Per NHL.com:

Chris Pronger‘s season is over due to post-concussion syndrome.

The Philadelphia Flyers said Thursday that after meeting with two concussion specialists, it was recommended that their captain not play again in 2011-12.

“After consultation with respected concussion specialists Dr. Joseph Maroon and Dr. Micky Collins, it is the opinion of both doctors that Chris is suffering from severe post-concussion syndrome,” general manager Paul Holmgren said Thursday. “It is the recommendation of Drs. Maroon and Collins that Chris not return for the remainder of the 2011-12 season or playoffs.

“Chris will continue to receive treatment and therapy with the hope that he can get better.”

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said on his radio show Thursday that the League “knows that concussions are a serious issue. We’re doing our best to be very proactive in terms of diagnosis and treatment.

“Some of the things we’ve done, by to going all Plexi on the glass, we’ve softened the environment,” he added. “By having the diagnosis and return to play protocols and baseline testing. By making players go to the quiet room so that there’s not a risk of multiple concussions in a short period of time. The rule changes we’ve made – what Brendan Shanahan‘s doing on supplemental discipline – these are all things that we’re doing to try and react and be proactive because it’s something that’s serious. It’s important and people are working on it every day.”

The players, who were not told about Pronger until after their 4-3 win at Montreal on Thursday, are prepared to move on without their captain — and with seven straight wins, they seem to have adapted to his absence pretty well.

“We lose his leadership and a lot of little things that Chris brings to this team, but the rest of us just need to work harder,” said center Maxime Talbot, who was with Pittsburgh last season when the Penguins played the second half of the season without Sidney Crosby due to a concussion. “I’m not saying players need to change their roles, we just need to work harder because we’re missing a big piece.

“We all have to give more. Last season, we lost Sidney Crosby in Pittsburgh and guys came up from the American Hockey League and scored big goals for us. That’s what we need to do here.”

Pronger played only 13 games this season, scoring a goal and adding 11 assists. He was out of the lineup for six games and 16 days after suffering an eye injury on Oct. 24 when he was hit in the face by the stick of Toronto’s Mikhail Grabovski. He eventually rejoined the team and maintained his usual defensive role.

In a 6-4 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Nov. 19, Pronger actually played a season-high 26:41. In addition to his eye injury and concussion, Pronger also underwent arthroscopic surgery to clean out his left knee in the summer.

On Dec. 9, Holmgren told reporters that Pronger “has struggled with other issues that are concussion-like symptoms.”

“I just didn’t feel well, I didn’t know what it was,” Pronger said that day. “I never felt like that before with headaches and nausea, and that stuff. I had a concussion baseline test and passed that … I got lightheaded, had headaches, you’re nauseous.”

Per NHL.com:

Philadelphia Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren announced Friday that captain Chris Pronger is out indefinitely with “concussion-like symptoms.”

Pronger hasn’t played since Nov. 19. He was originally out with what the team called “a virus” but also had knee surgery Nov. 29 and wasn’t expected to return for a month.

“While Chris’ knee is improving, he has struggled with other issues that are concussion-like symptoms,” Holmgren said in a statement. “Chris will see Dr. Joe Maroon and Dr. Mickey Collins on Wednesday, Dec. 14th in Pittsburgh for further evaluation. Chris will be out indefinitely.”

Pronger also missed time this season with an eye injury after being hit in the face with a puck Oct. 24 against Toronto. He returned to play five games, but was then taken back out of the lineup.

“We said it was a virus but I didn’t know what it was,” Pronger said Dec. 1 during a teleconference with reporters. “I’ve never felt like that before — headaches, nausea, all the rest of that. I had a concussion test, did the baseline test and passed that. I’ve just never felt like this where you get light-headed, you have headaches, you’re nauseous. It’s been a bit of a mystery what exactly is going on. Did some blood work, and we’re trying to get to the bottom of what’s going on.”

Holmgren also updated the status of center Brayden Schenn, who hasn’t played since Dec. 3 because of what was being called an upper-body injury.

“Brayden reported ‘not feeling himself’ on Dec. 5,” Holmgren said. “Our doctors believe he has a mild concussion. Brayden will be out indefinitely.”

Per Philly.com:

After missing the last 4 games with a virus, Flyers captain Chris Pronger will have surgery on his left knee on Tuesday afternoon.

No, that is not a misprint.

