Lindros says future open He looked depressed. He admitted to frustration. He mumbled his answers. In what may have been Eric Lindros' final interview as a Flyer, the former captain said yesterday that he was not prepared to announce what he was going to do about a career marred by a sixth concussion, suffered Friday. "I don't know what the future holds," Lindros said yesterday as the players cleaned out their dressing room at the team's practice rink in Voorhees. "I'll do that therapy that helped me . . . and see what goes on," he said, referring to cranial massage. Two people familiar with his situation say the superstar center will take an extended period of time off, perhaps as long as a year, to regain his health. Lindros would not confirm that nor say whether he would retire. "I have not thought about my future and what I want to discuss publicly," he said. Lindros, who said he was not feeling well and was experiencing headaches, said he had not made plans to see his neurologist, James Kelly. But he is expected to do so within the next two weeks. He left no doubt, however, that whatever decision he made, Kelly would be guiding him. "Getting used to it," he said dejectedly of the headaches. "I'm back to square one again." Lindros' indecision might leave the Flyers in a bind. On July 1, the 27-year-old will become a Group II restricted free agent, so the Flyers must extend him a qualifying offer of $8.5 million to retain negotiating rights. If Lindros had announced that he was retiring, the Flyers would have had to do nothing. They would have owned his rights into retirement. If Lindros had announced that he was taking a year off, the Flyers would still have had to make him an offer to retain his rights. Now they have to determine whether another team will make Lindros and his six concussions an offer if they do not. And if the Flyers make an offer, will Lindros pass a physical six months from now? General manager Bob Clarke had no comment. If Lindros is not a Flyer next season, what do the Flyers do about a No. 1 center? Will it be Keith Primeau? Interim coach Craig Ramsay bounced him to the No. 2 role in the playoffs, behind Daymond Langkow, who is really a third-line center. Even Primeau conceded that the Flyers needed to do something. "If you lose a guy like Eric, you lose an elite player," Primeau said. "He is a top player in the NHL, and we all know that and recognize that fact. Can any of the centermen we have now replace Eric? I say no. We're not as skilled as Eric." The trouble is, there are no gifted No. 1 centers available in free agency this summer. As for his teammates, several said Lindros needed to consider whether his next concussion could cost him more than a seventh game of a playoff series.For the Flyers, however, it's a decision they have to make in about a month. Lindros, who missed the end of the regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs because of the concussions, said he did not regret his decision to return for Games 6 and 7 of the Eastern Conference finals against the New Jersey Devils. "In the Pittsburgh series, we were talking about the amount of time that was available," he said. "But you can't [wait]. You've got to jump in and go." Lindros said he enjoys playing in Philadelphia. "The fans of this city are spectacular," he said. "I have gotten a lot of support." Asked whether he wanted to return to the Flyers despite the hardship and controversy he had undergone in eight years, he said, "I don't think that is my decision." He meant that the decision would be made by Clarke. Lindros said he did not remember being hit by Scott Stevens' shoulder in the first period of Game 7 on Friday - the hit resulted in yet another concussion - but said he had seen the blow on TV replays and didn't think it was dirty. "Everyone is talking about Scott," he said. "Leave the guy alone. Let him go play hockey." Lindros said he did not regret criticizing the club's medical staff for the handling of his fourth concussion in March. "I said the truth," he said. "We'll just leave that alone and talk about things at a later date."