The question left to be answered is, is this the piece that the Flyers needed to win themselves a Stanley Cup? Well the 2008-09 version of the Flyers finished the regular season with a 44-27-11 record which earned them 82 points which was good enough for fifth seed in the eastern Conference. The Flyers then went on to lose in the first round to eventual Stanley Cup Champions the Pittsburgh Penguins.

It is important to note that the flyers also got the rights to 24 year old center Ryan Dingle in this deal, but let us take a look at what they are getting in Pronger.

Pronger is a 34 year old 6’6” 221 pound defenseman who has played in the NHL since 1993. He has played for the St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers, and the Anaheim Ducks. He was the MVP of the NHL is 1999-2000 season and won a Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007.

Flyers General Manager had this to say, “I made it sort of clear myself, would I like to get a hammer, a guy who makes life miserable for the other team…  this is one of those guys.”

It is also important to note that Pronger is due to make 6.25 million dollars next season, and is in the final year of his contract. The Flyers will have some work to do to fit this contract under the NHL salary cap due to be 56.8 million dollars. It is also quite possible that Pronger’s trip to Philly will be short term only; the Flyer may have just “rented” Pronger for a run at the cup in the upcoming season.

“He’s a proven winner, the size, how he passes the puck, and he’s an ideal fit for this team,” Holmgren added.

Pronger had this to say, “I’m very excited.  It’s obviously a city that’s very passionate for the sport of hockey.  The style of the play that the Flyers have been known to play certainly fits my game.  They’ve got some great young talent and I hope to help not only develop the team into being regarded as one of the top teams in the league, but winning a Stanley Cup.”

Pronger seems to think hat he could be that missing piece he added, “I’d like to think so, but I don’t really know a whole lot about the team right now.  I’ve seen them play a few times in the playoffs, and I like what they have up front.  I think they’ve got a good core group of defensemen on the back end.”

In the end only time will show us if this is the deal that led the Flyers to a Stanley Cup Championship, but one thing remains certain they are a much better team with Pronger than without.

9 – Marc Savard – In my opinion the most under rated player in the NHL, Savard is off to a typical start. With 6 goals and 10 assists early on this year, Savard has more then a point a game. When you draft Savard you expect him to tally a lot of assists, but at this current pace he will have more then 30 goals this season. Marc plays on a solid team with solid wingers and I would expect his numbers to remain around this level all year long. The biggest reason Savard is so high on my list is because of his penalty minutes, don’t look for those numbers to remain high.

8 – Ryan Clowe – The first major surprise on this list, Clowe is off to a career best start. Early on this year Ryan has 9 goals and 14 points, to go along with 21 penalty minutes. Out of all the players on this list, Clowe would be the one I am most skeptical about, and might think of trading while his value is high. Ryan is on pace to smash all his career marks, maybe by the half way point on the season. Clowe also has 8 power play points and a game winning goal this season.

7 – Jerome Iginla - Jerome is one of the best fantasy players you can have, he is off to a bit of a slow start, but is still number 7 on my list. With 9 goals and 19 points, Iginla is on pace to get the numbers he always gets. Currently the biggest problem having Jerome is that he is a minus 4 and he seems to be very streaky early on. You can over look the plus / minus for his 11 power play points and 50 plus shots so far. In my opinion Iginla has no where to go, but up on this list.

6 – Marian Hossa - Hossa has enjoyed his time with the Red Wings and Pavel Datsyuk so far this season. With 8 goals including 2 game winners, Hossa has been a top fantasy performer thus far. Marian has 17 points and over 50 shots, but his best stat is his plus 9 ranking, which is among the league leaders. Hossa is off to a fine start, but as he starts to get more familiar with is teammates is Detroit his numbers will improve.

5 – Ryan Getzlaf - Anaheim has been on fire as of late and Getzlaf’s numbers have been excellent. Ryan has 19 points in just 16 games and is playing on the top line in Anaheim. Getzlaf will provide you with goals and points, but he will also give you penalty minutes with 25 so far this year. Look for Getzlaf to improve his numbers on the power play and continue to put up good numbers all year long. Getzlaf is a great player and his value is high right now, if you need to he could anchor a trade for your fantasy team.

4 – Thomas Vanek – Finally showing his super star ability, Vanek is off to the best start of his career. With 12 goals in just 14 games, Thomas is on pace to put up insane numbers this year. He has stuffed the fantasy stats so far this year with 60 plus shots, 2 game winning goals and short handed points. Vanek and Buffalo are off to great starts, but it is hard to believe he can keep this goal pace up. He is a point a game player in this league, but his value will probably never be higher then it is right now.

3 – Corey Perry - Hopefully you didn’t panic when Perry got off to a slow start, because he is now one of the best in the league. Perry has 18 points, 29 penalty minutes and 60 plus shots so far this season. This is the fastest turn around I have ever seen in fantasy hockey, through 6 games this year Perry had 1 point and was a minus 5 and in just 11 games increased his numbers to where they are now. Perry’s biggest value is his ability to get good numbers across the board goals, points, power play and penalty minutes.

