Theoren Fleury & New York Rangers News

By Larry Brooks, New York post

January 6, 2002 -- PITTSBURGH - Eric Lindros' return to the ice here yesterday afternoon was overshadowed by an incident involving Theo Fleury.

The emotional winger, who suffered through an exasperating six-game road trip during which he went scoreless while amassing 40 penalty minutes, and featured on-ice verbal confrontations with officials and an off-ice physical confrontation with the San Jose team mascot, skated directly to the dressing room and left yesterday's 4-1 loss to the Penguins with 7:37 to go after having been assessed his third two-minute slashing penalty of the game.

Fleury, who had dressed and boarded the team bus before the game had ended, is known to be under duress from personal issues unrelated to those for which he has received treatment within the NHL/NHLPA Behavioral Health and Substance Abuse program last year. He missed last year's final 20 games after entering a rehab facility last February.

"Everybody cares for Theo," Lindros, who stood up well in his return from the concussion he had sustained eight days earlier, said of his linemate. "He's handled everything he's had to face in recent times, he's tackled a lot of big issues.

"We're all behind him."

Fleury - who tangled briefly with the Sharks' mascot in the locker room corridor last Friday after being ejected with a match penalty - has accumulated 39 points (15-24), as well as an astounding 151 PIMs, second in the league to Anaheim heavyweight Kevin Sawyer's 154.

"Obviously, this trip was hard on him," said Ron Low. "I'm concerned for him."

What is wrong with Theoren Fleury? Well for starters, he has no points in six games. He has also compiled 81 penalty minutes in his last 13 games, and he was recently in trouble for beating up a San Jose mascot. On top of all that, he quit the Rangers/Penguins game in the third period on saturday afternoon after taking his third slashing penalty of the game. Fleury then got dressed and sat on the Rangers bus as his team lost 4-1. The details above beg the question, what's behind all of this?

Fleury, usually known for drawing penalties, has frustrated the Rangers in recent weeks with his penalties. He sits second in league standings and consequently has cost the Rangers on the scoreboard. Fleury recently spoke out about the officiating, saying many of the penalties he has taken were questionable. When he was asked what he could do about it, Fleury responded with a scary statement for any Fleury fan, "yeah, quit." Quit he did on saturday.

Fleury retiring, yikes. It almost came to that last spring when Fleury entered the NHLPA's substance abuse program. It put a halt to his career, but he came back strong this season. This time around, according to Rangers colour commentator John Davidson, the same demons are not haunting Fleury. Davidson says, though, that he is dealing with personal problems. All we can do now, as we did last spring, is hope the best for Fleury off the ice.

On Saturday Theoren Fleury was named as one of the fifteen players that will represent Team Canada at the Winter Olympics this February in Salt Lake City. Fleury will suit up for his second Olympics after finishing fourth in Nagano in 1998. Fleury's teammate and linemate Eric Lindros was also added to the team.

"This was the farthest thing from my mind 10 months ago," Fleury said this week. "(At that point) I was focused totally on trying to get my life straightened out." Here is a look at Canada's team:

November 9: Theo's Act Doesn't Fly With Isles

New York Daily News

Peter Laviolette didn't think the Islanders embarrassed themselves with their work ethic, but the Rangers took care of that for both teams as the best rivalry in New York sports was renewed last night with a blowout game.

Theo Fleury mocked Eric Cairns with his own version of "The Chicken Dance" early in the Rangers' 6-2 thrashing of the Isles at the Coliseum. It was much more effective than the one organist Eddie Layton played later to try to pump up the distraught Islander fans, whose traditional chants of "The Rangers (Stink)!" after each stanza didn't seem apropos on this night.

The Isles didn't lament their first clunker of the season, but captain Michael Peca and others weren't thrilled about Fleury directing the universal gesture for cowardice at one of their teammates.

"I would never do that to anybody. I'm not crying, they can do whatever they want. It's just disrespectful and not what hockey's about," Cairns said. "What they were doing was pretty disrespectful for a bunch of guys I have respect for."

Cairns, a former Ranger defenseman, calmly addressed reporters just inside the open doorway to the Isles locker room after the game. Just then, Fleury walked past the doorway wearing a bright purple sports coat with his father by his side. Cairns momentarily snapped and screamed an unprintable name at him.

