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Lindros back with Flyers - at morning skate

TORONTO - The hulking body looked familiar, in a way, with his oversized shoulders and a few unpretentious threads of white cloth tape wrapped around his stick.

"It was just great to get back out there," Eric Lindros said after Thursday's skate. (Tom Mihalek/AP file photo)
"It was just great to get back out there," Eric Lindros said after Thursday's skate. (Tom Mihalek/AP file photo)Read more

TORONTO - The hulking body looked familiar, in a way, with his oversized shoulders and a few unpretentious threads of white cloth tape wrapped around his stick.

At first glance in the bright Air Canada Centre, it appeared as if the Flyers added a giant to their lineup overnight.

The only thing that stood out for Eric Lindros on Thursday was his black helmet, the one contrast between himself and the rest of the Flyers' white domes. Everything else looked the same as it ever did, in an orange jersey with the crest he helped make iconic.

Lindros, 39, was a surprise on-ice guest at the Flyers' morning skate, in preparation for Thursday night's contest against the dreadful Maple Leafs.

Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren invited Lindros to join the team in his hometown. Lindros was estranged from the organization not so long ago, but those fences were mended during the Winter Classic celebrations in January.

He dressed in the Flyers' main locker room with everyone else. Big E's presence was welcomed and exciting. And his size, even to the Flyers' current players, is still astonishing.

"I'm a midget compared to him," said 6-2, 210-pound Scott Hartnell. "He's just so thick."

"We could use his size," Danny Briere, who at 5-10, 179 really is a midget compared with Lindros, said with a smile. "He'd be a nice addition, that's for sure."

Lindros, 39, participated in all of the drills. He stayed out on the ice with the Flyers' scratches, Jody Shelley and Andreas Lilja, for extra skating. Not surprising, the former Flyers superstar looked good. His passes were crisp. His skating was impeccable. And his shot had zip.

"He can still play," said Hartnell, who flipped passes back and forth with Lindros in between drills. "He's a good man. I think he was just out there for fun. It was cool to see him in this dressing room. I remember him being a Flyer and just absolutely dominating out there - big presence, big checks, big goals. Just to see him out there was pretty cool."

Needless to say, some of the current Flyers grew up playing in their driveways pretending to be Lindros. Zac Rinaldo, 21, said he owes a lot of his style and drive to play hockey to him. He played as Lindros in video games as a kid.

Rinaldo's jaw likely hit the floor when Lindros entered the dressing room carrying his equipment.

"He's a big part in the way I play hockey," Rinaldo said. "I was kind of surprised to see him here."

"He was a guy that I idolized," Claude Giroux said. "So it was pretty cool to see him out there."

So, does that mean Lindros could still play in the NHL? He retired in 2007 at age 34 because of multiple injuries, including a wonky wrist and post-concussion syndrome.

"I think he could do a comeback," Giroux said. "I grew up watching him play. He was dominating for a long time. He still has it."

Lindros is actually a year younger than one of the Flyers' leading scorers, Jaromir Jagr.

"If I can play, why not?" Jagr asked. "He's younger than me. He would have to lose some pounds. Maybe 20. But that's easy to do."

Alas, Lindros has no plans to return to playing. Thursday's twirl on the ice was just that, a chance to get in a workout with a few familiar faces.

Lindros works at a tech startup company in Waterloo, Ontario, that develops an online and mobile learning platform.

"I realized there was more to life than playing the game," Lindros said. "The game is fantastic, but there are many more things to do. I've had the opportunity to explore a few of those. It was just great to get back out there."

Bourdon's audition

Rookie defenseman Marc-Andre Bourdon was reinserted into the Flyers lineup on Thursday, replacing Kimmo Timonen, who stayed in Philadelphia to rest his chronic lower-back problems. Andreas Lilja, who practiced with the team, was not yet ready to return, according to Holmgren.

Bourdon, who played 39 games with the Flyers earlier this season before being demoted when Pavel Kubina was acquired from Tampa Bay on Feb. 18, said he viewed Thursday night's test as an audition for a possible playoff role.

With Andrej Meszaros out until at least the second round of the playoffs, Lilja, Erik Gustafsson or Bourdon will remain with the Flyers once Timonen returns.