Chris Pronger - Giving a chance to win anywhere he goes

To be called an irreplaceable player for a team takes many years of experience and knowledge of the game. Not only that, but the player must also step up and take a leadership role on their team. No matter what team Chris Pronger has played for, all of his teammates have said that Pronger is an irreplacable player. That being said, Pronger is a strong-minded defenceman who is also an asset on the offensive blueline. Putting a player of that ability onto a self-disciplined team, and you have a team that goes where Pronger has gone for the past two years: the Stanley Cup finals.

Pronger has always been a solid blue liner throughout his career. However, his breakout season came in 2000 when he won the Norris Memorial Trophy, for the league's best defencemand and the Hart Trophy as the league MVP. Pronger has also played in the NHL All-Star Game four times (1999, 2000, 2002, 2004). Originally drafted by the Hartford Whalers, Pronger was traded to St. Louis for Brendan Shanahan on July 27, 1995. Captaining the Blues for years, Pronger would become known as an elite denfenceman in the NHL, also on the international stage in representing Canada on the 1998 and 2002 Olympics and the World Cup of Hockey in 2004. Pronger was eventually traded to Edmonton by St. Louis for Eric Brewer, Doug Lynch and Jeff Woywitka, August 2, 2005 and led the Oilers to the Stanley Cup finals before losing in 7 games to the Carolina Hurricanes. Requesting a trade in the off-season for personal reasons, Pronger was sent to Anaheim for Joffrey Lupul, Ladislav Smid, a 1st round choice in 2007 Entry Draft, a 2nd round choice in 2008 Entry Draft and future considerations on July 3, 2006.

This past 2006-2007 season, Pronger showed the league once again why he is one of the most elite defensman in the world today. Pronger ended the season with 13 goals and 46 assists for 59 points, which brought him 6th overall in scoring for a defenceman this season. In addition to his performance during the regular season, Pronger scored 15 points in 19 games. Although he served 2 games as a result of 2 questionable hits, he was still able to contribute to the Ducks' Stanley Cup run in a big way. Along with the team captain Scott Niedermayer, Pronger led the way defensively and did not let any line in the NHL get through to them in the the Stanley Cup Playoffs. A key factor was stopping Ottawa's top line, which eventually earned Anahiem their first Tanley Cup in their 13 year history.

Although there are times when Pronger's defensive play is questionable to the point that the league had to take displinary actions for his offenses, there is no doubt that Pronger continues to be an intimidating presence on the ice. On June 6, Pronger celebrated his first Stanley Cup after a long wait. The NHL awards are on the 14th of June, time will tell if Pronger's play in the NHL has brought him home more hardware. Congratulations to Chris Pronger and the Anaheim Ducks on a job well done this season!

-- Shane