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Philadelphia Flyers History
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockeyteam based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of theAtlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National HockeyLeague (NHL). Part of the 1967 NHL Expansion, the Flyers were the firstof these expansion teams to win the Stanley Cup in 1974 and again in1975. Despite five return trips to the Stanley Cup Finals, the Flyershave not won the Cup since.
More recently, the team suffered theworst season in franchise history in 2006–07, finishing dead last inthe NHL standings, as well as missing the playoffs for the first timesince 1994. (It was only the 8th time they had failed to qualify forthe playoffs in their history.) The Flyers all-time winning percentageof .577 (as of the end of the 2007–08 season) is the second best in theNHL, behind only the Montreal Canadiens .591 winning percentage.
TheFlyers have played their home games on Broad Street since theirinception, first at The Spectrum from 1967 until 1996, and then at theWachovia Center from 1996 to the present. They have had rivalries withseveral teams over the years, the most heated rival of late being theNew Jersey Devils, with whom the Flyers traded the Atlantic Divisiontitle with every season between 1995 and 2007 and have faced threetimes in the playoffs, winning once in 2004 and losing twice in 1995and 2000.
The city of Philadelphia had been home to an NHL teambefore for one season; the Philadelphia Quakers during the 1930–31season. After setting the NHL record for fewest wins in a season, theysuspended operations for the next and subsequent seasons until theyfinally canceled the franchise in 1936. Philadelphia waited another 30years for the NHL to return when in 1966, the league awarded anexpansion franchise to the city. A name-the-team contest came down totwo names--"Flyers" (the winning entry spelled the name "Fliers") and"Quakers." However, new owner Ed Snider chose the name "Flyers" as itconveyed the motion and excitement that was to be consistent with bothhockey in general, as well as the new Philadelphia club. It was alsofelt that "Quakers" was associated with losing.
Beginning playin 1967–68, the Philadelphia Flyers made their debut on October 11,1967, losing 5–1 on the road to the California Seals. They won theirfirst game a week later, defeating the St. Louis Blues on the road,2–1. The Flyers made their home debut in front of a crowd of 7,812,shutting out their intrastate rivals, the Pittsburgh Penguins, 1–0 onOctober 19. The new teams were hampered by restrictive rules that keptall major talent with the Original Six. In the NHL Expansion Draft,most of the players available were either aging veterans or careerminor-leaguers before expansion occurred. Among the Flyers' 20selections were Bernie Parent, Ed Van Impe, Joe Watson, Lou Angotti,Leon Rochefort, and Gary Dornhoefer. Angotti was named the Flyers'first captain and Rochefort was the Flyers' top goal scorer that firstseason with a total of 21 goals. With all six expansion teams groupedinto the same division, the Flyers were able to win the division with asub-.500 record despite being forced to play their last seven homegames on the road due to a storm blowing parts of the Spectrum's roofoff. Playoff success did not come so quickly, as the Flyers were upsetby St. Louis in a first round, seven-game series.
Angotti leftthe team in the off-season and was replaced by Van Impe as teamcaptain. Led by Van Impe and the team-leading 24 goals of AndreLacroix, the Flyers struggled during their sophomore season byfinishing 15 games under .500. Despite their poor regular seasonshowing in 1968–69, they made the playoffs; however, they weremanhandled by St. Louis in a four-game sweep. Not wanting his team tobe physically outmatched again, owner Ed Snider instructed GeneralManager Bud Poile to acquire bigger, tougher players. While head coachKeith Allen soon after replaced Poile as GM, this mandate eventuallyled to one of the most feared teams to ever take the ice in the NHL.The keystone of those teams was acquired when the Flyers took a chanceon a 19-year-old diabetic from Flin Flon, Manitoba named Bobby Clarkewith their second draft pick, 17th overall, in the 1969 NHL AmateurDraft. Keeping to Snider's mandate, the team also drafted futureenforcer Dave Schultz 52nd overall.
By the time training campcame around it was clear that Clarke was the best player on the team,and he quickly became a fan favorite. His 15 goals and 31 assists inhis rookie season earned him a trip to the NHL All-Star Game. Despitehis arrival, the team struggled in 1969–70 recording only 17 wins--thefewest in franchise history (as of completion of the 2006–07 season).They lost the tiebreaker for the final playoff spot to Oakland, missingthe playoffs for the first time. In 1970–71 the Flyers returned to theplayoffs, but were swept by the Chicago Black Hawks in the first round.Even though the team had improved their record in his second seasonbehind the bench, head coach Vic Stasiuk was replaced by Fred Shero inthe off-season.