Fleury, who kept walking, said earlier that he "was just acting along with the song" when he mocked Cairns in the middle of the first period. Of course, there was no music playing at the time.

Cairns was in the penalty box for popping Sandy McCarthy in the chops after the Rangers' tough guy scored their third goal in a 65-second span by 10:20 of the first period. Moments earlier, Cairns had skated away from a potential fight with McCarthy, who did the same against Cairns in the final minutes of the game.

"I'm sure we'll fight before the season's over," McCarthy said. "I'll show him some respect and fight him when it means something."

As for the game, a clunker was bound to happen for Chris Osgood and the sloppy Isles, and maybe it was a needed reminder of how long an 82-game season really is.

"The day that I, or my team, admits any loss is good, you can (fire) me now," Laviolette said. "We made some mistakes, but every guy showed up to play their hearts out. I don't discredit how our team played."

November 9: Rangers Enjoy Fantasy Island

New York Daily News

When you are annually one of the league's highest-salaried teams and your lone Cup in six decades is celebrated as if it were the only one that ever mattered, an underdog's role doesn't fit very well.

And truth be told, the Rangers didn't much like being fitted for one last night anyway — especially with the Islanders playing the role of favorites.

So the Rangers stormed into Nassau Coliseum and played a little role reversal. Getting glittering plays from their top-end guys and indispensable dirty work from their grunts, the Rangers pounded out a resounding 6-2 victory over the Islanders in the resurgent rivals' first meeting of the season.

"Underdog? Really. I don't know about underdog," Rangers winger Theo Fleury snapped after scoring the goal that sparked the mid-first-period blitz that turned the game in the visitors' direction for good. "There aren't too many underdogs on this team, that's for sure.

"There are a lot of great players in our room. A lot of old, great players — smart, old players that have probably played in this situation many, many, many times. And I think our experience tonight really benefited us."

That and the latest in a series of superlative efforts in goal from Mike Richter (37 saves), a couple of individual-effort goals by Fleury and Brian Leetch and a goal and some sticking up for each other by grinders Sandy McCarthy and Steve McKenna.

"I think I pulled a groin trying to get around the net," McKenna joked afterward about how he sprang to McCarthy's defense after the latter was cross-checked on the chin by Eric Cairns following his goal that made it 3-1 10:20 into the second period. For a Rangers team that has seen too many players pull the chute in such situations over the years, McKenna's maneuver was a welcome sight.

"That was what we were looking for," Rangers coach Ron Low said.

What the Rangers had been seeking four games ago was their missing offense. Having had no choice but to retreat into a defensive posture after allowing five goals in three straight drubbings in late October, they scored two or fewer in their next four games.

But they've busted out for 14 goals in their last three games, all wins. And last night's eruption came against an Islanders team that hadn't allowed more than two goals in any of their previous nine games and against a goaltender, Chris Osgood, who sported a 1.66 goals against average coming in.

"I think the Islanders have established themselves this year as the elite team," Mark Messier said of the 11-2-1-1 Isles. "But for us, our biggest competition, I think, is against ourselves right now. We're trying to find a way to win every night and develop some continuity. And I think we've done a better job of it over the last few games."

Not that the Rangers simply dominated this game from faceoff to final buzzer. On the contrary, the Islanders owned the early going and had a 1-0 lead when Alexei Yashin tapped home a deflected puck 2:01 into it.

But when Richter kicked out a Michael Peca shot and Fleury went end to end to beat Osgood and tie it midway through the first, the game changed dramatically.

Leetch deked Ken Sutton off his feet and then whistled a wrist shot over Osgood's blocker 38 seconds later. And McCarthy smacked home the rebound of a McKenna shot 27 seconds after that to complete a three-goals-in-1:05 blitz.

Mark Parrish's league-leading 13th goal of the season cut it to 3-2 early in the second. But a power-play goal by Radek Dvorak
soon after and even-strength tallies by Messier and Eric Lindros in the third put it away for the Rangers.

The New York Rangers lead the NHL in potential comeback players of the year.

Three prime candidates, Theo Fleury, Mike Richter and Eric Lindros, combined to stop the Minnesota Wild in a 3-1 victory Tuesday night.

Lindros, who missed all of last season because of concussions and a contract dispute, scored the first goal on a brilliant assist from Fleury.