2 – Evgeni Malkin - He is a true super star in this league and hasn’t disappointed early on this season.  He leads the league in assists with 18, points with 22 and power points with 11. He is also a plus 4 with a shorthanded point thus far. Malkin has been getting some ice time with Crosby and the 2 of them have been very productive. Look for Malkin to compete for the points title all year, he will start to score more goals eventually.

1 – Alexander Semin – Semin is off to the best start of his career and has filled up the fantasy stats thus far this season. 11 goals, 10 assists, an amazing plus 11, 2 shorthanded points and 2 game winning goals. Semin has always been highly talented and when he is motivated he will put up big numbers. Alexander’s value may never be higher then it I right now and if he was on my fantasy team I might consider trading him for a player you know will keep it up all year long. There is no denying he has been the best fantasy player so far in this NHL season.

The Coach - There will be a short list of coaches for this team, but you can be assured the management team will make the right decision. Obviously with Yzerman and Holland making the decisions Red Wing coach Mike Babcock will be at the top of this list. Don’t over look Wayne Gretzky, if he wants to coach this team, it will be hard to say no. Other guys who will be in the mix is Ken Hitchcock, Pat Quinn, Guy Carbonneau, Lindy Ruff and Brent Sutter. For my money I would think Babcock will be the coach if he wants it, look for Hitchcock to be involved as well.

Forward Lines – This is where it become fun, Canada in very deep up front and the executives will have to try and find the best mix. Its not all about talent, they will need to find some players who can play in all situations. Well I think the top line will be Sydney Crosby at center and a couple wingers who you think he can get the best out of. I think all Canadians will love to see Jerome Iginla on the right side of Crosby. A healthy Simon Gagne would look very good on the left side and create a fantastic first line. The second line would centered by Vincent Lecavalier in my opinion and would be joined by Rick Nash playing left wing and Danny Heatley on the right. As the second line these three will be big and physical, and able to create a lot of offense. On the third line I would make it a little bit more of a checking line with Flyers captain Mike Richards as its center. Joining Richards would be physical players Shane Doan and Brendan Morrow, all three can penalty kill and play a physical game. The fourth line is where the tough decisions will have to be made, Canada will need to pick guys who can play a role and contribute when needed. If San Jose all star Joe Thornton is willing to play a role he will be the fourth line center. Martin St. Louis can play in all spots and is a good penalty killer which will get him a spot on this line playing right wing. Much like St. Louis under rated Sabres forward Derek Roy will make this team.

Line 1        Gagne        Crosby    Iginla
Line 2        Nash        Lecavalier    Heatley
Line 3        Doan        Richards    Morrow
Line 4        Roy        Thornton    St. Louis

Defense - The defense will be a mix of young and veteran players. Canada is not as deep on the back end as they are up front, but they still have a tone of talent. The group will be led in my opinion by tough physical defenseman Dion Phaneuf and Chris Pronger. For offence Team Canada will look at young exciting Capitols D-man Mike Green and veteran puck mover Dan Boyle. The third pairing will open for competition over the next year and I think Wild defenseman Brent Burns will earn one of the spots. Jay Boumeester will join Burns to make the final pairing.

Pairing 1    Phaneuf    Pronger
Pairing 2    Green        Boyle
Pairing 3    Burns        Boumeester

Goalies - The top two goalies are very easy to figure out, Martin Brodeur and Roberto Luongo are locks for this team. The third goalie will probably be the goalie who is playing the best at the time, look for Marty Turco to be picked because of his team Canada experience.

Obviously this is my opinion and there are a lot of players left to fight it out for the roster filling spots. Its important to note that if Joe Sakic and Scott Niedermayer are still playing next season there is a good chance they will be on this team. Team Canada knows the value of experience, that is a role Yzerman himself played for team Canada in the later years of his career. There are some notable players not of my list, who I think will battle it out for the final roster spots. Jason Spezza, Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf, Jonathon Toews, Eric Staal and Ryan Smyth will fight to make the forward lines. On defense guys like Shea Weber, Brian Campbell, Sheldon Souray, Wade Redden and Marc Staal will be in the mix for jobs. Goalies in the mix for the final roster spot will be JS Giguere, Carey Price and Marc Andre Fleury.

Hockey Canada is very deep and will be interesting to see the decisions that need to be made over the next year. Its been said that Canada could put two teams into these tournaments that could compete a world class levels. It’s a long time from now still and this list will change, and some players will earn there way into the conversation over this season. Its fun to look at and I am sure the Olympic hockey tournament will be the highlight of the games. These are my opinions and I am sure a lot of people have different ones, but will all know Canada will have a deep team and will be there to compete with the best in the world.