Clarke continued to progress as he led the teamin scoring in 1971–72 and became the first Flyer to win an NHL award,the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance, sportsmanship anddedication to hockey. However, in the season's final game, the Flyersneeded a win or a tie against the second-year Buffalo Sabres to beatout Pittsburgh for the final playoff spot. The score was tied late inthe game, but with just four seconds on the clock, former Flyer GerryMeehan took a shot from 80 feet away that somehow eluded Flyers goalieDoug Favell. The Flyers lost the tiebreaker to Pittsburgh and missedthe playoffs. As it turned out, it was the last time the Flyers missedthe playoffs for 18 years.
It was during the 1972–73 season thatthe Flyers shed the mediocre expansion team label and became theintimidating Broad Street Bullies, a nickname coined by Jack Chevalierand Pete Cafone of the Philadelphia Bulletin on January 3, 1973 due tothe team's brawling ways. That same month, Clarke was the youngestplayer (at that time) in NHL history to be named team captain,replacing Ed Van Impe. Rick MacLeish became the first Flyer to score 50goals in a season and the Flyers recorded their first winning season.An overtime goal by Gary Dornhoefer in Game 5 turned the tide of theirfirst round series with the Minnesota North Stars in the Flyers' favor,as the Flyers got their first playoff series win in six games. Theywere outmatched in the semifinals by the Montreal Canadiens, however,losing in five games. After the season, Clarke was awarded the HartMemorial Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player.
GoaltenderBernie Parent, an "Original Flyer", returned to the franchise in theoff-season, and the Flyers proved that the expansion teams couldchallenge the Original Six in 1973–74. The Bullies continued theirrough-and-tumble ways, led by Dave Schultz's 348 penalty minutes, andreached the top of the West Division with a record of 50–16–12. Thereturn of Parent proved to be of great benefit as he establishedhimself as one of if not the best goaltender in the league by winning47 games, a record which stood for 33 years. Since the Flyers, alongwith Chicago, allowed the fewest goals in the league, Parent alsoshared the Vezina Trophy with Chicago's Tony Esposito.
Comeplayoff time, the Flyers swept the Atlanta Flames in four games in thefirst round. In the semifinals, the Flyers faced the New York Rangers.The series, which saw the home team win every game, went seven games.Fortunately for the Flyers, they had home ice advantage as theyadvanced to the Stanley Cup Finals by winning Game 7. Their opponent,Bobby Orr and the Boston Bruins, took Game 1 in Boston, but BobbyClarke scored an overtime goal in Game 2 to even the series. The Flyerswon Games 3 and 4 at home to take a 3–1 series lead, but Boston wonGame 5 to stave off elimination. That set the stage for Game 6 at theSpectrum. The Flyers picked up the lead early when Rick MacLeish scoreda first period goal. Late in the game, Orr hauled down Clarke on abreakaway, a penalty which assured the Flyers of victory. Time expiredas the Flyers brought the Stanley Cup to Philadelphia for the firsttime. Parent, having shutout Boston in Game 6, won the Conn SmytheTrophy as the Playoff MVP. The Flyers won the NHL Stanley Cup in onlytheir 7th season of existence.
In 1974–75, Schultz topped hismark from the previous season by setting an NHL record for penaltyminutes (472 in all). Clarke's efforts earned him his second HartTrophy and Parent was the lone recipient of the Vezina Trophy. TheFlyers as a team improved their record slightly with a mark of51–18–11, the best record in the league. After a first-round bye, theFlyers easily swept the Toronto Maple Leafs and were presented withanother New York-area team in the semifinals. The Flyers looked to beheaded toward another sweep against the New York Islanders afterwinning the first three games. The Islanders, however, fought back bywinning the next three games, setting up a deciding seventh game. TheFlyers were finally able to shut the door on the Islanders, winningGame 7, 4–1.
Facing Buffalo in the Stanley Cup Finals, theFlyers won the first two games at home. Game 3, played in Buffalo,would go down in hockey lore as The Fog Game due to an unusual May heatwave in Buffalo which forced parts of the game to be played in heavyfog, as Buffalo's arena lacked air conditioning. The Flyers lost Games3 and 4, but won Game 5 at home in dominating fashion, 5–1. On the roadfor Game 6, Bob Kelly scored the decisive goal and Parent pitchedanother shutout (a playoff record fifth shutout) as the Flyers repeatedas Stanley Cup Champions. Parent also repeated as the playoff MVP,winning a second consecutive Conn Smythe Trophy.
The highlightof the 1975–76 season had no bearing on the season standings. OnJanuary 11 at the Spectrum, the Flyers, as part of the Super Series'76, played a memorable exhibition game against the Soviet Union'sdominant Central Red Army team. As the Bullies had put intimidation togood use the past three years, the Flyers' rugged style of play led theSoviets to leave the ice midway through the first period, protesting ahit on Valeri Kharlamov, whom Clarke had slashed on the ankle in thefamous Summit Series '72, by Ed Van Impe. After some delay, the Sovietsreturned after they were warned that they would lose their salary forthe entire series. The Flyers went on to win the game rather easily,4–1, and were the only team to defeat the Red Army outright in theseries. Head coach Fred Shero proclaimed, "Yes we are world champions.If they had won, they would have been world champions. We beat the hellout of a machine."
