Stanley Cup News | June 7, 2010

Pronger turns soft as Hawks pummel Philly in Game 5

By Brian Cazeneuve
June 7, 200


Chicago, IL — Even future Hall of Famers have games of infamy, the kind when it seems they take every stride with a wad of chewing gum stuck to their skates.

For Chris Pronger, the futility played out like a horror flick in the Blackhawks' 7-4 victory over the Flyers in Game 5. After Chicago pulled to within one win of its first Stanley Cup since 1961, Pronger was left to explain a game in which he was on the ice for six opposition goals, including one on the power play, and in the penalty box for a seventh. For one rare night, the solid-skating bruiser and worthy Conn Smythe candidate morphed into Bambi.

To make matters worse for Philadelphia, Dustin Byfuglien, the power forward often matched against Pronger in the series, finally got the better of the All-Star defenseman. For four nights, Pronger had out-battled and outsmarted Byfuglien in virtually every phase of the game. That changed on Sunday night. Byfuglien scored twice and added two assists, equaling his career-high for points in a game.

When asked about Byfuglien's performance, the dry and quick-witted Pronger, who entered the game plus-nine for the playoffs, simply said, "I guess he's well-rested."

When a reporter responded by asking, "Meaning he hadn't done much?" Pronger again stared out at his inquisitor and repeated, "I guess he's well-rested."

The Hawks rebounded strongly from their two losses in Philadelphia, mixing their line combinations, skating with verve in front of their home crowd, jumping to a 3-0 lead after the first period and starting Pronger on his way to a nightmare evening. Twelve minutes into the game, Hawks forward Kris Versteeg sent a pass that deflected off Pronger before reaching Brent Seabrook, who was cutting into the slot. Pronger also deflected Seabrook's shot in before it zipped past goalie Michael Leighton.

The Flyers' goalie had little help from his teammates in the first period, but he goofed up the second goal, which Dave Bolland banked off his right skate three minutes later from a bad angle.

With two minutes left in the period, Versteeg led the Hawks' rush into the zone, cutting from left to center across the middle. Pronger backed off to pick up the trailer who didn't arrive and left himself on no-man's ice. His defense partner, Matt Carle, didn't get over quick enough to cover for him and Versteeg snapped a shot past Leighton. The goalie, who was pulled in Chicago's 6-5 victory in Game 1, was gone again, banished to the bench between periods in favor of Brian Boucher.

Leighton later acknowledged that he had taken a practice shot in the knee during warmups, though he wouldn't say which knee. Still, he insisted that the knock didn't affect his play and wouldn't be a factor looking ahead. "It was a little sore, but none of my movement was affected," he said. "It was fine."

Asked later about Leighton's play, Pronger said he knew nothing of his goalie's ailment. Asked then if he, himself, was physically up to par, given his poor outing, Pronger answered, "I'm day-to-day with hurt feelings."

For the record, he also got dumped on the check of the night from Byfuglien seven minutes into the second period.

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