Pronger will have surgery tomorrow afternoon to “clean out some loose particles,” according to general manager Paul Holmgren.

“This has been an issue for the last month or so,” Holmgren said. “We thought that through his rehabilitation on a daily basis that he would start to feel better. He had another MRI on his knee and we felt that it would be better to get it taken care of now.”

Pronger, 37, is expected to miss 4 weeks. That would pinpoint a return just before the Winter Classic on Jan. 2 at Citizens Bank Park.

“We were hopeful that the time missed with a virus that Chris has been fighting would settle things down in his knee, but after an examination yesterday, it was decided that surgery is the way to go at this time,” Holmgren said.

The surgery will be performed by Dr. Peter DeLuca.

But what does all of this mean for the Flyers roster in the short-term? Andreas Lilja is out for the next 6 weeks with a high ankle sprain. Pronger will miss a month. Both players will be moved to the long-term injured list “today or tomorrow,” according to Holmgren, clearing their salaries off the cap for replacements.

For now, the Flyers are sticking with rookies Marc-Andre Bourdon and Kevin Marshall. That does not rule out a trade on the horizon. Pronger’s $4.94 million salary cap hit alone provides plenty of room for a trade without the need to remove salary. A rough estimate has the Flyers’ salary cap cushion (without Lilja, Pronger and Andreas Nodl – see below) at $4.28M.

“There are a lot of things going on in here today,” Holmgren said when asked about the need for replacements via trade.

And what does this injury mean for Pronger in the long haul? Pronger has already missed 10 games this season. He missed 32 games last season. This will be Pronger’s sixth surgery since July, 2010 – less than a year and a half’s time. He still has 5 years remaining on his 7-year, $34.5 million deal.

Overall, Holmgren isn’t worried about Pronger’s future.

“I think any time a player has surgery, you’re concerned, whether it’s an older player like Chris or a younger player,” Holmgren said. “But I think he takes good care of himself with proper rehabilitation and conditioning. The only thing you can go by is what the doctor tells you. This is really more a maintenance procedure than anything else.

“The structure of his knee is just fine. He has good cartilege on both sides of his knee. I think he has a lot of miles left in his body.”

When Pronger, who still leads the Flyers in minutes per game this season, has been healthy, he has been a force. His 12 points in 13 games had him on pace for his best offensive season in more than a decade.

Per NHL.com:

A little over a month ago, Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger was told there was a 98 percent chance of his making a full recovery from offseason back surgery just in time for the season opener on Oct. 6.

Apparently, the Flyers captain isn’t going to wait that long.

Pronger told reporters following the team’s morning skate at the Flyers Virtua Skate Zone in Voorhees, N.J., on Thursday that he’ll return to the lineup this evening for the team’s scheduled preseason matchup against the New Jersey Devils (7 p.m. ET, VERSUS, CSN-PH) at Wells Fargo Center.

“I’m looking forward to just getting into some game action,” Pronger told the Flyers website. “You can only practice so much and try to prepare that way, but there’s nothing like some good old fashion, live-action hockey. You can’t simulate that. Decisions need to be quicker and obviously the pace of a game is a lot quicker so getting into that action is what you need to prepare for the season.”

Back on Aug. 25, Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren admitted Pronger had been progressing nicely following back surgery in May. It was his fourth major procedure in a year’s time, following knee surgery in August — which kept him out of training camp and the first two games of 2010-11 — foot surgery in December and the hand surgery in March.

The 6-foot-6, 214-pound Pronger was given the full go-ahead to begin rigorous training once again late last month by orthopedic surgeon Dr. Frank Cammisa.

“We anticipate he’ll be ready for the start of the season,” Holmgren said at the time. “Whether he can take part in any preseason games or not is probably a little too soon to tell.”

Not anymore.

The 17-year veteran had 4 goals and 25 points in 50 games last season — his lowest game total since 2002-03, when knee and wrist injuries limited him to just five games with the St. Louis Blues. He was limited to just three of Philadelphia’s 11 Stanley Cup playoff games last spring, first due to the hand injury and then his back problems.

According to Richard Balderston, chief of spinal surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital, the chances of Pronger’s injury returning are about 2 percent.

On a conference call with the media last month, Pronger, who turns 37 on Oct. 10, said the recent surgeries he underwent had hindered his offseason training regimen. He would normally have two months of strength training done by August. He was doing everything possible, however, to make certain he would be in the lineup for the season opener at TD Garden against the defending Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.