The Flyers recorded the best record in teamhistory (points wise) with a record of 51–13–16. The LCB line,featuring Reggie Leach at right-wing, Clarke at center, and Bill Barberat left-wing, set an NHL record for goals by a single line with 141(Leach 61, Clarke 30, Barber 50). Clarke, on his way to a third HartTrophy, set a club record for points in one season with 119. Headinginto the playoffs, the Flyers squeaked past Toronto in seven games anddefeated Boston in five games, Game 5 featuring a five-goal outburst byLeach, the Riverton Rifle, to head to a third straight appearance inthe Stanley Cup Finals. However, the Flyers didn't come close to athird straight championship without an injured Bernie Parent, as theyran into an up-and-coming dynasty in Montreal, and were swept in fourstraight games. Despite the loss, Leach was awarded the Conn SmytheTrophy for scoring a record 19 goals in 16 playoff games.
Dethroned,the heyday of the Broad Street Bullies came to an end, as prior to the1976–77 season, tough-guy Dave Schultz was traded to the Los AngelesKings. Despite a slight drop-off in performance, the Flyers dominatedthe Patrick Division with what proved to be their 4th straight divisiontitle. After disposing of Toronto in six games, the Flyers foundthemselves in the semifinals for the fifth consecutive season. Pittedagainst Boston, the Flyers lost Games 1 and 2 at home in overtime anddid not return home as they were swept in four straight games. TheFlyers lost their hold on the Patrick Division in 1977–78 and settledfor second place. After sweeping the Colorado Rockies in 2 games in thepreliminary round, the Flyers moved on to beat Buffalo in five games.They faced Boston in the semifinals for the second consecutive season,and lost again, this time in five games. Following the season, theFlyers were stunned when head coach Fred Shero left to become generalmanager and head coach of the Rangers. As compensation for The Fog, theFlyers received the Rangers' first-round draft pick in 1978.
BobMcCammon, who had just coached the Flyers' first year AHL MaineMariners farm club to a Calder Cup title, replaced Shero behind thebench. After a slow start in 1978–79 the Flyers switched McCammon withPat Quinn, Shero's previous assistant coach, who had replaced McCammonwith the Mariners. Adding to the problems, Bernie Parent suffered acareer-ending eye injury. The Flyers rallied under Quinn and finishedin 2nd place. Matched-up against the Vancouver Canucks in thepreliminary round, the Flyers won the series in three games. TheFlyers' season came to an end against Fred Shero's Rangers in afive-game quarterfinal loss.
The Flyers began the 1979–80 seasonwith a somewhat controversial move by naming Clarke a playing assistantcoach and giving the captaincy to Mel Bridgman. While Clarke wasagainst this initially, he accepted his new role. The Flyers wentundefeated for a North American professional sports record 35 straightgames (25–0–10), a record that still stands to this day. In doing so,the Flyers wrapped up the Patrick Division title with 14 games to spareand the No.1 overall seed in the playoffs. Their regular-season successcontinued into the playoffs, as the Flyers swept a young Wayne Gretzkyand his Edmonton Oilers in the first round, then went on to get revengeagainst Fred Shero and his Rangers by beating them in five beforedisposing of Minnesota in five to lock up a berth in the Stanley CupFinals. Facing the Islanders for the Cup, the Flyers ultimately lost insix games on Bob Nystrom's overtime Cup-winning goal. The end result ofthe series was marred by controversy, as the Islanders were offside onthe play that resulted in their fourth goal, but the call was not made.Linesman Leon Stickle admitted after the game that he had blown thecall.[14]
The Flyers made early playoff exits the next fouryears, including three first round exits in a row. After a tough,five-game preliminary round series win against the Quebec Nordiques,the team's 1980–81 season came to an end as they lost in thequarterfinals to the Calgary Flames in seven games. They lost to theRangers two years in a row in 1981–82 and 1982–83 and then were sweptby the Washington Capitals in 1983–84. It was after the latter of theseplayoff losses that Bobby Clarke retired and was named Vice Presidentand General Manager of the team.
Mike Keenan, a relative unknownat the time, was hired in 1984 to coach the team, and named second-yearplayer Dave Poulin team captain. Behind the goaltending of PelleLindbergh (who led the league with 40 wins and won the Vezina Trophy),the Flyers won a franchise-record 53 games, the best in the league. TheFlyers rolled through the playoffs by sweeping the Rangers in threegames, defeating the Islanders in five, and beating Quebec in six toreturn to the Stanley Cup Finals. Though they defeated the defendingStanley Cup Champion Oilers in Game 1 by a score of 4–1 at home,Edmonton won the next four games and the series. A month into the1985–86 season, Pelle Lindbergh was fatally injured in a car accident.The team rallied and showed perseverance by garnering the best recordin the Wales Conference and matching their win total (53) from theprevious year. Tim Kerr scored 58 goals and the defense pairing of Howeand Brad McCrimmon led the league in plus/minus, a +85 and a +83respectively. Bob Froese filled in admirably in net for Lindbergh,being named a 2nd Team All-Star and sharing the William M. JenningsTrophy with teammate Darren Jensen. Despite their regular seasonsuccess, an emotionally exhausted Flyers team lost in the first roundof the playoffs to a "Cinderella" Rangers team in five games.
In1986 the Flyers were rejuvenated by the addition of another VezinaTrophy goaltender between the pipes, with Ron Hextall from Brandon,Manitoba. In his rookie season, he became the third Flyers goaltenderto win the Vezina Trophy, joining Parent and Lindbergh. With Hextallproviding the critical stops at crucial times, the Flyers captured athird-straight Patrick Division title, and were able to gain revenge onthe Rangers by beating them in six games, as well as surviving a toughseven-game test from a gritty Islanders club. The Flyers then defeatedthe defending Stanley Cup Champion Canadiens in a fiery six game series(notable for a famous bench-clearing brawl during the Game 6 warmup) towin the Wales Conference and return to the Stanley Cup Finals.Unfortunately, three bruising playoff series in a row had taken theirphysical toll and the Flyers became decimated by injuries, the mostsignificant of which was losing Kerr for the remainder of the playoffs.After falling behind 3 games to 1 in the Stanley Cup finals, the Flyersrallied from a two-goal deficit on the road in Game 5 to extend theseries, then won Game 6 at home with another stunning comeback. Howeverthey could not overcome the odds a third time and eventually succumbedto the highly-favored Oilers 3-1 in Game 7. Oddly enough, Hextall wasvoted playoff MVP, the second such time a Flyer won the Conn SmytheTrophy despite being on the losing team, the other being anotherManitoban, Reggie Leach, in 1976.
The Flyers stumbled in1987–88, finishing third in the Patrick Division (after a first-placefinish the previous three years). Hextall became the first NHLgoaltender to score a goal by firing the puck into an empty net in aDecember 8 game against Boston. In their first round playoff serieswith Washington, the Flyers blew a 3–1 series lead as Washington forceda Game 7. They then blew a 3–0 lead in Game 7 as Washington won inovertime 5–4. It was because of this playoff collapse that "Iron Mike"was fired. Paul Holmgren was named Keenan's replacement, the first timea former Flyer was named the club's head coach. Despite finishing atthe .500 mark in 1988–89, the Flyers made the playoffs for the 17thconsecutive season. Facing first-place Washington in the first round,the Flyers pulled off the upset in six games. Ron Hextall managed toscore another empty-net goal in the waning moments of Game 5, becomingthe first NHL goalie to score a goal in the playoffs. The Flyers thendefeated Pittsburgh in seven games to make the Wales Conference Finalsbefore bowing out to Montreal in six games.
The 1989–90 seasongot off to a bad start for the Flyers, and continued to get worse.Hextall missed all but eight games due to suspension, contract holdoutissues and injury, the suspension given for attacking Chris Chelios atthe end of the Montreal playoff series the previous spring. Holmgrenreplaced Dave Poulin as captain in December with Ron Sutter, which ledto Poulin's (and later that season, Brian Propp's) trade to Boston. Asa result, the Flyers missed the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first timesince 1972. Bobby Clarke, having been with the Flyers organizationsince he was drafted in 1969, was fired and replaced as GM by RussFarwell; Clarke resurfaced with the Minnesota North Stars. Hextallcontinued to be hampered by injuries during the 1990–91 season. He onlyplayed in 36 games and as a result the Flyers missed the playoffs forthe second consecutive year, finishing fifth in the division and threepoints short of a playoff spot after a late-season collapse.
Priorto the 1991–92 season, the Flyers acquired Rod Brind'Amour from St.Louis. Brind'Amour led the Flyers in goals (33), assists (44), andpoints (77) in his first season with the club. With Ron Sutter gone toSt. Louis in the Brind'Amour trade, Rick Tocchet was named teamcaptain. As the Flyers continued to flounder, Paul Holmgren was firedmidway through the season and replaced by Bill Dineen, father of FlyerKevin Dineen. On February 19, the Flyers and Pittsburgh made a majorfive-player deal which featured Tocchet — who never grew comfortablyinto the role of captain — heading to Pittsburgh and Mark Recchi comingto Philadelphia. Recchi recorded 27 points in his first 22 games as aFlyer, but the team missed the playoffs for the third consecutive year,due in large part to an awful road record (10–26–4).
