VOORHEES, N.J. - Chris Pronger walked into a Skate Zone second-floor conference room a couple minutes past noon Thursday with a brown suit, Flyers orange tie, reddish-brown beard that matches his hair, eyeglasses and a big, fat smile.

Finally ready to share the sad story of new life as a 6-6 giant who used to be an NHL great, Pronger plopped down in the one chair behind a table for his first interview with the Philadelphia news media in more than 15 months.

Looking and sounding healthy, Pronger willingly and openly discussed living with post-concussion syndrome. Afterward, Pronger hung around to do a television interview, then he talked another 10 minutes with Flyers beat writers.

Along the way, there was a lot of his usual friendly banter with the media, plenty of sarcasm and a bunch of one-liners.

Nothing seemed different from when the five-time All-Star defenseman and former league MVP was throwing his body around, blocking shots and directing the Flyers power play from 2009-10 to the early portion of last season.

The big guy who captained the Flyers in 2011-12 appeared to be having a good day.

He wasn't.

"I got a headache right now and you wouldn't know it," Pronger said. "It's just a pounding. Back of the head. That's the thing. You get used to it. I could sit and talk to people all day long, and you wouldn't know if I have a headache or feel like crap because I'm just going to talk to you. When I really feel bad is when I have to move."

His life still isn't the same, and according to his doctors, might never be again.

Doctors are telling him to take up fishing, saying throwing out lines would be good for him, and they're encouraging him to play golf because it will make him concentrate.

Pronger can work out, but he can't run. He has done some light skating during his 10-year-old and 8-year-old sons' hockey practices, but when testing himself there, concussion symptoms returned.

At 38, Pronger won't retire - he has a contract through 2016-17 and quitting would force the Flyers to count his $4.9 million cap hit - but it's clear that playing again would take a miracle.

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"I have some vulnerabilities that (my doctors) are very worried about," Pronger said. "That may or may not go away. No matter how long it takes, I have to get healthy. That's my main focus and goal."

Nowadays, his routine is driving his kids to and from school, daily workouts and visiting his eye doctor twice a week.

Pronger says he has "made improvements," but he's nowhere near 100% healthy.

"I still get symptoms with loud noises and a lot of moving parts, bright lights, things like that," he said. "Not to the level it was, but I still do get them. My eye is still troubling. It's not working properly. I don't have peripheral vision. My eyesight ... I keep having to get stronger and stronger glasses.

"At times I can be disoriented. I can lose my train of thought. My cognitive skills are a little suspect at times. It comes and goes on certain days. I can be sitting here and you might say what's wrong with him, and I'll figure out what I was saying and start going again."

Pronger is enjoying watching his children grow up - he also has a 4-year-old daughter - but they sometimes don't understand his condition.

"I get asked all the time, 'Can you come on the trampoline?'" he said. "I'm like, 'No, I'm not going on the trampoline. I'll watch you.' They're kids. They forget."

Talking about his worst of times, Pronger admitted losing patience with his children.

"You get agitated very quickly," he said. "You're (angry) that you are not playing the game you love, then you are even more (upset) because you've got a headache and it's getting worse and worse. You're light-headed and dizzy, and your kid comes over and you snap.

"You're not being the father you want to be. It changes your personality a little bit. I've gotten a little better with it, but I still get a 'grrrr' from time to time and gotta catch myself, take myself out of the room and make sure I'm a little better."

Pronger still traces his health issues to being struck in the right eye on the follow-through of a shot by Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mikhail Grabovski in an Oct. 24, 2011, game at Wells Fargo Center.

Pronger returned after missing just six games, but fell face-first into the boards when hit cleanly by Phoenix Coyotes forward Martin Hanzal in his fifth game back, then he was bothered by noise and lighting his next game, Nov. 19 in Winnipeg. He hasn't played since.

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"I didn't do anything for six months," said Pronger, who relocated from his in-season home in Haddonfield, N.J., to his permanent home in St. Louis last May.

Then, Pronger was bedridden with terrible headaches and he had trouble seeing. Emotionally, he was a mess.

"There were some pretty dark days when the doctor was a little worried," Pronger said. "I don't know if he was that worried. He may tell you he was. I don't think I ever got that far down, but there were some pretty dark days."

Pronger isn't sure about his future.

Staying in hockey is a possibility. Since last spring, he has made like a scout watching Flyers games from his home and then passing along suggestions to general manager Paul Holmgren. He says he might someday be interested in becoming a part-time scout.

He's also not ruling out getting into broadcasting.

"I learned a long time ago, never say never," Pronger said. "Having said that, not in the near future."

Right now, Pronger just wants to get healthy and live life feeling good, even if that means never playing hockey again.

"Everybody that has ever played a professional sport would like to go out on their terms and very few get to," Pronger said. "You want to be the guy to carry the Stanley Cup around and leave the game on a high note. As we all know that rarely happens. I don't know if this is the end or not. I guess time will tell and we'll see how that goes."
