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Al Morganti
Tuesday, August 7
Headaches from concussion and Flyers management



If there was any doubt that the Eric Lindros era is coming to a close in Philadelphia, it should have ended Thursday morning when Lindros stopped putting up a public face that there weren't big problems between himself and management.

Eric Lindros
Could Eric Lindros have played his last game in a Flyers uniform?
"I haven't really said much (in the past)," said Lindros, "but it's boiled over. I'm really upset about what's gone on here."

He then went on to outline some of the problems he's had with the team's management and medical staff, and ended his comments by rolling his eyes and stating, "It's wacky around here. A wacky situation."

The "wacky" situation is the dysfunctional relationship between Lindros, general manager Bob Clarke, and club chairman Ed Snider. Lindros, who is out of the lineup for at least four weeks because of a concussion, was making his first public statements since returning from two days of tests in Chicago with specialist Dr. James Kelly.

While Lindros was talking to the media, the two wooden doors to Clarke's office were closed. Those closed doors are a symbol of the relationship between Clarke and the supposed franchise player.

In fact, as of noon Thursday, Lindros said that he had not talked to either Clarke or Snider about the situation.

Lindros, who has been out of the lineup for more than a week, was originally injured when he sustained a hit by Hall Gill in Boston on March 4. However, he continued to play, despite his own fears that he had suffered a concussion.

Lindros said his vision faded to yellow after that hit in Boston, and he did see a Bruins doctor "for about 30 seconds." Lindros also said that he did not want to come out of the lineup for two reasons:

It was his first game returning from a back injury, and the Flyers were involved in trade talks with the Bruins for Ray Bourque. Lindros indicated that it would not send a good message to Bourque about the Flyers chances for winning a Cup if he was injured.

Lindros continued to play for several games, and developed headaches. He said he reported the headaches to the training staff, and he wanted the training staff or medical staff to make the decision to pull him out of the lineup.

"The mentality of a hockey player is that things will get better," said Lindros. He then suggested that the symptoms he was having (dizziness, headaches, vomiting, lethargy) were symptoms which should have clearly indicated a Grade 2 concussion, and not the problem with migraine headaches which was the second diagnosis.

The Flyers' spin over the past few days has been that Lindros did not tell the training staff of his problems, so they could not have known. Also, Lindros does not have a history of playing through injuries.

Additionally, Lindros' agent and father, Carl, had told reporters that Eric did not have a concussion, but was simply "stressed" out over his concern for coach Roger Neilson, who is undergoing cancer treatment, and a fear of getting traded at the March 14 trade deadline.

According to Lindros, he did not tell his father about fears of a concussion because he knew that Carl Lindros would have called the Flyers and had him removed from the lineup.

"When my dad gets involved (with the Flyers), it's just a big headache," said Lindros, who has grown as weary of the team's battles with Carl Lindros.

Lindros said he hoped to return this season, but at this point, it doesn't seem likely he will ever return to the Flyers lineup.

Al Morganti covers the NHL for ESPN.


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