In June1992, the Flyers persuaded Clarke to return to the team as senior vicepresident after Jay Snider won the hard fought arbitration battle for1991 #1 overall pick Eric Lindros against the Rangers. It wasdetermined that Quebec had made a deal with the Flyers before making adeal with the Rangers. In order to acquire Lindros' rights, the Flyersparted with six players, trading Steve Duchesne, Peter Forsberg, RonHextall, Kerry Huffman, Mike Ricci, Chris Simon, a 1993 first rounddraft pick (Jocelyn Thibault), a 1994 first round draft pick (NolanBaumgartner), and $15 million to Quebec. This deal ultimately turnedthe Flyers around and led them back to the playoffs and top of theconference.
The trio of Lindros, Recchi, and Brent Fedyk formedthe Crazy Eights line in Lindros' first two years in the league, theeights being the player's jersey numbers (88, 8, and 18 respectively).In 1992–93, Recchi set the franchise record for points in a season with123 (53 goals, 70 assists) and Lindros scored 41 goals in 61 games.After struggling early the Flyers made a run at the playoffs, but camefour points short of the last spot. Head coach Bill Dineen was fired atthe season's end, while Clarke left town again to become generalmanager of the expansion Florida Panthers.
For 1993–94, TerrySimpson was hired as the new head coach in hopes that the Flyers wouldfinally return to playoff contention after four consecutive off-years.Recchi recorded 107 points (40 goals, 67 assists) and Lindros 97 (44goals, 53 assists) while Mikael Renberg set a Flyers rookie record with82 points. Offense was generated yet the Flyers still failed to clincha playoff berth, again falling four points short of the final playoffspot. Jay Snider stepped down as President, forcing his father EdSnider to take over day-to-day operations. The elder Snider had decidedhe had seen enough of Farwell as GM, and began courting Bobby Clarke toleave his GM post with Florida to return to Philadelphia. Farwell'slast move as GM was firing Simpson after a lackluster performance.
BobbyClarke returned to the General Manager position prior to the 1994–95season and immediately began putting his stamp on the team. New headcoach Terry Murray replaced Kevin Dineen as team captain with Lindrosprior to the start of training camp. In order to shore up the defense,Ron Hextall was re-acquired from the Islanders and high-scoring wingerRecchi was traded to Montreal for John LeClair, Eric Desjardins, andGilbert Dionne early in the abbreviated season. Lindros and LeClairteamed with Renberg to form the Legion of Doom line, a mix of scoringtalent and physical intimidation. Lindros came in second to JaromirJagr by a tiebreaker in the race for the Art Ross Trophy, but made upfor it by capturing the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's MVP. Theplayoff drought came to an end as the Flyers won their first divisiontitle in eight years and clinched the No.2 seed in the EasternConference. After dispatching Buffalo in five and sweeping thedefending Stanley Cup champion Rangers, the Flyers lost in the EasternConference Finals to the eventual-champion New Jersey Devils in sixgames.
Lindros eclipsed the 100-point mark for the first time in1995–96, gathering 115 points, and LeClair scored 51 goals, as theFlyers repeated as Atlantic Division champs and clinched the No.1 seedin the East. Facing the 8th-seeded Tampa Bay Lightning, the Flyersdropped two of the first three games. They rallied by winning threestraight games to win the series. After taking two of the first threegames against their second-round opponent, Florida, the Flyers weredefeated in overtime in Game 4 and double-overtime in Game 5. Anupstart Florida club with stellar goaltending from John Vanbiesbrouckended the Flyers' season in Game 6. The Flyers said goodbye to theSpectrum and prepared to open a new arena - the CoreStates Center - forthe next season.
Though Lindros missed 30 games in 1996–97,LeClair still managed to score 50 goals for the second consecutiveyear. Despite finishing just one point shy of a third straight AtlanticDivision title, the Flyers blitzed their way through the EasternConference playoffs. Backstopped by the goaltending tandem of Hextalland Garth Snow, the Flyers dominated Pittsburgh, Buffalo and theRangers all in five games apiece to win the Eastern Conferencechampionship, and clinch a berth in the Stanley Cup Finals for thefirst time since 1986–87. However, their opponent, the Detroit RedWings, swept the Flyers in four straight games, the flyers managed 6goals in 4 games and the Red Wings held Lindros scoreless aside from ameaningless goal in the waning seconds of the final game. After Game 3,Terry Murray said that the team was in a "choking situation". It issaid this remark cost Murray his job, as he was fired soon after.