It was a special night for Fleury, who is back with the Rangers after missing the final 20 games of last season because of a substance abuse problem.

Richter is making a comeback for the second straight season, both following major knee surgery. The goalie was spectacular in protecting a slim lead, that grew to 3-1 when Fleury scored with 4:13 left.

Fleury received a silver hockey stick in a pregame ceremony that commemorated his 1,000th career point -- recorded Oct. 27.

His parents were the surprise guests.

"I was shocked,'' Fleury said. "I had no idea. I didn't even know they were going to have a ceremony.''

Fleury carried the good feeling into the game, intercepting a clearing pass in the Minnesota zone and wristing a shot that Lindros deflected past goalie Manny Fernandez 3:20 in for his sixth goal.

Lindros is centering a line, surrounded by Fleury and Mike York, that is emerging as New York's best.

"He's right there,'' Fleury said of Lindros, who is still regaining his form. "I think our line has really come together in the last four or five games, and I think we've all elevated our game to another level.

"We can only get better, too. There are some things we can definitely do a little better, but the pucks are going in right now.''

Fleury's fifth goal gave the Rangers a two-goal lead. Fleury followed York on a rush into the Minnesota zone and redirected York's pass in from close range.

"I love playing that kind of hockey,'' Fleury said. "We got it down low, Yorkie got the puck up high, he used his speed, he went wide, I drove to the net, got my stick on the puck and it went in.''

Meanwhile, Richter was frustrating the Wild.

"There were a couple of point blank shots that were real momentum changers,'' Minnesota center Darby Hendrickson said.

Pascal Dupuis scored at 11:14 of the third period to spoil another shutout chance for Richter, who hasn't blanked an opponent since Feb. 26, 1999, a 136-game span.

"Richter was strong,'' Dupuis said. "He made some great saves.''

Steve McKenna, who played with the Wild last season, also scored for NewYork. He hadn't scored an NHL goal since last Nov. 12.

Theo Fleury reached a milestone and helped the New York Rangers end an eight-game winless streak against the Dallas Stars.

Fleury set up a pair of goals by Mike York to reach the 1,000-point mark as the Rangers rallied for a 4-2 victory, their first over the Stars in nearly five years.

A 14-year veteran, Fleury likely would have joined the 1,000-point club last season but missed the final 20 games after entering the substance abuse program sanctioned by the NHL. He reached the milestone with 7:11 left in the second period, picking up the lone assist on York's tying tally.

"How it came about means more to me than anything else," Fleury said. "I left the game for a while to handle some personal problems, and to come back and achieve this milestone makes it extra special. I took care of what I needed to and it was nice to come back and be part of this team again."

The diminutive Fleury stripped the puck from defenseman Derian Hatcher at the Dallas blue line and wristed a shot from the left faceoff circle off Ed Belfour's chest. York got the rebound and flicked it over the fallen goaltender for his second goal of the game and fourth this season.

"For a guy who wasn't supposed to play in the NHL -- at least that's what people said anyway -- I guess that's quite an achievement," Fleury said.

Sandy McCarthy broke the 2-2 deadlock 2 1/2 minutes later. Mark Messier shrugged off defenseman Sami Helenius' check behind the net and muscled the puck in front. It caromed off teammate Andreas Johansson before McCarthy tapped in a shot from the top of the crease for his first goal of the season.

The assist was the 1,135th of Messier's career, moving him into a tie for fourth all-time with former teammate Paul Coffey.

Defenseman Darren Van Impe capped New York's big second period with 2:19 left, one-timing a slap shot from the blue line past a screened Belfour for his first goal since New Year's Day.

Mike Richter stopped 36 shots to backstop the Rangers to their first win over the Stars since December 30, 1996.

"I feel very good physically, I've had a chance to practice a lot, and that has been very important," said Richter, who has turned aside 81 of the last 84 shots he has faced. "I feel I'm seeing the puck really well. I feel very fresh and I'm getting into a rhythm, which is making me feel more confident."

Brenden Morrow and Pierre Turgeon scored for Dallas, which completed a 1-2-0-1 road trip. The Stars have been held to two goals or less eight times in 12 games.

"The two goals we got were typical goals for us. We were crashing the net, stirring things up, and we were able to get the lead that we wanted," Dallas center Mike Modano said. "But I'm not sure what happened from there. Things just kind of did a 180 on us and we may have let one slip away."

"We're not playing 60 minutes. We haven't been able to play solid offensively for 60 minutes and our defense has been careless with the puck and is making just too many mistakes," Stars coach Ken Hitchcock added.

Neither team mustered a shot in the game's first six minutes, but Morrow opened the scoring at 7:41. Richter stopped defenseman Richard Matvichuk's one-timer from the left point, but Morrow got free in the slot and scored his fourth goal off the rebound.

York tied it just under six minutes later with a highlight reel goal. Eric Lindros flicked the puck out of his own zone and up to Fleury, who chipped a pass to York at the Dallas blue line. York pulled up in front of Belfour, spun to his backhand and slid in the puck.

"It was a great feed by Theo. I made sure to head right toward the net and he gave me a great pass," York said. "I just kind of did a 180 and put it in the net. It wasn't anything that I planned or anything that I saw, it was just a matter of spinning around and putting it in."

"Had we been able to get a two-goal lead, that would have made a huge difference for us," Stars center Joe Nieuwendyk said. "Even though the shots were lopsided, they were able to get some really good opportunities that they cashed in on. They got right back in the game on York's first goal. But to get their second and third goals, that was really a killer for us."

Turgeon broke the tie on the power play at 3:15 of the second period, putting in a rebound off a scramble. But the Rangers killed two more power plays before intermission.

"As a team, I think we need to improve a couple of things. But we're certainly getting better and our penalty-killing units have done a solid job," Richter said. "(The Stars) could have easily made the game teeter in their direction in the second period when they had the man advantages."

Belfour stopped 19 shots and had a personal six-game unbeaten streak against the Rangers snapped.

Eric Lindros, the most high-profile New York Rangers newcomer, didn't wait long to win over fans at Madison Square Garden.

After stirring pregame ceremonies before the home opener Sunday night, Lindros scored a power-play goal just 8:13 in to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead.

Mark Messier and Radek Dvorak assisted.

The goal was quickly equalized when defenseman Bryan Berard, another Rangers newcomer, lost the puck in front of goalie Mike Richter. J.P. Dumont pounced on it and wristed in a shot at 9:38.

Before the first puck was dropped, heroes of the World Trade Center attack were honored, and this season's Rangers team was introduced.

The Rangers have nine new faces this season and one player -- Theo Fleury -- is making a comeback after leaving the team last season for substance abuse treatment.

The new roster, which performed poorly in the team's opening-night loss at Carolina, received rousing ovations during the introductions.

But the heroes from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks drew the most heartfelt cheers.

To kick off the opening ceremonies, members of New York's police and fire departments wore red and white sweaters and skated out to a roar from the crowd.

They formed two lines and tapped their sticks on the ice as the crowd chanted ``USA! USA!''

The Rangers then skated through the two lines.

Messier, the team captain, addressed the crowd and dedicated the season ``to all of you heroes.''

The Rangers are also taking two major steps to honor those who lost their lives in the World Trade Center attacks. The team has set aside 80 tickets per game for ``Hometown Heroes'', a section for uniformed officers.

Also, the Garden's signature sound after goals this season will be the sound of a fire engine.

Lindros was introduced second to last, immediately after fellow alternate captain Brian Leetch and before Messier -- two longtime fan favorites.

``It was special,'' Lindros said of the ceremony. ``A lot of people have been through so much.''

Lindros, acquired this summer in a trade with the rival Philadelphia Flyers, was received slightly less warmly than his two teammates and heard a smattering of boos.

After Messier skated out, a firefighter raced over to center ice to place a fire helmet atop Messier's bald head. A photo of a firefighter adorned the front. Messier smiled broadly.

Even the Buffalo Sabres, who were initially booed, received cheers when fans noticed the ``New York'' lettering across their sweaters.

The Rangers were also wearing custom-made road blue sweaters that said ``New York''. Both teams' jerseys will be auctioned off to benefit the Twin Towers Fund.

The Rangers won 5-4, in overtime, on a goal by Leetch.

September 28: "E-train" always a target

It didn't take long for Eric Lindros to absorb his first questionable hit in a New York Rangers jersey. When you've been out of the NHL for more than a year, when your history of concussions is better known than your goal total, when your squabbles with management have been followed like a soap opera, when you're a six-foot-four 236-pound freight train on skates, you become quite a target.

