team All-Star | 1991[39] |
| CHL Player of the Year | 1991[39] |
| Memorial Cup All-Star | 1991[39] |
| OHL Top Draft Prospect Award | 1991 |
| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| NHL All-Rookie Team | 1993 |
| Hart Memorial Trophy | 1995 |
| Lester B. Pearson Award | 1995 |
| NHL first All-Star team | 1995 |
| NHL second All-Star team | 1996 |
| Bobby Clarke Trophy | 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999 |
| NHL All-Star | 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002 |
| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| IIHF World Junior Championship All-Star team | 1991 |
| IIHF World Junior Championship Best Forward | 1991 |
| Winter Olympic Games Ice Hockey All-Star team | 1992 |
| World Championship All-Star team | 1993 |
| World Championship Best Forward | 1993 |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Jack Ferguson Award 1989 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | NHL first overall draft pick 1991 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Quebec Nordiques first round draft pick 1991 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | CHL Player of the Year 1991 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Winner of theBobby Clarke Trophy 1994,1995,1996 1999 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Winner of theHart Trophy 1995 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | EA Sports NHL Cover Athlete NHL 99 | Succeeded by |
| Sporting positions | ||
| Preceded by | Philadelphia Flyers captain 1994–2000 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |