Chances are, if youre most excited about the Winter Classic Alumni Game because of a chance to see the LCB Line of Reggie Leach, Bob Clarke and Bill Barber get back together for a couple shifts, your kids are more excited about another Flyer reunion.
Eric Lindros and John LeClair, two-thirds of the famed Legion of Doom line that defined Flyers hockey in the mid-1990s, will reunite Saturday afternoon, as well.
Along with Mikael Renberg, Lindros and LeClair dominated the game for three seasons between 1995 and 1997, racking up 666 points and leading the Flyers to the Stanley Cup Final in 1997. They were among the most dangerous weapons the NHL had back then, offensively and physically.
Here at CSNPhilly.com, weve taken to nicknaming the line that well likely see out on the ice Saturday afternoon the Legion of Doo, since, you know, its without Renberg, who reportedly couldnt get out of responsibilities related to the World Junior Championships to participate in the game.
(Get it? Theyre missing Mikael, the M in Doom. Yeah, youre allowed to groan now.)
It's going to be fun, John LeClair said, of reuniting with Lindros. Its been a while since we played together. Its a lot of good times and a lot of good memories. It's great to see him. He's a big part of Flyers history. He had a lot of great years. He did a lot of great things. He took us to a Stanley Cup in '97. He was a big part of it.
Lindros, LeClair and other Flyers from the across the organizations history gathered together at Skate Zone on Friday for an alumni team practice, preparing for their 3 p.m. date with the Rangers alumni at Citizens Bank Park.
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It was a legitimate, organized practicecomplete with the requisite Canadian beer in the locker room for post-skate enjoyment.
And as youd expect, the practice elicited plenty of recollections of the Legion of Dooms time together.
It's nothing but great memories, LeClair said. It was a great feeling playing with those two guys. Every time you were on the ice, you felt like something was going to happen. It was just a great feeling.
Said Lindros, Its just nice to come back and skate on Flyer ice and do what we did as kids and what we did as professionals and come back and enjoy it, really. Thats what its about, and thats what Im taking in this weekend.
Lindros said he plans on getting as much as he can out of his weekend in his old hometown. Hes going to check out Lincoln Financial Field for the first time Sunday, and hell be in the crowd for Mondays Winter Classic, too.
It should be a good time, he said. This truly is a celebration of hockey and playing outside, grassroots. Every kid growing up in Canada, at one point in his life skated outside on outdoor ice. So its a bit of a retroits nice.
Plenty of other Flyers from around the Lindros Era will take part in the Alumni Game, as well. Eric Desjardins, Jeremy Roenick, Chris Therien and Shjon Podein were there at Skate Zone Friday too, and will participate in the game.
And thats what excited Lindros the most about returning to Philadelphia for a few days.
To be around the dressing room, he said. Around the group of guys that I played with. Good to catch up with Chris Therien and Eric Desjardins, of course Johnny (John LeClair) and I did some stuff a couple weeks ago for CHOP. And a few of the other guysRick Tocchet is here. I havent seen JR (Jeremy Roenick) in a little bit.
Theres a bunch of guys that I got to play against and withKjell Samuelssonthe list goes on and on. Its nice to come back here and catch up with the guys.
Desjardins, who replaced Lindros as captain in 2000, smiled his entire way through interviews with the media after Fridays practice.
When you get a good team spirit like we had when we played togetherwhen you see one another its just like yesterday, the last time you see them, Desjardins said. Thats the way it is with those guys. I played a lot of years with John LeClair and Eric Lindros and Big Duke (Samuelsson) there. Its a lot of fun to see them again. I hope they would do that every year.
While a yearly Flyers alumni game is probably a stretch, fans who attend Saturdays game or watch it on TV might just be pleasantly surprised by the quality of the hockey they see from some of the Flyers of the 90s.
Especially from the Legion of Doom duo.
Johnny was good, Lindros said with a smile. Hes still got it.
E-mail Sarah Baicker at sbaicker@comcastsportsnet.com