But when New York Islanders goalie Garth Snow went out of his way to get a piece of Lindros in a pre-season game, his new Rangers teammates were right there to back him up.

Theo Fleury, making a comeback of his own from substance abuse, was one New Yorker who didn't stand for it.

"It was a physical game and they were going after Eric," Fleury said. "Obviously, as a team, we need to be prepared for that. We're not going to be pushed around by anybody. I think we showed that."

Lindros is his linemate, and the pair will need for each other to be at the top of their games if the Rangers are to return to the playoffs after a four-year absence.

"We're both looking to bounce back and play well and help the team," Lindros said.

Snow, a Lindros teammate when the two played in Philadelphia, landed a big hit on the former Flyers captain that drew an elbowing penalty.

It didn't take long for enforcers Dale Purinton and P.J. Stock to target Snow. Purinton was tossed for trying to injure the goalie, and Fleury speared him to draw an ejection.

"I think the overall toughness of the team has gotten better as well," said Fleury, who missed New York's final 20 games last season while in drug rehab. "That's what it takes in our division and our conference."

Lindros, a former NHL MVP, came to the Rangers in an unpopular trade from the Flyers in August. The deal finally ended a bitter relationship with Philadelphia general manager Bob Clarke that kept Lindros out of the NHL for 16 months.

The hulking centre, with 290 career goals, hasn't played a meaningful game since sustaining his sixth concussion during Game 6 of the 2000 Eastern Conference finals against New Jersey, when Lindros was felled by Scott Stevens.

"Eric has an appreciation for what you have to go through with these injuries," goalie Mike Richter said. "It's very difficult to be on the sidelines watching your team play, trying to come back, the frustration of not being able to fill your own expectations when you do come back."

But now he is back and expected to centre a top line in New York, featuring Fleury on right wing.

"I don't think it's a big deal," Lindros said. "Theo's been in the league a long time, he knows how to play the game. He knows what it takes. I think it will just be great to see Theo's face smiling and feeling good about himself."

Fleury, a 14-year veteran, was able to be happy for most of last season - his second with New York - but it didn't last.

After a dismal 1999-00 campaign that saw Fleury, a former 50-goal scorer, record career lows in a full season of 15 goals and 64 points, the fiery forward rebounded to have 30 goals and 74 points in his first 62 games.

But then the stunning announcement came on Feb. 28: Fleury checked into a rehab centre for treatment and wouldn't return. For his third straight season with the Rangers, he is facing questions.

"Do I have something to prove? Absolutely. I think it's more, I need to prove to myself now," said Fleury, who still managed to be New York's third-leading scorer last season.

"The biggest challenge for me is going to be off the ice. I've been around a long time. My love for the game has not changed, my desire to play has not changed, my skills haven't diminished so I don't really have to worry about that part at all. I think everybody knows what kind of player I am."

Meshing with Lindros, who could be one hit away from a career-ending injury, is the first order of business.

"I think it's just a matter of finding some chemistry between the two of us," Fleury said. "I think we've done it in the pre-season and played fairly well together."

Richter, coming back from major knee surgery for the second straight year, made sure he was ready to play after an injury to each leg shortened his last two seasons.

"There's a lot of excitement," he said. "We have a very different squad than we had last year, especially with the addition of Eric. We have so much more depth and so much more possibility as a team so there's a huge motivation to get back."

Lindros and Fleury might be able to help each other regain the form that made them all-stars and Canadian Olympians.

"I have to do my thing off the ice and continue to do the things I've done all summer long, and he has to do his own thing," Fleury said. "When we come on the ice, that's where we share the common ground.

"We're both skill players. Our styles are a little bit different but we'll see what happens. It's the makings of a good tandem, that's for sure."

More here than meets the eye
By Phil Coffey -- OK, let's start with the sobering news for the New York Rangers. Last season's team finished 16 points out of a playoff berth, and the Rangers missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the fourth-straight season.

Goalie Mike Richter was lost to knee surgery. Defenseman Vladimir Malakhov was also felled by a knee injury early in the season, and Theo Fleury left the team late in the regular season to enter the NHL/NHLPA Voluntary Substance Abuse Program. So, a lot of the good feelings generated by the return of Mark Messier was lost in the disappointment of a 33-43-5-1 season.

