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Friday, April 27, 2001
Clarke takes another shot at holdout
Associated Press
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BUFFALO, N.Y. – Philadelphia Flyers boss Bob Clarke took
yet another shot at Eric Lindros, saying he quit on the team.
With Philadelphia trailing the Buffalo Sabres 2-0 in their
best-of-seven playoff series, the Flyers president and general
manager took aim at Lindros on Sunday.
Discussing the value of big centers at playoff time and the
possible return of Keith Primeau from a knee injury, Clarke said:
"If Lindros had played, we would've had back-to-back big centermen
for 10 years. But (Lindros) quit on us."
Clarke made the statement to a group of reporters while the
Flyers practiced in Buffalo in preparation for Game 3 on Monday.
There has been little love lost between Clarke and Lindros, a
restricted free agent who rejected the team's $8.5 million
qualifying offer last summer and sat out the season when Clarke
failed to meet Lindros' trade demands.
Previously, Clarke accused Lindros of handcuffing the team by
demanding only to be traded to Toronto. Lindros eventually added a
few teams to his list, but Clarke still couldn't swing a deal by
the NHL trade deadline last month.
It didn't help that Lindros' health is in question after
sustaining his sixth career concussion during a playoff game
against New Jersey last season.
Prior to the start of the Flyer-Sabres series, Clarke compared
Lindros' situation to that of Buffalo's Michael Peca, also a
restricted free agent who has sat out the season refusing to play
for the Sabres.
The difference, Clarke said, is that Peca didn't limit his trade
options.
"I understand Peca's situation. That's more of a business
situation in that he's giving them the right to trade him
anywhere," Clarke said. "Lindros is different. ... Basically, all
he did was want to go to Toronto."
Smiling, Clarke added, "Peca can check Lindros in this
series."
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, in a conference call with the
media last week, also noted the two players.
"It's unfortunate that both Michael and Eric have chosen not to
play this year," Bettman said. "Both players were made
substantial offers. And the fact is our agreement also provides
that players don't have to play at amounts and terms of conditions
they don't want to play for. And in the final analysis it was their
decision to choose not to play." Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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