If Eric Lindros was a good guy during his 13-year NHL career, then he has nothing to worry about and maybe something to gain. If he wasn't a good guy, his recent actions may have opened a can of worms.
TSN.ca in reporting that the retired and six-time NHL All-Star is suing a former NHL official and Huffington Post for defamation and is demanding a $250,000 award in damages.
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Retired NHL player and referee Paul Stewart wrote a first-person column for Huffington Post in July, covering various hockey anecdotes. One of the anecdotes was his relationship with Lindros. In describing it, Stewart made some unflattering remarks about Lindros and the way he allegedly treated Stewart during one particular hockey game.
"Eric Lindros was a player I got off with on the wrong foot and we never developed a rapport because neither he nor I wanted one," Stewart wrote. "During the delay of a game between Lindros' Flyers and the New Jersey Devils, I made small talk with several of the Devils and Flyers on the ice. I said hello to Mark Recchi and talked to Bernie Nicholls. I then tried to greet the 19-year-old rookie Lindros.
"Hey, Eric. How are things going? How's your dad?" I asked.
The response: "[Bleep] you. Just drop the [bleeping] puck already."
Stewart went on to write that he had asked Lindros and teammate Mark Recchi sign posters through Flyers' equipment manager Jim "Turk" Evers. It was common practice for Stewart, he said, to hand out posters for NHL players to sign and then donated to a charity auction.
According to Stewart, he never got his posters back from the Flyers.
"After the game, I want to Turk to collect the poster tube."
" 'Stewy, you're not going to like this,' Evers said. 'I don't have them.'
" 'What do you mean you don't have them?' I asked.
" 'Well, Rex signed the posters but when Eric found out they were for you, he tore every one of them up. I'm sorry about that.'
"I never spoke to Eric Lindros again."
Lindros has denied Stewart's allegations, and his lawyers filed a suit, claiming, "(Lindros) has suffered aggravated damages as a consequence of the republications.
"The republications reported that 'Eric Lindros was apparently an enormous (bleep)' and that 'Lindros angrily tearing up charity posters is a high point in athlete d--khead behaviour.'
TSN reported that Lindros originally sought $3 million in damages but amended that amount to $250,000.
What Lindros inadvertently has done now is invite media to research his past to find out whether he does have a checkered past. Even if Lindros is telling the truth, any negative incident which may have involved him could be reported.
His one saving grace is that he is retired and not as prevalent a media figure.
Huffington Post Canada managing editor Kenny Yum and Stewart both declined comment.
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