Time to turn the page. Better yet, rip it out of the book. And whether you believe it or
not, the Rangers are in a lot better shape heading into the 2001-02 season than most folks will give them credit for.

Entire forests have been felled debating Eric Lindros' health after sitting out last season. But Lindros has been cleared to play by every doctor he has seen, and the newest Ranger isn't wasting time worrying about whether he susceptible to another concussion. Lindros is a beast of a man, blessed with size, strength and talent. His performance in Team Canada's Olympic pre-camp should make GM Glen Sather rest easier. more...

Theoren Fleury and the New York Rangers won their first two games of the 2001 NHL exhibition season. On monday night, the Rangers faced off against the new-look Detroit Red Wings. Prior to the drop of the puck, the players from both sides payed their respect to those touched by the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C. Fleury, one of the only Rangers veterans in the line-up, donned the captain's 'C' and almost opened the scoring by beating Dominik Hasek, but he lost control of the puck once behind the sprawling goaltender. After going into the second period tied 0-0, both teams scored twice in the third period and at 14:41, with the Rangers on the power-play, Fleury assisted on the game winning marker by Andreas Johansson. The Red Wing in the box, Chris Chelios, was assessed 29 penalty minutes from a scirmish in which Fleury only got a minor penalty.

The Rangers played the New Jersey Devils on wednesday at the Garden, and with a more experienced line-up, won 6-1. Fleury, playing on a line with Eric Lindros and Johansson, opened the scoring at 8:23 when he shoved a Vladimir Malakhov rebound past Frederic Henry. Lindros closed the scoring in the third period, on the power-play, with his first goal as Ranger.

September 15: Fleury set to begin 14th NHL season

After a successful, fun, Olympic orientation camp in Calgary, Theoren Fleury returned to New York to prepare for his fourteenth NHL season. Sporting #74, for training camp only, Fleury has been playing on a line with newcomers Eric Lindros and Andreas Johansson for scrimmages and pracitises in Rye, N.Y.

The camp was originally slated for Madison Square Garden but was moved to the team's practise facility in the wake of tuesday's horrific terrorist attacks on the World Trade and Convention Center in Manhatten. The first Rangers pre-season game, originally scheduled for today, has been pushed back to monday in Detroit.

By RANDY SPORTAK -- Calgary Sun

Like every other New Yorker, former Flames star Theoren Fleury spent yesterday in disbelief.

With the New York Rangers holding their training camp at Madison Square Garden, a rare event, Fleury was in downtown Manhattan when yesterday's disaster struck.

'It's a shock," Fleury said when reached on his cellphone, with the sounds of sirens in the background.

"We were in our rooms and saw the plane hit the building on TV. We had our testing at the Gardens this morning and were on our way walking and saw the (first) building go down.

"Those are two of the most prominent buildings in the world. Whenever you see pictures of New York, you see the World Trade Center. Now they're gone."

The Rangers' team hotel is located about 3 km from the World Trade Center, which had both towers destroyed in the terrorist attack.

"It's pretty scary. It's chaotic down here right now," Fleury said.

"The sirens are everywhere. It's unbelievable. There doesn't seem to be a real panic, though. I think everyone's just in shock."

With everything going on around him, Fleury said he was too paralysed by shock to fear for his life.

"You don't know what exactly is going on," he said.

"You don't know if it's not pure accident that happened, or what, and don't know the full extent of what was going on.

"It probably hasn't really hit me, the extent of this whole thing.

"It's a long way from Russell, Manitoba, that's for sure."

Sitting outside Madison Square Garden, amidst midday sunshine blocked out by the smoke and clouds of dust, Fleury spent a good portion of time phoning friends and family to let them know he was OK and making sure those close to him were all right.

The team cancelled its training camp for the week. No announcement has been made about when and where it will begin.

Rangers officials said all members of the organization are safe and sound, including former Hitmen Matt Kinch, Brad Mehalko and Tom Renney, a Calgarian who is the team's director of player personnel.

Life's looking a lot brighter for Theo now

By RANDY SPORTAK -- Calgary Sun

For the first time in six months, Theoren Fleury was back where he felt best -- on ice, skating at full speed, part of a team.

