One way or another, the road back to the NHL for Eric Lindros must go through Philadelphia -- and the Flyers do not feel any sort of responsibility to give Lindros a free pass back to the team of his choice.
"I don't feel any allegiance to Eric Lindros to do what he wants us to do," Flyers GM Bob Clarke said Tuesday morning. "However, I do feel an allegiance to my team. If I feel we are offered a fair deal for Eric Lindros, I'll make the deal."
|  | | Flyers GM Bob Clarke, right, is serious about getting full value for Eric Lindros. |
Clarke said that he has not received a single call from another team about a Lindros trade, and he is more than willing to talk to any team interested. "I'm not making calls becauase I think our situation is pretty much out there in the open. If a team wants to trade for Eric or his rights, we'll listen," he said.
"I don't care if that deal is with the Rangers, the Maple Leafs, whoever. I'll make a deal that I think is fair value for a healthy Eric Lindros. We have to assume he is healthy because his doctor cleared him to play,"
Lindros, who has suffered six concussions in a 27-month period, was cleared to play by Dr. James Kelly on Monday. Lindros is now looking for a team to take him, despite the risk of another concussion that could end his career.
There has been speculation about a "conditional trade," in which the team that acquires Lindros would make the deal dependent upon his future health. But Clarke says he won't go for it.
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If we make a trade it will be a final deal. We are not going to make any trade based on how many games he plays, or anything like that. We will make a deal in which we feel we are getting full value for a top player. ” |
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— Flyers GM Bob Clarke on trading Lindros |
Lindros is a Group II free agent, which means he could simply sign with another club. But even in that case, the Flyers would have the right to match the contract offer and retain his rights.
The only way the Flyers would not match is if they thought the price was too high, in which case they might be tempted to take the five first-round draft picks as compensation. One source indicates that Lindros, through his agent and father Carl -- along with lawyer Gordon Kirke, has already proposed a five-year, $50 million deal with the Maple Leafs.
The Leafs backed away from that proposal, and any team would have to be worried about committing so much money for a player with Lindros' history of concussions. The most similar circumstance might have been star forward Pat LaFontaine, who suffered five concussions before being traded in 1997-98 from Buffalo to the New York Rangers.
Like Lindros, LaFontaine had been cleared to play by Dr. Kelly, with the explanation of the increased risk of future concussions. LaFontaine played only half a season with the Rangers and then had to retire after a collision with a teammate.
"We're not being vindictive or anything like that," said Clarke. "There are rules in this league, and we are simply following the rules as they regard a (Group II) free agent. It's not a case where a player can simply name his team. That's not the way it works.
"Eric Lindros has said he does not want to play here. We want to make a fair deal to make us a better club. But we will not give him away. If we can't reach a fair deal with another club, then he'll sit. It's not like it hasn't happened to other players. There is no deadline here."
Al Morganti covers the NHL for ESPN.
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