The Florida Panthers are expected to add former longtime NHL defenseman Chris Pronger as a high-ranking executive with the club, reports TSN's Darren Dreger.

Pronger hasn't played since 2011-12 with the Philadelphia Flyers, but his seven-year, $34.55-million contract that was signed in 2008 just expired at the end of the 2016-17 season. The 42-year-old never officially retired, but was forced to stop playing after suffering a concussion from a high stick.

In 2014, Pronger joined the NHL's Department of Player Safety.

Through 18 NHL seasons, he logged 1,167 games and 698 points. He won the Hart Trophy as league MVP in 1999-00, along with the Norris Trophy, awarded to the top defenseman. He also nabbed a Stanley Cup, two Olympic gold medals, and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015 to cap an illustrious playing career.

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