Fleury spent half a year where he needed to be, dealing with the substance abuse problem that abruptly ended his season last February and yesterday was able to receive the huge carrot he'd been chasing.

"I was really nervous and didn't know what to expect when I got on the ice," said the former Flames star who's spent the last two seasons with the New York Rangers.

"But like I've said before, the ice has always been the place where I've been very happy and very comfortable and once I did a couple of laps, I felt pretty good.

"There's not too many hockey players in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They have a beautiful facility and I went out and played one night but the level of play was a little different. It felt good to be back. Six months is a long time to be away from the game.

"After today, I really feel ready to come back and do what I needed to do."

Looking the fittest he's been in a decade and winning the ongoing battle with the demons that sent him to a rehabilitation facility in the American southwest, the always exciting Fleury showed how much it meant for him to be part of the pre-Olympic training camp running through Friday at Father David Bauer Arena.

When the NHL who's who was ready to hit the ice, there was Fleury racing to be first.

He joked about his shot, noting how the timing was the first to go. He joked about needing to be in better shape. Most importantly, he exuded the confidence of a man who knows he's not facing a difficult path on his own.

"I don't think I could have expected any more support than I got," he said. "It was a tough time that I went through but there was cards, letters, phone calls of support. It wasn't an easy thing to do but I felt it was time and something I needed to do for myself.

"For the first time in my life, I asked somebody for help and I'll continue to do that. This isn't something you overcome in six months, this is an ongoing thing, and something I have to battle the rest of my life.

"But I feel good about it because I have a lot of people in support positions that I can call and talk to and get the help I need."

Not to mention the boost that came from being invited to be part of the country's elite.

"There's something about Theo I always thought was really special," said the team's executive director Wayne Gretzky. "He was always the most annoying player I've played against but he's an incredible team guy who plays well under pressure.

"Nobody's perfect in life and I'm really happy for him that he's changed his life around. I think he'll be a better hockey player than he was before."

For Fleury, the real test is to become and remain a better person.

"I've trained really hard and tried to get physically ready as well as mentally," he said. "There's going to be some tough times ahead and challenges but I think I'm a lot more prepared for those things now than I ever was.

"It's not an option for me to engage in those kind of activities anymore. In the last six months I've found things to do to keep my mind occupied."

Now he'll try to stay on the straight and narrow and use the same conviction that helped him rise from being an underdog to one of the game's best.

"Today is all I have and I'm going to make the best of what I have," he concluded. "Coming back today and having this opportunity to play with the best in Canada is a thrill."

NEW YORK (AP) -- When Glen Sather couldn't bring Jaromir Jagr to the New York Rangers, he got The Next One.

Eric Lindros, heralded as a teen-ager as the next Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux, was traded to the Rangers from the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday, ending a stormy relationship with his only NHL team.

"I look at this as something fresh,'' Lindros said. ``I look at it as an opportunity to get Ranger hockey back on the map and to get back in the playoffs and to cause some havoc.''

Sather -- the Rangers' general manager -- sent left wing Jan Hlavac, defenseman Kim Johnsson, forward Pavel Brendl and a third-round draft pick in 2003 to the Flyers.

Lindros was acquired to be a building block for the Rangers, out of the playoffs four straight seasons.

Sather failed to obtain Jagr, the league scoring champion, because he said Pittsburgh's asking price would further rob the Rangers of their young stable of talent.

The Penguins traded Jagr to Washington, and Sather turned his attention to Lindros, who hasn't played in the NHL in 15 months because of problems with concussions and a huge rift with Flyers GM Bob Clarke.

Lindros' sixth concussion, delivered by New Jersey's Scott Stevens in Game 7 of the 2000 Eastern Conference finals, ended his career with the Flyers.

"I understand that people are skeptical because of the concussion history, but we're just going to have to win them over,'' Lindros said. ``I know when I'm healthy I can play this game, and I think I will be healthy.''

Philadelphia will send a first-round pick in 2003 to the Rangers if Lindros goes down with a head injury during the preseason or within the first 50 games of the regular season and doesn't return to action for at least 12 months.

The 28-year-old center became a restricted free agent when he turned down Philadelphia's $8.5 million contract offer last summer.

