Lindros Winds Up Back Where It All Started

A couple of hours before the game, clad in T-shirt, shorts and sneakers, Eric Lindros grabs a baseball glove and heads into a chilly, barren hallway beneath Philips Arena for a little catch.

But this is merely a diversion.

For as long as Lindros can remember, he wanted to play hockey for one of the NHL’s most storied franchises. He wanted to don that fabled blue sweater with Canada’s national icon plastered across the front. He wanted to follow in the skateprints of Frank Mahovlich, Dave Keon and Darryl Sittler.

“His goal wasn’t to play in the NHL,” teammate Ken Klee said. “His goal was to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs.”

Finally, a dozen seasons into a pro career that hasn’t quite fulfilled what was expected from “The Next One,” after suffering through eight concussions and leaving behind bruised feelings and failed hopes in at least four cities, No. 88 is where he always longed to be.

Home.

“It feels good to be back,” Lindros said. “It feels good to be in the home dressing room.”

One gets the feeling he was merely a visitor during eight seasons in Philadelphia and three more with the New York Rangers, even during his reign as one of the league’s top players (he won the Hart Trophy as MVP in 1995, then scored a career-high 115 points for the Flyers the following season).

Lindros was born in London, Ont., and moved to Toronto when he was 8. These days, he lives about 10 minutes from the Air Canada Centre, home of the Maple Leafs.

“I’m fired up about it,” Lindros said. “I grew up in the Toronto area. I know the history of these guys. It’s a big help to have my family close by. It’s home.”

He keeps coming back to that word. Home. It’s like a kid who grows up attending games at Yankee Stadium, spends his entire life yearning to play there and finally fulfills his dream after a journey filled with all sorts of bumps and bruises.

“He grew up a Maple Leafs fan. His parents were Maple Leafs fans. His grandfather was a Maple Leafs fan,” Klee said. “When you talk about the history of Toronto, it’s more than most people can imagine. It’s basically the Yankees of hockey.”

Lindros is off to a good start in reviving his career, scoring 10 goals and adding 10 assists in his first 27 games with a new team that seems so familiar. Eight of those goals came in the third period. He played especially well in the early going while Maple Leafs captain Mats Sundin was injured.

“He’s very motivated,” said Matt Stajan, another of the team’s centers. “Adding him to our hockey club meant a lot. If you look at us on paper, we have one of the best lineups in the league.”

The Maple Leafs know they’re not getting the 20-something Lindros, the 6-foot-4, 240-pound brute who could dominate games with both his physical presence and brilliant skills. He was built like a goon but dazzled opponents with the stick-handling touch of a Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux.

“He’s more mature now, if you will,” Toronto coach Pat Quinn said. “Individually, he was quite a good player. When he came up, he put up some big numbers. He had some big linemates as well. That was a good unit [the Flyers] had going together. We haven’t found that good meshing here yet. We’re still working on that.”

That’s OK. Lindros is used to taking the hard road.

Guided by his father-slash-agent, he began making headlines at age 16 by refusing to report to a junior-league team in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. The situation repeated itself in 1991, when Lindros was taken first overall in the NHL draft but wouldn’t play for the Quebec Nordiques, ticking off much of French-speaking Canada and eventually forcing a trade to Philadelphia.

After a year with the Canadian national team and a trip to the Albertville Olympics, Lindros scored 41 goals as a rookie, 44 the next season, then was named MVP in just his third year. His nickname was a direct reference to Gretzky, “The Great One.” Lindros’ uniform number was sandwiched in between Lemieux’s 66 and Gretzky’s 99 -- an appropriate place, it seemed, for the league’s next big thing.

But something happened on the way to the Hall of Fame.

Lindros was plagued by concussions, never playing more than 73 games with the Flyers. He missed an entire season recovering from head injuries after a check from New Jersey’s Scott Stevens in Game 7 of the 2000 Eastern Conference finals. There was the infamous falling-out with Philadelphia general manager Bob Clarke, which prompted the big center to refuse to play for the Flyers anymore.

Lindros tried to force a trade to Toronto at that time, saying the Maple Leafs were the only team he would play for. But a proposed deal fell through, and he wound up signing with the Rangers.

In the glare of the Big Apple, Lindros scored 37 goals his first season but never led New York to the playoffs. He slumped to 19 goals the following year, then managed only 10 in his last season with the Rangers, playing only 39 games because of a shoulder injury.

After getting a full year to recover during the lockout, Lindros and the Maple Leafs finally hooked up. It was a bargain-rate deal -- one year for $1.55 million -- for a 32-year-old player who would serve a supporting rather than starring role.

Lindros appears content with his role. More important, he’s managed to stay healthy, though he’s not taking any chances. He looks around for a piece of wood to tap outside the visiting locker room in Atlanta. Failing that, he settles for a quick tap of the knuckles on a cinderblock wall.

“I’m just taking it day by day,” Lindros said. “Obviously, with Mats, we’ve got a No. 1 guy in the middle. My job is to do the things to support him and whatever else is needed.”

At least he’s home.

Finally.