The Lindros alternative

Sporting News, The, Nov 13, 2000

4/30/93: Rangers beat Penguins in Game 7 of Patrick semifinals.

5/8/93: Rangers sweep Islanders in Patrick final.

5/28/93: Rangers beat Canadiens in Game 7 in OT of Wales final and advance to Cup final vs. Kings. Rose makes his famous radio call.

6/9/93: Messier guarantees Game 6 win vs. Kings.

6/11/93: Rangers win their first Stanley Cup in 53 years. beating L.A.; Messier scores hat trick Off three Lindros assists.

6/26/93: Rangers select Denis Pederson in first round of entry draft, Bryan McCabe in second round.

The Quebec scenario

By Paul Grant

Returning from his Calder Trophy-winning season, Eric Lindros reported early to training camp for the 1992-93 season in the best shape of his life.

After being selected No. 1 in the 1991 entry draft, Lindros donned a Quebec jersey and said he'd be proud to wear the bleu et blanc of the Nordiques. Lindros further endeared himself by answering a couple of questions in French, apologizing twice for his accent. The province's media instantly took to him, crowning him "Le Grand Titan."

Entering the '92-93 season Lindros again centered the No. 1 line, between 5-10, 200-pound left winger Andrei Kovalenko and 6-1, 210-pound right winger Owen Nolan, the No. 1 pick the year before. The combo, dubbed the KLN line, was a unit made of perfectly complemented parts.

Kovalenko could put the puck in the net and was considered the finesse player on the line. Nolan could also score, and his grit helped take some of the physical heat off Lindros, who again played all 80 games. Some experts said Lindros would have worn down over the course of the season if he hadn't backed off the physical part of his game thanks to Nolan's presence.

The emergence of Lindros took time away from the line of Mats Sundin, Joe Sakic (also former first-rounders) and Valeri Kamensky. Although the Nordiques were the deepest team in the Prince of Wales Conference, many believed a blockbuster trade for a goaltender--rumored to be Ed Belfour--and a defenseman was in the works.

The club posted 110 points in 1992-93, dipping the Bruins for top spot in the competitive Adams Division. In the playoffs the Nordiques easily handed fourth seed Buffalo a quick spring exit. They swept the Alexander Mogilny-led Sabres thanks in part to Lindros' two game-winning goals and spectacular goaltending by the emerging Stephane Fiset.

Le Colisee was packed to the rafters for the second-round series against archrival Montreal. Tickets for the first four games were sold out in 15 minutes and were going for as much as $100 each from scalpers.

The Canadiens had entered the playoffs as heavy underdogs, but the Adam Oates-led Brains couldn't overcome the unbelievable goaltending of Montreal's Patrick Roy and were ousted in six games. A thrilling overtime win in Game 6, on a goal by Claude Lemieux, allowed the Canadiens to move on to the second round.

Alas, it wasn't meant to be for the Nordiques. More Roy heroics and what seemed to be Canadiens destiny were too much, and the Nordiques were eliminated in a thrilling OT loss in Game 7. "We will not forget," a crestfallen Lindros said after the game.