Theman picked to replace Murray, Wayne Cashman, was deemed ill-suited forthe job as the Flyers played inconsistently throughout the 1997–98season. With 21 games to go in the season, Roger Neilson took over ascoach while Cashman was retained as an assistant. John LeClair was ableto score at least 50 goals for the third consecutive year (netting 51),the first time for an American-born player, and goaltender Sean Burkewas acquired at the trade deadline. Burke proved ineffective in net, asthe Flyers were eliminated in the first round by Buffalo in five games.In the off-season, the Flyers went looking for a new goaltender. Burkewas let go and Hextall was about to enter his final season as a backup.They chose to sign former Panther John Vanbiesbrouck over former OilerCurtis Joseph, who ended up signing with Toronto. The 1998–99 seasonwas marred by a life-threatening injury sustained by Eric Lindros onApril Fools' Day during a game against the Nashville Predators, aseason-ending injury later diagnosed as a collapsed lung. Up until thatpoint, Lindros was having an MVP-type season with 40 goals and 53assists in 71 games. Without Lindros, the Flyers had trouble scoring inthe playoffs even after having re-acquired Mark Recchi at the tradedeadline. Although Vanbiesbrouck allowed nine goals to Joseph's elevenallowed, the Flyers lost their first round series with Toronto in sixgames.
One of the most tumultuous seasons in franchise history,1999–2000, actually started in July three months prior to the start ofthe regular season. In the span of a few days, longtime broadcasterGene Hart died due to illness and defenseman Dmitri Tertyshny, comingoff his rookie season, was fatally injured in a freak boating accident.The season itself was no better as head coach Roger Neilson wasdiagnosed with bone cancer, forcing him to step aside in February 2000to undergo treatment. Assistant coach Craig Ramsay took over as interimcoach for the rest of the season. In January, longtime Flyer and fanfavorite Rod Brind'Amour was shipped to Carolina for Keith Primeau,with the intention of acquiring a big center to complement EricLindros. Meanwhile, the strife between Flyers management (particularlyClarke) and Lindros, continued to worsen. Less than a month afterRamsay took over, Lindros suffered his second concussion of the season.He played several games after the initial hit and afterwards criticizedthe team's training staff for failing to initially diagnose theconcussion after it happened. It was after this that the Flyers'organization decided to strip Lindros of the captaincy on March 27 andsew the C on the sweater of defenseman Eric Desjardins.
WithLindros out indefinitely, the Flyers rallied to overcome thedistractions and a 15-point deficit in the standings to win theAtlantic Division and the No. 1 seed in the East on the last day of theregular season. They easily defeated their first round opponent,Buffalo, in five games. Primeau's goal in the fifth overtime of Game 4against the team's second-round opponent, Pittsburgh, turned thatseries in the Flyers' favor as they won in six games, coming back froma 2–0 series deficit. After dropping Game 1 to New Jersey in theEastern Conference Finals, the Flyers peeled off three straight wins totake a 3–1 series lead. But New Jersey refused to give up. After NewJersey won Game 5, Lindros returned to the lineup for the first timesince March for Game 6 in another losing effort. Early in Game 7,Lindros was on the receiving end of a hit by Scott Stevens, giving himanother concussion and leaving the Philadelphia crowd deflated. WithoutLindros, the Flyers lost the decisive game by a score of 2–1. It wasthe 2nd time in franchise history the team lost a series after being up3 games to 1. To add insult to injury, New Jersey went on to win theStanley Cup.
Lindros would never wear a Flyers uniform again, ashe sat out the season awaiting a trade. Also, Craig Ramsay retained thehead coaching position as Neilson was not asked to return, which becamea matter of some controversy. Ramsay only lasted until December when hewas replaced by former Flyer great Bill Barber. Brian Boucher, who as arookie backstopped the Flyers' playoff run the previous season,couldn't duplicate his performance in 2000–01 and therefore lost thestarting goaltending job to Roman Cechmanek, a former star goalie inthe Czech Republic. The performance of Cechmanek, worthy of a Vezinanomination, helped the Flyers stay afloat, but they lost in the firstround to Buffalo in six games.
In the off-season, the Flyersre-vamped their lineup by signing Jeremy Roenick and finally tradingLindros to the Rangers for Kim Johnsson, Jan Hlavac, Pavel Brendl, anda 2003 3rd-round draft pick (Stefan Ruzicka). Desjardins stepped downas team captain eight games into the season and was replaced byPrimeau. The Flyers began 2001–02 with high expectations and withRoenick leading the team in scoring the Flyers finished with anAtlantic Division title. The power play was one of the NHL's worsthowever, so Adam Oates, the third leading point-producer in the leagueat the time, was acquired from Washington at the trade deadline. It wasof no benefit as the Flyers couldn't muster much offense, scoring onlytwo goals in their five-game, first-round playoff loss to the OttawaSenators. They only led once during the entire series--an overtime winin game one. It turned out there was much discontent in the locker roomas Bill Barber was fired. The Flyers hired a proven winner when theyturned to former Dallas Stars and Stanley Cup-winning head coach KenHitchcock.
