At his retirement dinner at the posh London Hunt and Country Club last night, Eric Lindros paid homage to three hockey figures he admired.
In the case of the late John McAuley, the popular NHL referee gave Lindros plenty of guidance in his early years. The other two legends were Ted Lindsay and Carl Brewer.
The 82-year-old Lindsay, who drove to London from the Detroit area to attend the affair with Red Wings defencemen Chris Chelios, is popular with Lindros because of his diligent work more than 40 years ago in starting what is now known as the NHLPA.
Brewer for continuing that work in the 1960s and his role in bringing down disgraced former NHLPA executive director Alan Eagleson. The late Brewer was represented at the dinner by his lifelong partner Susan Foster, who authored a book called The Power of Two about Brewer’s life. It’s a must read for hockey fans who have an interest in the game as well as the fight to bring down Eagleson.
Foster has attended more than a few NHLPA functions recently as a symbol of why the players’ union was established many, many years ago.
Just one final note from the dinner: Chelios fired off one of the best shots at his friend when he asked Lindros how old he was (34) and then pointed out that he is still playing in the NHL at age 45.