``I don't think it's very risky,'' said Sather, who gave Lindros a four-year contract reportedly worth about $38 million. ``He and his family feel very comfortable about this. He wants to play and the doctors approved him to play a long time ago.''

The Rangers gave up the 24-year-old Hlavac, who scored 28 goals last season, Johnsson, a 25-year-old, puck-carrying defenseman, and the 20-year-old Brendl, the No. 4 pick in the 1999 draft.

With the Flyers, Lindros had 290 goals and 369 assists. He won the MVP award in 1995, and two years later led the Flyers into his only finals, where they were swept by Detroit.

Sather said he'll be worried about Lindros when he first takes the ice with the Rangers, but not because of his health.

"That's more from anticipation,'' he said. ``He could walk out of the building today and get hit by a cab, get a concussion and he's finished.''

Lindros doesn't plan to shy away from his physical style.

"There's going to be some big hits,'' he said, ``but hopefully I'll be on the right end of 90 percent of them.''

Theo Fleury hasn't conquered all of his demons, but the all-star winger says he's on the road to recovery after months of treatment for substance abuse.

"I don't think about the past anymore ... today is all I have," Fleury said Monday in his first public comments since shocking the hockey world in February by checking into rehab while seemingly at the top of his game with the New York Rangers.

At the time, Fleury was on a tear, New York's leading scorer with 30 goals and 44 assists for 74 points, challenging Joe Sakic for the NHL scoring lead.

Fleury, a fan favourite because of his huge heart and five-foot-six stature that many said could never withstand the rigours of the NHL, has dealt with many personal trials.

He has struggled for years with substance abuse -- both his parents had their own addiction problems. Fleury, who has played 13 seasons in the NHL, says he was always able to keep his on-ice performance separate from his off-ice troubles.

"The hockey rink has always been my happy place and my place where I felt really comfortable and I got a lot of things I didn't get (off the ice)," Fleury said prior to his annual golf tournament which raises money for research into Crohn's Disease, a debilitating digestive disorder that plagues him and millions of others.

"I always felt joy, I always felt happiness, I always felt complete when I was on the ice," said Fleury, who played 10 seasons with the Calgary Flames before suiting up for the Colorado Avalanche and eventually the Rangers.

That changed one night late in February. And while Fleury won't discuss the details under doctor's orders, he knew he had reached a point where he needed help. He turned to an addictions program recently established by the NHL and the NHL Players' Association.

Fleury doesn't blame his problems on being in New York, although he acknowledges he was completely unprepared for the Big Apple spotlight.

"I had these issues long before I went to New York," he said. "I'm a prairie kid and I grew up in a town of 1,500 people. I felt like I was dropped in Manhattan and left to fend on my own. I'm not very good at asking for help or directions, but now I feel I'm a lot better at that then in the past."

Rangers general manager Glen Sather is proud of what Fleury has accomplished so far, but says the real challenge is just beginning.

"This is not something where you spend four or five months changing your lifestyle," said Sather, who sat with Fleury as he faced reporters Monday.

"He's going to have to fight until someone sticks him in the ground 50 years from now."

Fleury says he's never felt better physically and is looking forward to being back on the ice -- whether that's at the Rangers' training camp or with the 33 other players invited by friend Wayne Gretzky to the early September orientation camp for the Canadian Olympic Team.

"There was never a thought in my mind that I would not come back," Fleury said.

"I basically have the tools to deal with situations that used to perplex me. I'm really going to concentrate on playing hockey."

On Tuesday Theoren Fleury was added to Team Canada's Olympic training camp for early September in Calgary. Fleury was among 34 players invited and is a serious candidate for the final roster for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. Fleury, who'll be in Calgary on Monday for his annual golf tournament, has a history of making an impact at important international tournaments. He was one of Canada's best in '98 in Japan.

"Theo was high on our list, very close, when we chose the first eight players. Unfortunatly, he's gone through some personal problems and situations . But up until that time last season, he was on of the best players in the NHL." said Wayne Gretzky, who is the head of Canada's team.

"I've talked to Theo, his agent Don Baizley and (New York Rangers GM) Glen Sather to see where he stands and they assure me he's fine, ready to go. As I said before, this is not a real training camp. The real proof in the pudding regarding Theo's current skill level will come in October, November and December."

Fleury is in Russell, Man., hosting a hockey school and family members said Tuesday he isn't talking to media.