In 2002–03, Roman Cechmanek had a 1.83 GAA and theFlyers acquired Sami Kapanen and Tony Amonte prior to the tradedeadline; however, they fell one point short of a second straightAtlantic Division title. As a result, the Flyers endured a long, brutalseven-game first round match-up with Toronto that featured threemultiple overtime games, all in Toronto. After winning Game 7, 6–1, theFlyers fought Ottawa in the second round with equal vigor as they splitthe first four games of the series, Cechmanek earning shutouts in bothwins. Cechmanek's inconsistency showed through, however, as he allowedten goals in the final two games and Ottawa advanced in six games.Cechmanek was traded to Los Angeles for a 2004 second round draft pickduring the off-season despite having the second-best goals-againstaverage in the league over his three years in Philadelphia.
Free-agentgoaltender Jeff Hackett was signed from Boston to replace Cechmanek andchallenge backup Robert Esche for the No.1 spot in 2003–04, but Hackettwas forced to retire in February due to vertigo. During the course ofthe season, serious injuries suffered by both Roenick (broken jaw) andPrimeau (concussion) in February forced the Flyers to trade forChicago's Alexei Zhamnov, who filled in well and kept the Flyersafloat. On March 5, 2004 the Flyers set an NHL record in a game againstOttawa where they set a combined record of 419 penalty minutes in asingle game. Esche entrenched himself as starter and remained in thatposition even after the Flyers re-acquired Sean Burke from the PhoenixCoyotes as the Flyers clinched the Atlantic Division title over NewJersey on the last day of the season. Though solid in net, Esche'sperformance was trumped by the play of captain Keith Primeau in theplayoffs. Primeau led the Flyers past the defending Stanley CupChampion Devils in five, and Toronto in six on their way to the EasternConference Finals and a match-up with Tampa Bay. Despite winning Game 6on the late-game heroics of Primeau and winger Simon Gagne, the Flyerscame up short once again losing Game 7 in Tampa, 2–1.
With theNHL preparing for looming labor unrest, the Flyers let their leadingscorer, Mark Recchi, leave for Pittsburgh during the off-season. Unsureabout what the future would bring, the Flyers were unsure aboutRecchi's worth. The NHL Lockout forced the cancellation of the 2004–05NHL season. The Flyers were one of the more active teams once the NHLLockout came to an end. Replacing the high-profile names of Amonte,LeClair, and Roenick were superstar Peter Forsberg, along withdefensemen Derian Hatcher and Mike Rathje, as well as several playersfrom the Calder Cup-winning Philadelphia Phantoms. When all was saidand done, the team had experienced a turnover of nearly two-thirds ofthe roster.
The Flyers began the season with lofty expectations.Despite being hampered by injuries prior to and during 2005–06, theFlyers lived up to those expectations in the first half of the season,reaching the top of the league standings in January whilesimultaneously holding a ten-point lead in the Atlantic Division. TheDeuces Wild line of Forsberg, Gagne, and Mike Knuble recorded 75, 79,and 65 points respectively while Gagne, with Forsberg feeding him,scored a career high of 47 goals. However, the injuries began toaccumulate and take their toll, the most crippling of which was KeithPrimeau season-ending concussion. All told, the Flyers were third inthe NHL with 388 man-games lost to injury, tops amongst playoff teams.The second half of the regular season was defined by a record hoveringaround .500, sending the Flyers on a steady slide in the standings. TheFlyers fell short of an Atlantic Division title, finishing second bytie-breaker to New Jersey, drawing the 5th seed in the EasternConference and a first round match-up with fourth-seeded Buffalo. TheFlyers lost the series in six games.
The Flyers' 40th yearanniversary season turned out to be the worst in franchise history.Having lost Michal Handzus in a trade with Chicago, Kim Johnsson tofree agency and Eric Desjardins and team captain Keith Primeau toretirement in the off-season, the Flyers found themselves without manyleaders to guide the team. Peter Forsberg replaced Primeau as teamcaptain, but a chronic foot injury had him in and out of the lineupthroughout the season and limited his effectiveness. Eight games intothe regular season and with a record of 1–6–1, General Manager BobbyClarke resigned and head coach Ken Hitchcock was fired. Assistant coachJohn Stevens replaced Hitchcock and assistant general manager PaulHolmgren took on Clarke's responsibilities on an interim basis.
