Former Flyers and Colorado Avalanche winger Keith Jones seldom took faceoffs during his nine-year NHL career. But when future Hockey Hall of Famer Peter Forsberg summoned Jones to the dot to take a draw in his place on Jan. 4, 1997, against the Flyers, Jones complied, naive to the challenge that awaited him.
Jones lined up across from 23-year-old Eric Lindros, whom Jones recalled being “already built like a mountain” when he made his NHL debut in 1992 as a 19-year-old at 6-foot-4, 225 pounds. The linesman dropped the puck. Before Jones could flinch, Lindros knocked him onto the seat of his pants with the brute force of an offensive lineman on skates and won the faceoff.
“I remember looking over at Forsberg and he kind of chuckled because I think he knew exactly what was going to be coming,” Jones said. “That’s just kind of what Eric did. So it didn’t matter who he went up against, he was going to try to overpower that player. And in many cases, he was strong enough, big enough to do that.”