Per Flyers.NHL.com:

The Philadelphia Flyers have announced that defenseman Chris Pronger has been named the 18th captain in team history.

In addition, Danny Briere and Kimmo Timonen will wear the “A” as the alternate captains for the 2011-12 season.

“With Chris’ experience and presence, we felt that he was the perfect player to take over as captain of the Philadelphia Flyers,” said Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren.

“Having Kimmo and Danny, both former captains in the NHL, serving as alternates, really gives us a strong, dedicated leadership group.”

“All three of these players know what it takes to win and are excellent role models both on and off the ice.”

Pronger, 36 (10-10-74), was acquired by the Flyers in a trade with the Anaheim Ducks on June 26, 2009.  In 132 games over the past two seasons, he has scored 14 goals and added 66 assists for 80 points, while collecting a plus-29 rating and 123 PIM.  Pronger has previously served as the captain of Anaheim and the St. Louis Blues.  He won a Stanley Cup with Anaheim in 2007 and has won two Olympic gold medals with Team Canada, in 2002 and 2010.

Timonen, 36 (3-18-75), was acquired by the Flyers on June 18, 2007 in a trade with the Nashville Predators.  In 321 career games over four seasons with the Flyers, he has recorded 23 goals and 140 assists for 183 points, along with a plus-28 rating and 190 PIM.  Timonen has previously served as Nashville’s captain, and has won three Olympic medals with Team Finland – a silver in 2006 and two bronze, in 1998 and 2010.

Briere, 33 (10-6-77), signed with the Flyers as a free agent on July 1, 2007.  In 260 career games with the Flyers over four seasons, he has scored 102 goals and added 116 assists for 218 points.  Briere previously served as the captain of the Buffalo Sabres.

Per NHL.com:

For his first time on the ice in more than four months, Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger said Friday that he felt pretty good.

However, he knows a true test of the condition of his surgically repaired back won’t come until the weekend.

“We’ll see how I feel (Saturday),” he told reporters at Virtua Skate Zone here following his 25-minute solo skate. “Having not skated or done anything on the ice in 4 1/2 months, you’ve got to take it slowly and see how you feel day by day. I felt pretty good out there. Usually the first time on the ice is when you feel good. Then it’s Day 2, 3, 4, and 5 you’re a little suspect. We’ll see how I feel (Saturday).”

The last time Pronger skated was April 30, in Game 1 of the Flyers’ second-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins. He was diagnosed with a herniated disc in his lower back not long after, and had surgery May 12.

The back surgery was the fourth procedure Pronger had during the 2010-11 season, following knee surgery in August, foot surgery in January and wrist surgery in March. He termed it “the year from hell.”

He’s slowly been lifting his level of activity since his back operation, which involved the removal of a portion of the disc that had been pressing on a nerve in his spinal column and causing numbness in his leg. He’s gone from working out on a treadmill to a Stairmaster and exercise bike, and in late August he was cleared to begin weight training. Friday, however, was a big milestone.

“It’s different muscles,” he said of skating. “It doesn’t matter what you’re doing — Stairmaster, bike, treadmill, whatever. Skating is a completely different motion. You use a lot of different muscles you don’t normally use. You can’t simulate it (skating) — you have to go out and do it. At the end of the day, to get in game shape, you have to skate.”

Pronger took wrist shots and slap shots while he was on the ice, which also put stress on his surgically repaired right wrist. He initially injured the wrist in February and had surgery in March that sidelined him until Game 6 of the Flyers’ first-round series against the Buffalo Sabres. He still has the wrist wrapped and said he’s continuing to work that area back to full strength as well.

“It felt pretty good out there,” he said, adding he didn’t feel any restriction in his range of motion. “I was a little surprised, but it felt pretty good. I was shooting pretty good, I think.”

Pronger skated wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants Friday; he said the next step will be putting on his full uniform with pads.

“I think we’ll slowly try to increase the time on ice,” he said. “Probably wear my gear next time, get that extra weight on. Get skating with all your stuff on, get used to that, and try to ramp things up from there.”

Considering Friday was his first time on the ice, it’s almost certain Pronger won’t be ready to take part in training camp, which opens for on-ice work Sept. 17. The season opener, Oct. 6 in Boston, also remains in doubt.

