So Eric Lindros finally retired from the NHL this week. Certainly there were very few hockey players to come around with the promise and hype that Lindros received when he was drafted by Quebec and then joined the Flyers. Some of that was unfair because no one can be as good as the hype, but that's the way it is sometimes.
Anyway, upon hearing the news that Eric Lindros was hanging ‘em up, I asked one question:
Eric Lindros was still playing? Really?
Apparently Lindros continued to play in the NHL even after that first season he spent with the Rangers in 2001-02. He played with two other teams, too. After three seasons in New York where Lindros did not participate in the playoffs, he moved to his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs for the year after everyone stopped paying attention to hockey[1]. Last year Lindros played for Dallas and made his first appearance in the playoffs since Scott Stevens of the Devils knocked him out in that Game 7 in Philadelphia in 2000.
OK, kidding aside, it's hard not to look at Lindros' career and think about what might have been. Back when he was "The Next One," watching Lindros play was a treat. He was big, fast and had all the tools. When he won the Hart Trophy in 1995, the thought was Lindros should build an addition to his house to stash the rest of the trophies he was going to win for the Flyers - including the elusive Stanley Cup.
Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be for Lindros and now the debate begins over whether he is a Hall of Famer or not. Tough call. Nevertheless, had there not been all those injuries and concussions and whatever else, there would be no debate. Instead, the debate over whether Lindros' career was disappointing is clear.
Pictures of him at the end of his career with the Stars are hardly recognizable. Lindros looks heavy, slow and older than his age. Not yet 35, it seems as if the hard living and all those injuries have piled up. So yeah, even though some of the hype and bluster about how good he was supposed to be is not entirely Lindros' fault (some of it is, I guess), it's completely fair to look at the end of his career and wonder about what could have been.
Because it could have been great.
[1] You remember, the NHL cancelled an entire season. I think it was in 2004-05 or something like that. I forget.