Flyers Notes: Pronger takes shots, gets closer to playing

BUFFALO -   

Defenseman Chris Pronger, sidelined since March 8 because of a broken right hand, skated with the Flyers Monday morning and took some light wrist shots. He sat out the victory over the Sabres in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals but appears closer to returning.

Originally, the Flyers had hoped Pronger would return late in the regular season and said they expected him to be sidelined three or four weeks. Tuesday is five weeks from the surgery.

"He's not coming along as fast as everybody thought at the time when the initial injury happened," general manager Paul Holmgren said. "But it is what it is. When he feels like he can play, he'll play."

The Flyers are 18-10-7 without Pronger and 5-5-5 in their last 15 games.

"Do we wish we had Chris Pronger? Sure. Who wouldn't?" coach Peter Laviolette said. "But we've played some good hockey without him in the lineup. We'd rather he'd be there, but we're a confident group without him."

"I think more than anything, we miss Chris' presence in the locker room and on the bench," Holmgren said.

As the Flyers were taking part in the morning skate, Holmgren vehemently denied a report by NBC10 that Pronger had suffered a second break in the hand a few weeks ago.

"Apparently people can just throw whatever they want at the wall and see if anything sticks," an angry Holmgren said.

So you're saying he did not suffer a second break?

"That's what I'm saying," he replied.

Veteran goalie Brian Boucher was the starter, and Michael Leighton was the backup Monday. That was also the tandem in most of last year's playoffs.

Rookie Sergei Bobrovsky, the starter in the first two games against the Sabres, went to the press box.

The Sabres had a total of 30 shots at the Flyers net in the first period - including on goal, blocked and missed. The Flyers got off 11 at the Buffalo net.

For the game, Jeff Carter took a total of nine shots for the Flyers - four on net, two blocked and three missed. Mike Richards took seven - one on net, five blocked and one missed.

Braydon Coburn and Kimmo Timonen were each plus-3 Monday night. . . . In their eight previous playoff meetings with Buffalo, the Flyers have not lost a series in which they led the Sabres at any point. The Flyers are 33-32 all-time in Game 3 of a best-of-seven series. They are 18-3 all-time when leading a series two games to one and are 14-7 in Game 4 in that situation. . . . Winger Andreas Nodl, who suffered a facial injury in Game 2, was replaced by Nik Zherdev, who was on a line with Richards and Kris Versteeg. . . . Buffalo defenseman Jordan Leopold, who had 13 regular-season goals, returned from a broken hand about a week earlier than expected. Leopold was scheduled to have surgery, but it had to be postponed because he suffered pneumonia. In the interim, the hand - which was broken on March 25 - healed and the surgery was canceled. . . .. Laviolette on Carter, who entered the night with two goals in his last 10 games: "Jeff is a gifted hockey player who has scored goals his whole life, and if he continues to get looks, he can score some goals."

Fittingly, Carter opened the scoring Monday.