Detroit Red Wings legend "Terrible" Ted Lindsay was a tough customer on the ice during his Hall of Fame career, and he was no different while serving as the team's General Manager in the late 1970s. His temper was on full display in March 1978 when the Penguins signed Derek Sanderson, who had been playing with the Wings' Kansas City team in the Central Hockey League after the Wings had decided to give the broken down former star player a look. Without any signed contract, however, Sanderson was officially a free agent, free to sign with any team he wished.
When Sanderson's agent contacted Pens GM Baz Bastien about his client's availability, Bastien jumped at the opportunity. That did not sit well with Terrible Ted, as
this article in the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette shows. Lindsay took his grievance to the NHL's head office, but there was no evidence of any kind of contract that could have been used as evidence to void the Penguins move.
"It was a verbal thing," admitted Lindsay.
This
brief piece includes Bastien speaking in his own defense.
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