Today in sports history

Happy 35th birthday, retired hockey superstar Eric Lindros.

Lindros, taken by the Quebec Nordiques (R.I.P.) as the first overall pick in the 1991 NHL draft, played 13 years in the league, but he never quite lived up to his potential, due in large part to repeated injuries.

As a junior hockey player from London, Ontario, Lindros was nicknamed "The Next One," implying that he could be as good as Wayne Gretzky, a.k.a. "The Great One." That kind of nickname is unfair to any young player; nobody can be expected, in his late teens, to eventually be as good as the greatest player in the history of his sport.

Lindros refused to play for the Nordiques, who traded him to Philadelphia, and he wore No. 88 for the Flyers from 1992 to 2000. The Nordiques, who became the Colorado Avalanche in 1995, made out pretty well in the deal. Among the pieces they got were Peter Forsberg, Ron Hextall, Chris Simon and a first-round pick they used to select Jocelyn Thibault. Those are all names even I recognize, even though I barely follow the NHL. The Avalanche went on to win eight division titles and two Stanley Cup championships with those players.

The Flyers, with Lindros as their leading playmaker, would reach the Stanley Cup finals in 1997, losing to the Red Wings. After that, the injuries started taking their toll. Lindros had his first concussion in 1998, followed by a collapsed lung that was initially misdiagnosed as a rib injury. A trainer reported the injury to team officials, who told him to put Lindros on a plane to Philadelphia (the team was in Nashville at the time). The trainer thought better of it and took him to a local hospital, where it was discovered he'd lost nearly half his blood. That trainer probably saved his life.

Lindros publicly criticized team doctors (and I can't say I blame him), and his relationship with Flyers management deteriorated from there. He sat out the 2000-01 season in an attempt to force a trade, which he eventually got before the 01-02 season. He spent the next three years with the New York Rangers, then one year each with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Dallas Stars. He struggled with various injuries throughout his last three seasons, and announced his retirement Nov. 8, 2007. Three days later, the NHL Players' Association named him to the newly created position of ombudsman.

This blogger suspects "he'll be known as the guy who had about 50 concussions and a collapsed lung. In a league full of indestructible robots, Lindros had the misfortune of actually getting hurt. That'll do ya in."