VOORHEES, N.J.With each passing month, Flyers fans hold out hope that good news about their teams captain will finally emergethat Chris Pronger will finally turn a corner.
Instead, as is the case yet again, the news on Pronger has been that there is no news. Chris Pronger, now exactly seven months removed from the last time he hit the ice with the Flyers, remains the same.
Good days and bad days, general manager Paul Holmgren said. Same as he's had here since he stopped playing.
For the first time, though, Holmgren on Monday let reporters in on a bit more information about just how Pronger has been spending his time. And while the 37-year-old defenseman hasnt been able to contribute on the ice, he has been providing a service to the Flyers while he continues to fight back to full health.
Weve kept him involved, Holmgren said. Hes doing a lot of stuff for us now. Hes watching video of players and he came to our scouting meetings for the first day and listened to what takes place there.
Pronger, Holmgren said, has provided the team with written evaluations of talent based on videos the Flyers have sent to him. While not as encouraging as a return to practice would be received, the fact that Pronger is helping out in any capacity should come as welcome news to Flyers fans. It is the first indication that he has been healthy enough to work at all.
He probably does live a fairly normal life, Holmgren said. But he has headaches. Hes probably not all that motivated some days.
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Pronger and his family are currently spending some time in St. Louis, because of an illness in his wifes family.
The more time passes, the more it becomes clear that a return to the iceat least for the 2012-13 seasonis most likely not in the cards for Pronger. That being the case, the Flyers will probably have to do what theyve put off for more than half a year: name a new captain. No one has worn the C for the team since Pronger stopped skating.
For months, Holmgren and coach Peter Laviolette have emphasized that fans and the media have placed too much emphasis on the importance of filling the position of captain. But on Monday, Holmgren acquiesced that its likely something the Flyers will have to tackle in the coming months.
Obviously, if Chris isnt there, were probably going to have to address it, Holmgren said.
As for just who deserves to wear the C on his jersey, popular opinion points to Claude Giroux. The third-year center had a breakout season during which he cemented himself as one of the best players in the game, finishing the regular season with 93 points (28 goals) and the playoffs with 17 points (eight goals).
But while Giroux might seem like the obvious choice after his performance through last season, Holmgren isnt quite on boardat least, not yet.
I havent thought that far ahead yet, he said.
E-mail Sarah Baicker at sbaicker@comcastsportsnet.com