Chris Pronger has been tabbed the 18th captain in franchise history. The Flyers made the decision official on Friday night, ending almost three months of speculation as to who will wear the “C” following the trade of Mike Richards to the Los Angeles Kings. It will be the third time that the native of Dryden, Ontario will be officially required to handle team business, after previous captaincies with St. Louis (1997-2003) and Anaheim (2007-08). He’s the fifth defenseman in Philadelphia history to earn the letter, after Ed Van Impe (1968-73), Eric Desjardins (2000-01), Derian Hatcher (2005-06) and Jason Smith (2007-08). …
What about Kimmo?
Early reports speculating about the potential 18th captain of the Philadelphia Flyers show that it is down to a two-horse race between veterans Chris Pronger and Daniel Briere. Conspicuously missing from that race is veteran defenseman Kimmo Timonen. Timonen, one of the longest-tenured Flyers, is a shining example of what a team should look for in a captain. He plays hard and through injuries. He’s honest and not afraid to speak up to say what he feels, even if the sentiment is unpopular. He’s a dark horse and an often overlooked star who gives 100 percent every night, although the spotlight is …
Poll: How many games will Chris Pronger play this season?
Injuries limited the aging Chris Pronger to 50 games last season. Will he have a healthier season or will things only get worse?
Gossip Island
A few years ago, I saw then-Phillies pitcher, Jamie Moyer, stumbling across a Philadelphia street on the outskirts of Old City at some point around 2:00 a.m. He looked a little disheveled — as anyone might at that hour of the morning — as he walked south across Walnut Street with a beautiful woman attached to his arm. Here he was, the venerable, patronly mentor to ace-in-the-making, Cole Hamels, out in a questionable situation. The founder of the Moyer Foundation, a man whom we all respected, may have been out partying with a woman may not have been his wife …
Offseason questions
After shocking the hockey world with the blockbuster trades of Jeff Carter and Mike Richards, the Flyers created a number of questions that need to be answered before the regular season starts. Many of these questions will be answered during free agency and training camp. It’s too difficult to answer many, if not all, of these questions now. Nevertheless, it is important to identify them to make better sense of unexpected moves if and when they happen. Here, we will try to identify as many of the major questions as we can. Will Brayden Schenn and/or Sean Couturier make the …
Then and Now: Janne Niinimaa
What do Chris Pronger, Kimmo Timonen, and Janne Niinimaa all have in common? They were all drafted in the 1993 NHL Entry draft. How many were drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers? Only Janne Niinimaa. Pronger went second, to the Hartford Whalers, while Timonen could be considered the hidden gem of the draft going 250nd to the Los Angeles Kings. Well, we know what Pronger and Timonen are doing with their careers now, but what about Niinimaa? Before the aforementioned question is answered, let us remember Niinimaa’s brief time spent in Philly. Spending three seasons with Jokerit in the SM-liiga after …
Is Paul Holmgren still the right man for the job?
Paul Holmgren is a bold man, sure of what he wants and unflinching in his actions. He is willing to pay extra to beat the surge of activity to get his man. As a result, he’s built a team capable — in theory and in his own mind — of competing for the Stanley Cup. However, these actions are adding up and taking an increasing toll on a team that put its eggs in one basket for the 2011 season. That ultimately-failed course has been run, and the team did not win the Cup, yet again, and it is now …
Pronger answers burning questions at Thursday press conference
Q: How did the surgery go and how are you feeling? ”Well, as far as I was told it went very well. It relieved a lot of the weakness I was having in my leg and now it is just a matter of how the nerve regenerates itself and the range of motion and all the rest of that stuff. How it recovers and that stuff are probably another four to five weeks before we see where that is at.” Q: Can you tell us about the decision to have the surgery, was that an option you were given or …
The case against Mike Richards
I’ve made it a point to stick up for Mike Richards recently. While the general consensus seems to be that the captain of a professional sports team should be someone who is public relations savvy, I prefer to believe that a captain should be someone who is capable of leading his team on the ice. If he’s great in front of a microphone, well then that’s just icing on the cake. The way I see it, for every smooth orator like Julius Caesar, there is a Genghis Khan. Each has very different skill sets but both were great leaders. After …
An open letter to Paul Holmgren
Dear Paul, We’ve had our differences in the past. The lack of value you see in draft picks and prospects worries me. Your willingness to give picks away in trade, and hand out no trade clauses like candy was mystifying at one point, but now I have become numb to it. Additionally, the idea of putting all of your eggs in one basket, like you did this season, is far from an approach I prefer take. There’s still no guarantee that you’ll win the Stanley Cup, as we saw, and now we’re left in the same spot where we always seem to …