Pronger is Flyers' catalyst

Richards and Pronger, who was acquired in a blockbuster trade with Anaheim in the off-season, have different leadership styles. Pronger is fire. Richards is ice. They figure to complement each other and create a more focused locker-room atmosphere this season.

At training camp, Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said Pronger would become one of a few alternate captains who would rotate their A jerseys.

"When he sees something wrong, he'll address it - and it won't be too late. It'll be right now," said Holmgren, whose team opens the season tonight at Carolina.

Holmgren was the Hartford Whalers' coach when Pronger broke into the NHL in 1993.

"I've known Chris since he was 18 years old," Holmgren said. "He's always been a guy that speaks up when he sees something that's not right. I don't think that will change coming to a new team."

Pronger - he of the sarcastic wit,

sandy hair, and gap-toothed smile - will get in teammates' faces, à la former Flyer Keith Primeau. That type of leadership was missing last season, when the Flyers sometimes played without urgency and could have used someone to step forward.

Richards called Pronger a welcome addition.

"It's always been kind of a committee captaincy," Richards said. "Now, with him here, we can spread things out a bit more, and it definitely takes some pressure off me. . . . I can bounce some ideas off him, so he's going to help a lot."

Pronger and scrappy winger Ian Laperriere, another newcomer, will enliven a laid-back locker room. Will that translate into more wins? Will that help bring Lord Stanley's Cup back to Philadelphia for the first time since 1975?

The Hockey News thinks so. It picked the Flyers to win the Stanley Cup.

"At the end of the day, the winner of this conference and ultimately the championship, the Stanley Cup, goes through Pittsburgh because they're the defending champs," Pronger said earlier in camp. "Whether you pick us, you pick them, or . . . whoever your so-called favorite is, the team's got to go out there and play. You can't get caught up in who's back-patting who today, because tomorrow, as I've heard, it might not be us." 

Big and nasty

Pronger, a towering 6-foot-6, 214-pounder with Hall of Fame credentials and nine suspensions on his resume, is a five-time all-star who plays in all situations - hard. He says he is smarter than in his younger years and knows when to use his body, when to conserve energy. He is mobile, has a cannon shot on the power play, and gives the Flyers' defense, which was last in the NHL in scoring last season, much-needed firepower.

Pronger had 11 goals and 37 assists last season and averaged 26 minutes, 56 seconds of ice time, which ranked second in the NHL.

But the Flyers also brought him here for his nastiness, for the physicality and experience he brings to a defense that, at times, was too passive last season.

Last season, Pronger finished in a tie with Dallas center Steve Ott as the league's dirtiest player, according to a Sports Illustrated players' poll.

He brings an attitude that has been the franchise's calling card.