Danny Briere scores all three Flyers goal in an overtime victory against Ottawa.

Danny Briere rushes in and cuts to the middle to beat Rick DiPietro and win it in overtime for the Flyers.

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:

Philadelphia’s Danny Briere has repeatedly made clear his desire to go to the 2011 NHL All-Star Game presented by Discover later this month in Raleigh, N.C. On Wednesday, he was given that opportunity.

Briere was named as the replacement for Calgary’s Jarome Iginla, who cited health concerns about his grandmother as the reason for dropping out of what would have been his sixth All-Star Game, which ties the Calgary franchise mark also held by Al MacInnis and Theo Fleury.

“It is always an honor to be a part of the NHL All Star Game but unfortunately I have to decline this year,” said Iginla. “I just lost my grandfather in the spring and I have learned that my grandmother is not doing very well. With the way the season goes I don’t get too many opportunities to see her, and as much as I was looking forward to being in North Carolina for the All Star Game, I just know that my mind will be elsewhere.”

“My grandparents were second parents during my childhood and have been major influences on my life,” continued Iginla. “I have been blessed to have them. And so after talking it over with my family I thought it best that I use the break to spend some time with her while I am still able to do so. Thank you.”Briere made it quite clear last week, when the 42-man roster was revealed by NHL Hockey Operations, that he was unhappy with being left off the roster for the game, which will be played Jan. 30 at RBC Center.

Despite leading the Eastern Conference in points at the time of the selection, the Philadelphia Flyers placed just one player — winger Claude Giroux — on the roster.

“I’m not surprised that I was bypassed,” Briere told reporters after the selections were announced last week. “What I’m surprised is that we don’t have more than just one player. There’s no doubt that Claude was deserving; but with our record I thought that we could have had at least another one. … I think we deserved at least another representation. But it might be favorable for our team to get that weekend off and get to rest a little bit more.”

Now, Briere will happily forego the aforementioned rest to become Philadelphia’s second representative at the All-Star Game festivities. With a team-leading 41 points — one more than Giroux — Briere certainly has the credentials to be in Raleigh.

Like the rest of the 42-player pool, Briere won’t find out which All-Star team he will be playing for until the Friday of All-Star Weekend when the NHL All-Star Player Fantasy Draft powered by Cisco, which will be televised live on TSN and RDS in Canada and VERSUS in the U.S. at 8 p.m., is held and the All-Star captains and their alternates pick the 21-man rosters.

On Tuesday, Carolina’s Eric Staal and Detroit’s Nicklas Lidstrom were selected as team captains. Alternates will be named at a later date.