Chris Pronger

CHICAGO - Chris Pronger had his uniform on straight, his helmet was positioned properly, and his skates were laced tightly. It's his game that was upside down, and the Flyers caught a strong dose of what happens when their premier defenseman, the player who was having the most significant impact in the Stanley Cup Finals, has a rough night. They lose. It doesn't take a hockey aficionado to realize the Flyers would be lounging at their summer cottages if No. 20 wasn't patrolling the blue line, using his mean edge, his stick, and his vast experience to fend off trouble.

Late in overtime Friday afternoon, Chris Pronger waved his left arm in front of Calgary goalie Miikka Kiprusoff for a split second while the Flyers were on a four-on-three power play. Was Pronger waving for teammate Mike Richards to shoot the puck or move closer to the net? Or was he trying to distract the veteran goalie? Ghislain Hebert, in his first full season as an NHL referee, believed the latter. As a result, Richards' goal was disallowed and the game went to a shoot-out, in which Calgary prevailed to gain a controversial, 3-2 win in a Black Friday special at the Wells Fargo Center.

MATT CARLE kept his head down, carrying a bag of ice to melt away pain from a lingering, undisclosed injury. Tuesday night's Game 5 could have been Carle's last game in a Flyers uniform. Carle, 27, one of the Flyers' most steady and underrated defensemen, finished off his 4-year, $13.75 million deal this spring. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Due to salary-cap tagging restraints, restricting teams from exceeding this year's cap figure before next year's number is announced, the Flyers cannot possibly sign Carle before July 1. That means Carle's team, with Denver-based agent Kurt Overhardt, will be able to field offers from all 29 other teams when the clock strikes noon on the first day of July.

1. Dustin Byfuglien 2. Dan Carcillo 3. Duncan Keith 4. Ian Laperriere 5. Chris Pronger

The Flyers on Tuesday revealed that veteran defenseman Chris Pronger underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee last week. General manager Paul Holmgren called the procedure "minor" and said Pronger would be ready when camp opens Sept. 17 in Voorhees. The Flyers said his surgery was to "remove loose bodies" in the knee. He has already started his rehab. Pronger's knee problem, however, may explain why the Flyers are so heavy on defensemen; they have eight on their roster.

Here are standout statistics from Game 1: The combined save percentage of the Flyers goalies was .788. Anything below .900 is considered subpar, but below .800? Flyers defenseman Sean O'Donnell logged just 12 minutes of ice time. Chris Pronger was up to 19:45, his most playing time since returning from injury in Game 6 vs. Buffalo. The teams were a combined 1 for 10 on the power play, continuing a bad trend for both teams. In fact, Boston (0 for 5) has not scored with the man advantage in the postseason.

When the 2010-11 NHL schedule is released later this month, it would be understandable if defenseman Chris Pronger circled the date that his Flyers play Chicago. First, the Chicago Tribune called him "Chrissy" and showed him wearing a figure-skating outfit in a doctored photo earlier this week. And then little-used Chicago forward Adam Burish blasted the defenseman in a TV interview after the Blackhawks' Stanley-Cup-clinching 4-3 overtime win on Wednesday at the Wachovia Center.

Chris Pronger is on the verge of reaching out to former Flyer Keith Primeau to help him get through the most difficult period of his career - and perhaps his life. Pronger, the Flyers' star defenseman, whose Hall-of-Fame career may be over, has been sidelined by a concussion and has not played since November. Primeau's career was shortened because of a concussion. "That has been brought up lately; there are a lot of parallels between the two," Lauren Pronger, Chris' wife, said during the Flyers Wives Carnival on Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center.

Snowflakes falling, the smell of crab fries sizzling in Old Bay and the sound of hockey pucks bouncing off the glass just a few feet from where Ryan Howard launches balls that make the Liberty Bell gyrate. Those are just a few of things you can look forward to this winter at Citizens Bank Park. The Winter Classic is coming to Philadelphia. While a league source has confirmed that no contract has been signed, the Flyers will be hosting the NHL's annual outdoor game this winter at Citizens Bank Park, as first reported by the Daily News last month.