“I’ve got probably a couple more weeks of strength training to get back to where I should be before I start practicing with the team and doing things like that,” Pronger said Friday. “We’re getting there.”

Per NHL.com:

Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger will undergo surgery on Thursday to remove a herniated disc from his spinal cord.

Pronger will undergo a procedure called a discectomy that will be performed by orthopedic specialist Frank Cammisa at The Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. A discectomy is the removal of herniated disc material that presses on a nerve root or the spinal cord. The procedure is the removal of the center portion of an intervertebral disc which causes pain by stressing the spinal cord or radiating nerves.

Pronger was limited to 50 games this season due to injuries, including a broken right hand in early March that kept him out for the rest of the regular season. Pronger also played just three of the Flyers’ 11 playoff games, earning an assist while going minus-3. He sat out the last three games of a second-round sweep by Boston.

It will be the fourth surgery for the 36-year-old defenseman in the last nine months. He had a knee operation last July, foot surgery in December and an operation on his right hand in March.

On Wednesday, Flyers captain Mike Richards underwent successful surgery to repair his left wrist, which has bothered him since training camp. He is slated to begin rehab in four weeks. Defenseman Andrej Meszaros had an operation to repair torn cartilage in his right wrist, center Blair Betts underwent a procedure to have his left pinkie finger repaired and will begin rehab in four weeks, and goaltender Michael Leighton had an operation to repair a torn labrum in his hip.

Per Chicago Tribune:

They usually spend their time analyzing drug dealers’ cell phones or child traffickers’ laptops for evidence, but Chicago FBI forensic experts recently lent their expertise to an altogether different kind of caper: finding the puck scored by the Blackhawks‘ Patrick Kane to win the 2010 Stanley Cup.

The puck has been missing since Kane slipped it into the back of the net during overtime of Game 6, ousting the Philadelphia Flyers. The goal happened so fast that few even realized he scored. Kane skated to the opposite end of the ice and into the arms of his teammates. They celebrated. The Flyers mourned on the bench.

And someone picked up the puck and made good their escape.

The Blackhawks don’t know where it is. Nor does Kane. Or the Flyers for that matter. Philadelphia’s notorious puck-lifter, Chris Pronger, is on record as denying he has it. Curators from the Hockey Hall of Fame in Canada couldn’t find it that June night when they tried to round up memorabilia.

While the missing puck has been the topic of a few news blurbs here and in Philadelphia, the search for it got a serious boost when the Chicago FBI office in recent weeks stepped in to help a local businessman who is offering a hefty reward for the approximately six precious ounces of rubber.

It is certainly not the first time a key piece of hockey history has disappeared in the bedlam of a celebration. Just about a year ago, Sidney Crosby lost track of his stick, gloves and the puck after scoring the winning goal in Team Canada’s victory over the U.S. in the Olympics.

But the quest for Kane’s game-winning puck might be the first time the federal government has offered an assist — however informal.

“All we’re doing is helping,” Chicago FBI spokesman Ross Rice said. “The people who are doing this are doing it on their own time. They feel they are a part of history.”

The FBI “probe” got started after local restaurateur Grant DePorter, CEO of Harry Caray‘s, offered a $50,000 reward for the puck.

DePorter is designing the Navy Pier Harry Caray’s location with a hockey theme — Kane and Hawks great Bobby Hull are partners — and he asked around last summer about the winning puck.

“It sounded like no one knew (what happened to it),” DePorter said. “It was a mystery.”

Soon after, DePorter put out the bounty on the puck, expecting that a Flyers fan had it and would willingly part with the “painful memory” for the cash.

A man called with good news in late July, DePorter said. He was at the game, sitting close to the ramp, and had been handed the puck by someone with access to the ice, he said. He sent it to DePorter in July.

At that point, DePorter realized he had a problem — how could he possibly know for certain if it was the puck?

DePorter, who had taken a class offered by the FBI on its investigative techniques, was familiar with the whiz-bang tools that the agency uses every day to catch criminals. He called Rice for some help.

Armed with footage from NBC of the winning goal, the FBI took on the task.

The FBI determined that a single puck was used the entire 4:06 of overtime. But unfortunately — for the purposes of this investigation anyway — the NBC cameras had panned away after the score to focus on Kane as he streaked to the other end of the ice.

“The last image of the puck was it was in the back of the net and a referee can be seen skating into the camera shot,” Rice said.

But that was hardly enough to lead to a suspect.