Pronger defends himself on questions about his new job

Chris Pronger is as feisty off the ice as he was during his playing days.

The former defenseman bristled at the suggestion that, by taking a job with the NHL's player-safety department on Friday, it is a conflict of interest because he is being paid by the Flyers for the next three seasons.

Pronger said that he is "merely a sounding board" for Stephane Quintal, the NHL's senior vice president of player safety, and that Quintal will hand out disciplinary measures.

Pronger will not be permitted to make disciplinary recommendations on incidents involving the Flyers. But he will offer advice on possible suspensions for their opponents.

A conflict of interest?

"Any person who is in the player-safety department on the former-player side is going to have a conflict somewhere," he said Wednesday in a sometimes testy conference call with reporters.

Pronger was alluding to the fact that people in the department have played for various teams. But those people are not being paid by a team.

Pronger's career ended in 2011 when he suffered a concussion, but because of the NHL's rules, the Flyers must keep the former standout defenseman on their roster and place him on the long-term injured reserve list. That way, they get $4.9 million in salary-cap relief and, in effect, have cap room to replace him.

Including this season, Pronger, 40, has three years left on his contract, and the Flyers owe him a total of $5.15 million. Pronger said he still has concussion symptoms when he exerts himself.

He said that Bill Daly, the NHL's deputy commissioner, contacted him in June to see if he had interest in working for the league's player-safety department. Pronger said he called Flyers general manager Ron Hextall and club president Paul Holmgren to "keep them up to speed" about being approached by the league.

If taking the job would have hurt the Flyers' cap situation, Pronger said, he would not have accepted it.

In his new job, Pronger will advise Quintal and make sure players are familiar with the new rules, such as those regarding hits to the head. He said he will sometimes call players to warn them that their style of play is almost crossing the line.

"Kind of a similar relationship like I had with referees toward the end, where they'd talk to me and say you're getting too out of hand and you need to back off a little bit," said Pronger, who was suspended eight times during his career.

"I obviously had my run-ins with the law enough times to understand the process and where things can go haywire," he said.

Asked if he thought it was a conflict of interest if he had to give his input on, say, a disciplinary measure involving Sidney Crosby - who plays for the Flyers' archrival, Pittsburgh - Pronger chuckled.

"If you think I can persuade [Quintal] that much, then you're a better man than me," he said.

Pronger said Hextall wanted a smaller scouting staff and didn't have a spot for him with the Flyers, which is why he was attracted to the NHL job. He likes the position because most of his duties can be done through e-mails, phone calls, or video, and he can still live in St. Louis.

In his only full season with the Flyers, Pronger helped the team reach the Stanley Cup Finals in 2010. He said he hoped to be remembered as someone who "gave it my all and did everything possible to help the club win" and as a player who "played with his heart on his sleeve."