Chris Pronger was almost a Toronto Maple Leaf and almost a Boston Bruin. After a controversy with another Canadian team, the Maple Leafs nearly swooped in and acquired the future HHOF (Hockey-Hall-of-Fame) defenseman. However, it never came to be. In this trip back to the summer of 2006, we will examine how Pronger almost became a Maple Leafs and what could have been. Then, we will advance three years to the 2009 season and dissect how the Bruins nearly acquired Pronger. Enjoy!
It is the summer of 2006, and star Defenseman Chris Pronger is available. Pronger, a 6-6, 220-pound superstar, requested a trade from the Edmonton Oilers after he led them to game seven of the Stanely Cup Final, which they lost to the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh. The problem wasn’t about hockey; it was about family. Apparently, his wife didn’t want to spend another year in Edmonton. Later, on Spittin Chiclets, Pronger said he believed he’d been sold a bill of goods on his five-year, $31.25 million deal. Thus, the Maple Leafs made a run.
Once the Maple Leafs caught wind of the trade request, they offered the Oilers Center Matt Stajan, Defenseman Tomas Kaberle, and their next two first-round picks. However, the Oilers wanted Center Alex Steen instead of Stajan, but the Leafs refused. Now, I wonder what could have been? I think Toronto could have enjoyed great success for one year, but the bottom would have fallen out the following year. In 2007, the Leafs missed the playoffs with 91 points, but with Pronger and HHOF Center Mats Sundin, there is no way they would miss the playoffs. Realistically, they could have beat the Atlanta Thrashers in the first round and maybe even slay the Buffalo Sabres in the second round, but they would never win the Battle of Ontario against the Ottawa Senators. In real life, they tried to deal Mats Sundin to the Vancouver Canucks in 2008, but with Pronger, they might have snuck into the playoffs. However, I can’t see them making the playoffs again until 2013 as their superstars age. (The Oilers still drafted Winger Jordan Eberle with the Toronto pick in 2007, so they are indifferent.)
Years after Pronger nearly became a Maple Leaf, Boston almost acquired him. In 2009, Anaheim Ducks General Manager Bob Murray wanted to rebuild, so Chris was available on the trade market. It was around late February to early March when Boston took its sniffs. Supposedly, the Bruins were sending Defenseman Mark Stuart, Forward Joe Colborne, the 2008 16th overall pick, and their 2010 first-round draft pick. If the trade went through, the NHL would never be the same. In 2009, the Bruins lost to the Carolina Hurricanes in overtime of game seven in the second round, but Pronger would have certainly propelled them to a win considering game three also went to OT, which Boston lost. In the next round, they would have faced the eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins. Here, Boston’s magical run stops as the Penguins dominated the Hurricanes and would have likely grinded away a six-game series win.
In the 2009 offseason, Boston smartly dealt Forward Phil Kessel to the Toronto Maple Leafs for picks that later became future superstars Tyler Seguin and Dougie Hamilton. The trade came to fruition mostly because Kessel’s party chose not to negotiate with the Bruins and wanted to sign an offer sheet. (Warning: link might not be safe. It was safe for me, but I’m not sure if it will be for others.) However, knowing they came two rounds away from a Stanley Cup, Boston General Manager Peter Chiarelli might have acquired a win-now package. In the end, though, I still believe they would have taken Toronto’s offer as the picks were essentially irresistible. Either way, Phil wouldn’t be Bruin.
In 2010, they blew a 3-0 lead against the Philadelphia Flyers, the team who acquired Pronger, after Bruins Center David Krejci was injured, but Chris would again lead them into the Eastern Conference Finals to play their arch-rival, the Montréal Canadiens, in an Original Six matchup. The Flyers won, so Boston probably would have advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals against the Chicago Blackhawks. Though the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup championship in real life, I could definitely imagine the Bruins winning the 2010 Stanley Cup championship seeing as they almost swept Philadelphia! In 2011, they acutally won the cup, meaning they are a season away from three-peating! In 2012, they lost in overtime of game seven to the Washington Capitals, who fell to the New York Rangers in a seven-game series with no games decided by more than two goals. Then, the Rangers lost to the New Jersey Devils in overtime of game six, who lost to the Kings in the Stanley Cup Fianl. Thus, if they had Pronger dominating, they could have beat the slew of near-evenly matched teams to three-peat!