MATT CARLE kept his head down, carrying a bag of ice to melt away pain from a lingering, undisclosed injury. Tuesday night's Game 5 could have been Carle's last game in a Flyers uniform. Carle, 27, one of the Flyers' most steady and underrated defensemen, finished off his 4-year, $13.75 million deal this spring. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Due to salary-cap tagging restraints, restricting teams from exceeding this year's cap figure before next year's number is announced, the Flyers cannot possibly sign Carle before July 1. That means Carle's team, with Denver-based agent Kurt Overhardt, will be able to field offers from all 29 other teams when the clock strikes noon on the first day of July.

CALGARY, Alberta - When star defenseman Chris Pronger went down with a season-ending concussion in November, it seemed logical that the Flyers would not replace him with an interim captain. "Leadership by committee" became their mantra. By not handing the "C" to anyone else, it was a way to honor Pronger, insinuating he was irreplaceable. The Flyers would play the season for their injured captain and, besides, there were enough veterans who could band together and help keep the team in step.

Chris Pronger is on the verge of reaching out to former Flyer Keith Primeau to help him get through the most difficult period of his career - and perhaps his life. Pronger, the Flyers' star defenseman, whose Hall-of-Fame career may be over, has been sidelined by a concussion and has not played since November. Primeau's career was shortened because of a concussion. "That has been brought up lately; there are a lot of parallels between the two," Lauren Pronger, Chris' wife, said during the Flyers Wives Carnival on Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center.

Flyers goalie Ilya Bryzgalov, who has allowed one goal or less in five of his last seven starts, missed Thursday's game against Toronto because of the flu. General manager Paul Holmgren wasn't sure whether Bryzgalov would be ready for Saturday afternoon's key matchup with the visiting New York Rangers, who are 4-0 against the Flyers this season. Sergei Bobrovsky started Thursday against the Maple Leafs. He had a 4-2 win over Toronto earlier this season. Jason Bacashihua was recalled from the Phantoms to be Bobrovsky's backup.

Just three days after he turned down an invitation to watch the Super Bowl with his teammates because he was battling headaches, defenseman Chris Pronger showed up at the Flyers' practice facility in Voorhees on Wednesday sporting facial hair. "Maybe he's growing his playoff beard already," left winger Scott Hartnell quipped. It was the first time Pronger, a future Hall of Famer whose career is in jeopardy because of post-concussion syndrome, had been with his teammates since a Christmas party about six weeks ago. Pronger, who declined a request to speak with the media, isn't expected to return for this year's playoffs.

ISAAC NEWTON was so right. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. And this certainly holds weight when referring to the science of sports. Here's a few examples of Newton's theory within the local sports realm this week alone - and it's only Thursday. Pro: Penn State's new football coach, Bill O'Brien, has 19 verbal commitments,the most recent from a top high school lineman from New Jersey, despite the child abuse scandal that has rocked the school since November.

THURSDAY WAS giveaway night at the Wells Fargo Center, but the only thing fans received was a Hefty bag full of doubt. An offseason of retooling, of trading two of the team's leaders, adding a slew of prolific rookies and spending lavishly for an established goalie have not changed this team's personality one iota. The Flyers are once again a fastbreaking basketball team on ice, so in a rush to pepper the other net with the puck that they tend to forget to bring it with them. They have won 11 of their 19 home games, a pace that will mirror the modest regular-season marks of the previous two seasons.

Veteran right winger Jaromir Jagr reiterated Thursday he would like to remain with the Flyers next season. "That's good to hear," coach Peter Laviolette said before Thursday's game against the New York Islanders. "He seems like he's been enjoying his time back here. There's a lot of smiling coming from him. His play on the ice, I think, shows that. " General manager Paul Holmgren has talked with Jagr's agent, Petr Svoboda, about re-signing the future Hall of Famer. "We'll see how it goes," Holmgren said, adding that he would like to retain Jagr.

Chris Pronger's sullen words on Saturday were not nearly as revealing as his silence over the past 6 weeks. Pronger, 37, issued a brief statement through the Flyers, his first public peep since two Pittsburgh-area concussion specialists shockingly ruled on Dec. 15 that he would miss the balance of the regular season and playoffs. "It is very, very tough right now," Pronger said. "I don't feel well and it hurts so much to not be playing. " Pronger, named the 18th captain in Flyers history in September, has steered clear of the team's practice facility.