You can not tell the story of the NHL in the 90s without spending a significant amount of time talking about Eric Lindros. The Ontario native was dubbed "The Next One" by fans and lived up to the hype. Over his 13 years in the league, he appeared in 760 games, racking up 372 goals and 493 assists for 865 points. He was also an All-Star twice, won the Hart Trophy, and the Ted Lidnsey Award in 1994-95. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2016.
When you think of Lindros' career, the two teams that come to mind are the Quebec Nordiques and the Philadelphia Flyers. Every hockey fan has seen the picture of Lindros with the Nordiques sweater over his arm at the 1991 NHL draft, after Lindros said he didn't want to play there. This ultimately led him to be traded to the Flyers, where he spent the majority of his career. However, what many forget is that he spent a season with the Dallas Stars.
When "The Next One" came to the Lone Star State
During the 2005-06 season, Lindros inked a one-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs. However, his time with the Leafs was cut short after taking a slap shot off his wrist. This injury required surgery to fix, causing him to miss the final stretch of the season. This made him a free agent with major questions surrounding him. Teams were worried about signing him because they didn't know if he could return to that caliber of player after his injury.
After sitting without a team throughout most of July, the Dallas Stars decided to take a chance on him. On July 17th, the two sides agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.55 million. This was seen by many as a low-risk, high-reward move for the Stars. Suppose Lindros were able to heal correctly. Stars could be landing one of the best players ever to lace up the skate for a fraction of what he should cost. It was also Lindros's last chance to prove he's still a quality NHL player.
Lindros made his Stars debut on October 4th against the Colorado Avalanche. He made a great first impression with Stars fans, racking up five points (one goal and four assists) in his first three games. He even scored a goal in his home debut against the Devils. It looked like Lindros had turned the clock back and was going back to how he performed in the 90s.
However, his performance slowed down after the first three games. He was only able to appear in 49 games due to a nagging groin injury. He notched five goals and 21 assists for 26 points over that stretch. His performance helped the Stars return to the playoffs for the fourth straight season. He appeared in three of the Stars' seven playoff games and didn't record a point.
After his brief stint in Dallas, Lindros announced his retirement from hockey. Although his time in the Lone Star State was short, it's an interesting footnote in the career of one of the best players in NHL history.