Inside the Flyers: Lindros, LeClair to finally reunite

Growing up, Zac Rinaldo used to have Eric Lindros posters hanging all over his bedroom walls. As a youngster, Brayden Schenn always felt his hockey-card collection was special if it included cards of Lindros and John LeClair, and R.J. Umberger used to study the way LeClair controlled the front of the net and had "unbelievable hands" for a big guy.

In other words, it won't just be an adoring sellout crowd that will understand the emotion that unravels when Lindros and LeClair, the ultimate power forwards, go into the Flyers' Hall of Fame before Thursday's game against Minnesota.

The current Flyers will be just as appreciative.

Count the Flyers' Luke Schenn among the admirers. Even though he is a defenseman, Schenn paid special attention to Lindros, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound center/freight train, during a career that spanned from 1992-93 to 2006-07.

"He was one of my favorite players growing up," said Schenn, who was 17 when Lindros retired. "He was a big, powerful forward, and you don't see many guys like that. He could dominate, as far as shooting the puck, skating. Guys were intimidated playing against him; he was a big, strong, physical guy, and I know if I was a defenseman playing against a forward like that, you definitely have to be aware of where he was on the ice. He was a special player. One of a kind."

LeClair was special, too. The 6-foot-3, 226-pound left winger scored 51, 50, and 51 goals in each of his first three full seasons with the Flyers after he was acquired from Montreal in 1995.

"Always loved watching the Legion of Doom," said Wayne Simmonds, who plays the game with an edge. "Those two and Mikael Renberg played the power game to perfection, and I always looked up to them. I even have an autographed John LeClair poster in my basement right now."

A few months ago, Flyers president Paul Holmgren phoned Lindros and LeClair and put Thursday's ceremony in motion.

"We were both deeply honored to get the call. Then we started talking more about it and decided to do it together, which we thought was appropriate," Lindros, whose feud with the organization ended when he agreed to play in the Winter Classic alumni game at Citizens Bank Park in 2012, said in a joint conference call that included LeClair and reporters earlier this week.

Lindros, LeClair, and speedy right winger Renberg formed the famed Legion of Doom line. Renberg, now a hockey announcer in Sweden, will attend Thursday's 7 p.m. ceremonies at the Wells Fargo Center.

Renberg, according to Lindros and LeClair, was just as important as either of them.

"It took all three of us to do something," Lindros said.

LeClair agreed.

"I think one thing that both E and I appreciate - more than a lot of people do - is because Renny did so many little things that made everything so much easier for us," LeClair said. "There wasn't a guy that forechecked [better] than Renny that I have ever played with in my life."

LeClair finished with 406 career goals, including 333 in 10 years with the Flyers, placing him fifth in franchise history.

Lindros, whose career was cut short by concussions, ranks fifth on the Flyers' all-time scoring list with 659 points in 456 games, spread over eight seasons.

"John, Mikael, and I . . . set up one another, and we certainly enjoyed playing with one another and being together on and off the ice," Lindros said. "It really was a special group to be involved with."

Lindros and LeClair have made smooth transitions since their playing days ended.

Lindros, 41, lives in Toronto and skates a few times a week with a small group of friends. In 2012, he got married and also helped start an online store (shop.ca), which sells more than 15 million items - from clothing to electronics. "I work in the sports-marketing area a little bit and do some business development," Lindros said.

LeClair, 45, resides in Haverford and does consulting work for a sports-management company run by Lewis Gross, his agent during his playing days.

"It's a lot of fun. I get to watch a lot of college junior games, some high school games," LeClair said. "It also gives me quite a bit of freedom that I can follow my children and be a big part of their lives."

Of the two, Lindros seems to have the best chance to one day be inducted into hockey's Hall of Fame.

"That's up to the voting group, and there's not really much I control in that environment," Lindros said.

During the big center's most dominating decade, only Mario Lemieux (1.99) and Jaromir Jagr (1.42) averaged more points per game than Lindros (1.31), according to TSN

If concussions didn't alter his career, Lindros would be a Hall of Fame shoo-in.

"You can look at it any way you want," Lindros said. "I try to look at it as [glass] half-full. I look at the good times, and there were many. Things happen in life, and there are different paths that are taken, and you roll with it and move on. Hockey was one chapter of my life, and a great new chapter with my family lies ahead."

ERIC LINDROS

Flyers career:

290 goals and 659 points in 486 career games over eight seasons.

NHL career:

372 goals, 493 assists, 865 points in 760 games over 13 seasons.

JOHN LeCLAIR

Flyers career:

333 goals and 643 points in 649 career games over 10 seasons.

NHL career:

406 goals, 413 assists, 819 points in 967 games over 17 seasons.

SOURCE: hockey-reference.com

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