St. Louis Blues Chris Pronger Left It All On Ice

This is the second article in a two-part series on Chris Pronger.

On June 30, 2015, two days after his contract was traded from the Philadelphia Flyers to the cap-needy Arizona Coyotes, St. Louis Blues legendary defenseman, Chris Pronger, “Captain Happy,” was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The first article looked at Pronger’s NHL career and his many stellar accomplishments over that time, as well as the unrelenting competitiveness and physical style of play that defined him as a presence on the ice.

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Pronger made the ultimate sacrifice for the sport that he loved so much and played with such abandon and passion. Many players throughout the game’s storied history have suffered injuries that cut their careers short. While defensemen generally last longer than forwards, even Bobby Orr, arguably the greatest and without doubt the most transforming player ever to lace on skates, had his career cut short years early due to chronic knee injuries.

But the injury Pronger suffered is of a more profound and constant nature: debilitating symptoms as a result of concussion and related injuries. Since taking a stick to the eye on October 24, 2011 from the Toronto Maple Leafs’ center Mikhail Grabovski 2011, his injuries not only left him unable to return to the game but, on bad days, make even the simple task of getting through the day a tremendous challenge.

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Grabovski and Pronger both raced for the puck off a rebound that went off Flyers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky in the first period. Grabovski swung at the puck, but his stick tangled with Pronger’s and the blade shot straight up into Pronger’s eye. Danny Briere heard Pronger’s piercing screams as he fell to the ice, his face in his hands, covering his eyes. Here is a video of the fateful incident, courtesy of HockeyVault.

Ironically, Pronger’s linemate on defense with the Blues, Al MacInnis, retired earlier than he wanted after suffering a detached retina in an early season game in 2003 that kept him out the entire year. MacInnis, however, played 23 years in the NHL, and cited the NHL lockout as his reason for retiring.

Grabovski felt bad about what happened, saying he was sorry but that it was an accident. And, clearly, it was. It was, simply, another day at the office for a hockey player in the NHL. Heck, it could happen to your kid in his pee wee league.

As reported back in 2013 on espn.com by Scott Burnside, Chris Pronger was working with a team of doctors trying to resolve his situation so that he could get back to the ice.

Next: St. Louis Blues: Chris Pronger A Hall-Of-Famer

The eye injury took the symptoms he must deal with on a daily basis to a new level, interfering with his balance, his ability to perceive his relation to other physical objects, and his overall stability. As he tells it, while many people think he has primarily dealt with concussion-related injuries, the brunt of the effects he is feeling now are vision-related, and how that affects other things, such as balance.

Jun 24, 2014; Las Vegas, NV, USA; NHL former defenseman Chris Pronger poses with his wife Lauren Pronger on the red carpet of the 2014 NHL Awards ceremony at Wynn Las Vegas. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

In a January 19, 2012 article on Postmedia News, Chris’ wife, Lauren Pronger, spoke about how emotionally tough and unpredictable the concussion related symptoms were at home. Their kids would ask when they would be able to go a game again.

“Please don’t ask that question,” is all he could say.

Things that bother him the most and trigger headaches include bright lights, loud noise, and lots of physical motion.

“Doesn’t sound much like a hockey game, does it?” Pronger laughed sadly.

As reported by Corey Masiak of nhl.com, Chris was elated by the change in the rules allowing him to be considered for the Hall even while under contract.

“Somebody briefed me that was talking about maybe changing the bylaws and allowing injured players who were still under contract to be able to go into the Hall of Fame. I knew at that point I’d been out for about three-and-a-half years,” Pronger said of a change that happened earlier this year. “It was exciting to hear the news. … I got the call today from [Lanny McDonald] and [John Davidson] and was very excited to get it.”

In the same spirit with which he played, Chris Pronger has said he doesn’t believe people should feel sorry for him. In his words, “It is what it is, man.” Still, he has acknowledged that finding the glass half-full instead of half-empty is not an easy proposition. Any person in his position for whom it would be is probably not looking at things head-on.

Pronger loved the game the same way he played it: with total abandon, pushing himself and his body to limits that are still NHL records in minutes logged per game, per playoff series, per season.

Pronger was in the prime of his career as one of the most dominating, complete defensemen ever to play the game of hockey. He went from that to being on the sidelines, to finally realizing he was never going to play again, and then, this week, to being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a player under contract who had not stepped on the ice in an NHL game for nearly four years.

Knowing the consummate competitor that he has always been, my guess is he would trade it in a heartbeat for one last season. Some players would have to seriously think about it. Pronger, probably not.

The moment of Chris Pronger’s career I remember most vividly was on Mother’s Day, 1998, in a playoff game against the hated Detroit Red Wings at the Joe. The Wings were up 4-1, and basically manhandling the Blues. With 3:52 gone in the third period, Detroit blueliner Dmitri Mironov wound up and blasted a slapshot that slammed into Pronger’s chest, just to the left of the Blues captain’s heart.

Pronger, who had been called for a slashing penalty, took two strides after the whistle blew and fell bang down on the ice, where he lay unconscious for close to half a minute. Trainer Ray Barile listened to his heart and found it thready.

The announcers had no idea what was going on, but the gravity of the moment was unmistakable, and I sat in breathless terror watching the scene for what seemed an eternity, wondering if my favorite warrior was ever going to get up again.

In spite of his great success with successive teams, Pronger was first and foremost a Blue, and hopefully Blues fans will get to see his number 44 raised to the rafters at Scottrade this fall.

As players stood over him, watching helplessly, the careful, measured moments of medical personnel are emblazoned in my brain, skillfully concealing the screaming and sheer panic seething just beneath the surface.

When Pronger finally awoke, he asked winger Geoff Courtnall what had happened and how much time was left in the game. He was panicked. As they loaded him into the ambulance, he told club officials to notify his parents, who were in the crowd, that he was fine.

That was the first time I can recall experiencing just how huge the stakes are when you are on the ice. But for someone like Chris Pronger, this is not even a question, or something you think about seriously. Pronger loved the game the same way he played it: with total abandon, pushing himself and his body to limits that are still NHL records in minutes logged per game, per playoff series, per season.

For final proof of the monumental positives Pronger’s greatness brought to any team he played on, this summary provided by The Hockey News’ Adam Proteau says it all:

"after Pronger left St. Louis in 2004, the Blues went from a playoff team to missing the playoffs for the first time in decades; after one year in Edmonton in 2005 after leading them to the Stanley Cup Final, the team missed the playoffs the following year; when, after three years in Anaheim and a Stanley Cup championship in 2007, the Ducks failed to make the playoffs in their first year without him. And, after making the Stanley Cup Final with him in 2010, after Pronger was unable to return the following year, the Philadelphia Flyers failed to even make the playoffs without him."

In his head, a place few would ever want to be these days, I reckon there are moments when he may realize he might not be where he is if he had played less recklessly, less unrelentingly, every shift, every shot, every block, every stride. But he also knows that if he had played that way, he would not have been Chris Pronger, one of the greatest defensemen in NHL history.

In spite of his great success with successive teams, Pronger was first and foremost a Blue, and hopefully Blues fans will get to see his number 44 raised to the rafters at Scottrade this fall. We salute Chris Pronger, not only for the extraordinary level of skill and competitiveness he brought to the game when he was playing it, but for the courage and fortitude he and his family have shown in dealing with life after it.

Have favorite Pronger memories to share? Let us know, Blues fans!

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