ST. LOUIS -- Chris Pronger, the NHL's most valuable player
last season, has agreed to a contract extension with the St. Louis
Blues that will make him one of the league's highest-paid players.
The Blues and Pronger announced the deal at a news conference
Thursday at the Savvis Center before the Blues' 4-3 victory over
Calgary. Pronger had a goal and two assists against the Flames.
|  | | Chris Pronger and the Blues now won't have to worry about free agency. |
Pronger signed a three-year, $29.5 million deal beginning in the
2001-02 season. He will get a $1 million signing bonus and earn
$9.5 million per year for each of the three seasons, according to
his agent, Pat Morris.
"Without question, it's a great day in the history of the
franchise," owner Bill Laurie said.
Pronger, 26, is in the final season of a contract that pays him
$4.675 million annually. Brian Leetch of the New York Rangers, at
$7.68 million for this season, is currently the highest paid
defenseman. Colorado's Peter Forsberg and Anaheim's Paul Kariya,
each earning $10 million, are the league's highest paid players.
"All along, it wasn't completely about money," Pronger said.
"But obviously, you expect to be in the area where you feel you
are, and they put me there."
Pronger won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman in
addition to the MVP award last season. He was eligible to become a
Group II free agent in July, meaning the Blues could have matched
offers from other teams.
Late last month, Pronger and Morris called a news conference to
announce they would not negotiate with the Blues during the season.
At the time, Pronger said he didn't want to be distracted, though
he expressed a desire to stay in St. Louis.
However, Pronger said the pending free agency proved
distracting, keeping his mind on statistics and issues other than
hockey.
"The biggest thing was when playing, I caught myself doing
things not conducive to winning," Pronger said. "I want to
concentrate on being a great hockey player."
At a lunch last Friday with team president Mark Sauer to talk
about other issues, Pronger "wondered aloud" how final the team's
final offer actually was. After the lunch, he asked Morris to call
the Blues and work out a deal.
General manager Larry Pleau said what came next could hardly be
called negotiations.
"When money is the only thing that matters, it's a tough
decision for both sides," Pleau said. "They put a number on the
table. I wouldn't even call it negotiations -- it took two or three
minutes."
Besides the dual awards, Pronger led the NHL in ice time at 30
minutes, 14 seconds per game last season. He played 79 games last
season and had 14 goals and 48 assists. His plus/minus of plus-52
was the best in the league.
He served a one-game suspension imposed by the NHL Oct. 13 for
leaving the bench two nights earlier to fight Los Angeles
defenseman Kelly Buchberger. That fight was in retaliation for
Buchberger breaking the nose of the Blues' Pavol Demitra.
Pronger, then a shaky 20-year-old, was something of a scapegoat
when he came to St. Louis in 1995 in exchange for popular winger
Brendan Shanahan. He has since become one of the city's favorite
athletes, and was named captain of the Blues in 1997.
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ALSO SEE
New deal, same Pronger: Defenseman leads Blues past Flames
AUDIO VIDEO
 Chris Pronger is happy with his new contract.
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