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Chris Pronger's Second Act
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| Chris Pronger |
His skills may have diminished some, and this is not the same player who in 2000 became the first defenseman since Bobby Orr to capture both the Norris and Hart trophies in the same season, but Pronger is now a more complete hockey player.
At 35, he is comfortable with his role, and now has a more complete understanding of what his presence on the ice means to both his and the opposing team. Much like Hall of Famer Steve Yzerman, who was a better, more savvy hockey player in the last five years of his career than he was in the first five, even though he was not the scoring machine he was at the onset of his career.
Most of what Prongs does will not show up in the box score.
The simple fact of the matter is that his presence on the ice forces the opposition to adjust its style of play.
When counting the number of hits he has in any game, it is also important to take into consideration just how many forwards take the scenic route to the puck to avoid paying the price along the boards. Opposing forwards may be faster than Pronger, but must be wary because he plays angles so well, hits so hard, and has the most educated elbows since Gordie Howe.
Liken this to that old Pit Bull in the neighbor's yard. Though the aging canine may look like he's slowing down, no one is in a hurry to jump the fence.
That is the essence of Pronger.
Patrolling the crease with the tenacity of a Cyberdine Systems Model 101 from the film “Terminator,” Prongs is Stephen King’s “Cujo” on skates. Mean as a junkyard dog, willing to do whatever it takes to keep opposing forwards off his turf. At 6-foot-6, he’s built perfectly for the job. His goaltender's best friend, he has also endeared himself to his forwards, courtesy some of the League’s most accurate stretch passes ever during defensive zone breakouts.
Once set up on offense, his hard, accurate slapshots rip through traffic and terrorize opposing netminders. Pronger has scored ten or more goals in nine of his 15 NHL seasons, and his 661 total points in 1104 regular season games have earned him an annual position amongst the League’s defensive scoring leaders.
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...take into consideration just how many forwards take the scenic route to the puck to avoid paying the price along the boards. Opposing forwards...must be wary because he plays angles so well, hits so hard, and has the most educated elbows since Gordie Howe... |
When the Flyers acquired the Dryden, Ontario, native in the offseason, the length of his contract raised some eyebrows, given that Pronger turns 36 in October and will be well past his 42nd birthday when it expires after the 2016-17 season.
Any feelings of buyer’s remorse were reinforced when the Flyers’ slow start got coach John Stevens fired last December (those discerning eyebrows, though, have since come to rest in the normal positions, which are much more aesthetically pleasing and maintain the symmetry of one's face).
POST-LOCKOUT PRONGER:
5 OUT OF 5 AIN’T BAD
When Pronger was traded from the St Louis Blues to the Edmonton Oilers in 2006, the result was a trip to the Cup final. The next season, he joined the Anaheim Ducks and helped them tear through the league and win the Stanley Cup. Now with Philadelphia, Pronger prepares for his third Cup final in five years (and has appeared in the playoffs in five consecutive post-lockout campaigns).
A throwback, Pronger would have fit in perfectly with the 1974 and ‘75 Flyers championship teams. A warrior the likes of which is seldom seen these days, he plays on the edge most of the time, over the edge some of the time, but ultimately benefits his team virtually all of the time.
Prongs has never been considered the most media-friendly player in the world, but as long as he continues to bring the pain, who really cares?
Watching him play, especially in big games is in many ways, a thing of beauty. While not a greyhound the likes of Drew Doughty, Brian Campbell or Mike Green, he is absolutely just as special as those blueliners.
Every aspiring championship team covets an element like Prongs to anchor the defense. To opposing forwards, he is the ultimate deterrent, and if need be, the ultimate punishment.
In the twilight of his NHL years, Pronger has proven more effective than ever. As this upcoming Stanley Cup final unfolds, sit back and enjoy watching one of the most unique players of all time, a master craftsman at work.
MORE:
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Stanley Cup
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Plus:
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How the Cup
Finalists Were Built
by Chris Kober
On the surface the two teams seem quite similar. They each have three lines that
can score through pure skill or relentless grit; each boasts a stable of
stalwart defensemen and previously untested goaltending...however, the season
has seen them take very different paths to the Final.
(Photo: Marian Hossa, CHI)
What a Difference a Generation Makes
Bill, Rocky and the trip from '92 to '10
by Josh Brewster | NHL Quick Shots
(Bill
Wirtz was a) Shakespearian figure, a stubborn old patriarch with loving children
primed to succeed the old man...Like a modern-day King Lear, the Patriarch
clings to his views and wanders alone, his empire operating at diminished
capacity over the years, unable to achieve the success he craves.
(Photo: The late Bill Wirtz)
Hockeytalk's Preseason Prediction: Blackhawks for Cup
Since 1994: Want the Cup? Finish 1-4 in Conference
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JOSH BREWSTER ON SIRIUS/XM HOME ICE |
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2011 Western Hockey Network