Inside the Flyers: Pronger, Timonen leading the Flyers

Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger's personality resembles his size - mammoth.

The 6-foot-6 Pronger is loud, sarcastic, humorous, and very, very opinionated.

After practices and games, he attracts a crowd, is quick with a one-liner, and likes to exchange playful zingers with the media.

The tall and lanky Pronger has become the Flyers' unofficial spokesman, and he is well-suited for the role.

Kimmo Timonen's personality reflects his size, too. Small in stature, Timonen shies from attention, though he's not far from it because his locker is right next to Pronger's.

Timonen and Pronger are the Flyers' version of the odd couple, but they do have a lot in common beside supplying thought-provoking answers that give context to the team's ups and downs.

For one, the defensemen are 35, and both won medals for their respective Olympic teams this year.

Each is also a major reason the Flyers are better equipped to have more playoff success than last season.

Pronger is the No. 1 reason, of course. He is the team's MVP, hands down. Pronger has given the Flyers a much-needed crease-clearer - something clearly missing in last year's playoffs against Pittsburgh - and has made some important offensive contributions, especially on the power play.

But Timonen is almost as vital.

"If I don't get the recognition, that's fine," the soft-spoken Timonen said after Saturday's practice in Voorhees. "Obviously, we know Chris is great player and he's going to be a Hall of Famer. I just go out and do my job."

He does it efficiently, controlling games with his smart, steady play. He has had a host of defensive partners this season, but he has never complained. And he has made each one better.

"Chris deserves the recognition that he gets. He's a top defender in the league. He's proven it consistently, year after year," said coach Peter Laviolette, whose team faces New Jersey in Game 3 of its playoff series Sunday night at the Wachovia Center. "Since I've been here, Kimmo doesn't get the same noise from the media that Chris does, but quietly he's every bit as effective in the defensive zone."

"He's not a flashy D-man, but if you watch closely what he does and understand the game, he totally slows it down and controls all of the play," said Ryan Parent, one of many young Flyers defensemen who consider Timonen a mentor on the ice. "He's a big factor for our team, and if he's out of the lineup, you notice it. He's just so steady and quiet back there."

The addition of Pronger this season pushed the 5-foot-10, 194-pound Timonen to the second defensive pairing, a development that makes the Flyers much more dangerous in the playoffs.

It's now more difficult for teams - such as New Jersey with snipers like Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise - to get favorable matchups by putting their top two lines against a weak defensive pairing.

More than likely, they will have to get through a defensive pairing that features Pronger or Timonen.

That's like a team having to face Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee in the postseason.

Late in Game 2 of their fascinating turnpike series against New Jersey, however, one of the Devils' power lines scored the winning goal against the Flyers' third defensive pair of Parent and Oskars Bartulis.

Laviolette said there was a long time between whistles and he was unable to get either the Pronger unit (with Matt Carle) or the Timonen pairing (with Braydon Coburn) on the ice against Parise and Co.

If the Flyers go on and lose this series, now tied at one game apiece, that shift may be one that comes back to haunt them.

There's no way the Flyers should ever have such an inexperienced pairing on the ice in the latter stages of a tight playoff game. Entering the night, Parent and Bartulis had played a combined 11 playoff games in their careers.

Don't expect it to happen again in this series. Instead, expect to see the Pronger and Timonen units carry the load. Pronger was brought here for that reason, and Timonen should be refreshed because Pronger has reduced his "hard" minutes this season.

Timonen averaged 22:52 per game this season, about two minutes fewer than last year.

The Devils are providing a challenge that excites Timonen.

"Their first two lines are really good; they have a lot of speed, a lot of skill," Timonen said. "As a player, I really enjoyed that game [Friday] because there was a lot of speed, a lot of battling, a lot of playoff hockey. Now we play home, and hopefully we can keep doing what we've been doing there - skate hard and forecheck hard and do things correctly."

On Sunday in the third game, Timonen will be paired with Coburn. He was paired with Lukas Krajicek in Game 1 and Coburn in Game 2.

Timonen, who said the Flyers have been giving Parise "too much room" and must make an adjustment, has been part of numerous defensive pairings this season, making it difficult to get in sync with his partner.

"The perfect situation would be to find a good partner and play all 82 games together," said Timonen, who helped Finland win a bronze medal in the Olympics this year. "You get to know somebody and you get to know what he's going to do. Sometimes, I have to be honest, it's tough. I've played with pretty much everybody except Prongs and Matty [Carle]. They're all good players here, but sometimes it affects me a little bit."

Until further notice, his partner will be Coburn. The two have a history together and seem to have good chemistry, and they will play a major role in whether the Flyers advance past the opening round.

Read Sam Carchidi's Flyers blog, Broad Street Bull, and follow his coverage on Twitter, at www.philly.com/flyers.

Subject: Coaching decision.

Posted 01:37 AM, 04/17/2010

kadhia

The coach should have known that he can't have Parent and Bartulis on the ice with less then 5 minutes to play, especially when during their last shift the Devils ran circles around them . . . Lemaire 1 Laviolette 0. Also, what's the point of putting Hartnell out on the PP or out there in the last minute of the game? He hasn't scored in the last million games. Don't put him out there when you need a goal. He hasn't delivered this year, and he's not about to start.