Skip to content
Flyers
Link copied to clipboard

Lindros confirms Winter Classic appearance

MONTREAL -- Eric Lindros will be back in Philadelphia on Dec. 31.

Now that nearly a decade has passed since his disastrous departure, The "Big E" said he will be able to put aside his differences with the Flyers' organization to return for the team's alumni game against the New York Rangers alumni on Dec. 31 at Citizens Bank Park, serving as an appetizer for an already delicious Winter Classic main course on Jan. 2.

Rumblings about Lindros' return had appeared for weeks, but Lindros officially confirmed the rumors himself on Wednesday morning on Fan 590 AM radio in Toronto. That means that one of the Flyers' top lines in team history - the "Legion of Doom" with John LeClair, Mikael Renberg and Lindros - will be reunited on-ice for the first time since 1996.

"Johnny, Mikael and I are trying to put something together for the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and we'll probably announce something in the next little bit," Lindros told the Brady and Lang morning show on Fan 590. "[We want] to try to raise some money for them and try to incorporate that into the event."

In a recent interview with the Hockey Guys web site, Lindros said he had been contacted a few weeks earlier by Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren about participating in the game.

Given his legendary disagreements with the Flyers, it appeared that Lindros was the biggest question mark heading into the game.

"Paul Holmgren gave me a shout about a month and a half ago and we talked back and forth a little bit, and I was real happy to hear his voice and get the invitation," Lindros said. "I told him that I would fly down and have some fun."

In the lockout-shortened 1994-95 season, when Lindros captured the Hart Trophy as league MVP, the Legion of Doom combined for an astonishing 176 points in just 48 games.

There has been no word on whether the Rangers can convince Wayne Gretzky to participate in the game.

For the latest updates, follow Frank Seravalli on Twitter: @DNFlyers