Thechanges did little to improve the Flyers fortunes in 2006–07 as settingfranchise records for futility became the norm. They had severalmultiple-game losing streaks including a franchise worst 10-game losingstreak and a 13-game home losing streak that stretched from November 29to February 10. Ultimately, the Flyers finished with a 22–48–12record--the most losses and the worst winning percentage in franchisehistory, and the worst record in the league. They also set the NHLrecord for the biggest points drop off in the standings in a one-yearspan (101 points in 2005–06 to 56 points in 2006–07, a difference of 45points).
With the team clearly on the verge of missing theplayoffs for the first time in 13 years, Holmgren set his sights onrebuilding the team and preparing for the future. Forsberg, unwillingto commit to playing next season, was traded to Nashville for ScottieUpshall, Ryan Parent, and 2007 1st and 3rd-round draft picks. Veterandefenseman Alexei Zhitnik was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers forprospect defenseman Braydon Coburn and disappointing off-seasonacquisition Kyle Calder was sent to the Detroit Red Wings via Chicagoin exchange for defenseman Lasse Kukkonen. The Flyers also acquiredgoaltender Martin Biron from the Buffalo Sabres for a 2007 2nd-roundpick. Given wide praise for his efforts, the Flyers gave Holmgren atwo-year contract and removed the interim label from his title.
TheFlyers began the 2007-08 season with the intention of putting thedisaster of the previous season behind them. In June, the Flyers made atrade which sent the first round draft pick they had acquired in theForsberg trade (23rd overall) back to Nashville for the rights tonegotiate with impending unrestricted free agents Kimmo Timonen andScott Hartnell. Both were signed to six-year contracts. After muchspeculation as to whether the Flyers would trade the 2nd overall pickin the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, the Flyers stayed put and selected NewJersey native James vanRiemsdyk.
The Flyers wasted no time inaddressing their free agent needs. On July 1, the Flyers signed Buffaloco-captain Daniel Briere to an 8-year, $52 million contract. Continuingto revamp their defensive core, Joni Pitkanen and Geoff Sanderson weretraded to Edmonton for Oilers captain Jason Smith and Joffrey Lupul.Smith was named Flyers captain on October 1st.
The season beganin the image of the Broad Street Bullies era, with multiple-gamesuspensions handed out to 5 separate players, the most serious being25-game suspensions to Steve Downie and Jesse Boulerice for twoseparate incidents. A 7-3 start in October and a 9-3-1 January run hadthe Flyers near the top of both the division and conference standings.But a disastrous 10-game losing streak in February reminiscent of sucha streak the previous season nearly derailed the Flyers' season. An8-3-4 run in March coupled with two huge wins over New Jersey andPittsburgh over the final weekend of the regular season put the Flyersback in the playoffs as the 6th seed and a 1st round matchup withWashington.
After taking a 3 games to 1 lead over Washington,the Capitals won Games 5 and 6 to force a Game 7 in Washington. Comingback from a 2-0 deficit, the Flyers won the series in overtime onJoffrey Lupul's powerplay goal. The Flyers then drew a matchup withheavily-favored Montreal in the 2nd round. Despite being outshot andoutplayed a majority of the series, the Flyers upset Montreal in 5games and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the 1st timesince 2003-04 to face Pittsburgh. Before the start of the series, theFlyers suffered a fatal blow when it was learned that Kimmo Timonen wasout with a blood clot in his ankle. Coupled with a gruesome facialinjury to Braydon Coburn in Game 2, Pittsburgh ran roughshod over theFlyers' depleted defense and jumped out to a 3-0 series lead. TheFlyers won Game 4 at home to stave off elimination, and althoughTimonen returned for Game 5, Pittsburgh finished off the Flyers in 5games.
Franchise records
Regular season
* Most goals in a season: Reggie Leach, 61 (1975–76)
* Most assists in a season: Bobby Clarke, 89 (1974–75 & 1975–76)
* Most points in a season: Mark Recchi, 123 (1992–93)
* Most penalty minutes in a season: Dave Schultz, 472 (1974–75) (NHL record)
* Most points in a season, defenseman: Mark Howe, 82 (1985–86)
* Most points in a season, rookie: Mikael Renberg, 82 (1993–94)
* Most wins in a season: Bernie Parent, 47 (1973–74)
* Most shutouts in a season: Bernie Parent, 12 (1973–74 & 1974–75)
* Most power play goals in a season: Tim Kerr, 34 (1985–86) (NHL record)
Playoffs
* Most goals in a playoff season: Reggie Leach, 19 (1975–76) (shares the NHL record with Jari Kurri)
* Most goals by a defenseman in a playoff season: Andy Delmore, 5 (1999–2000)
* Most assists in a playoff season: Pelle Eklund, 20 (1986–87)
* Most points in a playoff season: Brian Propp, 28 (1986–87)
* Most points by a defenseman in a playoff season: Doug Crossman, 18 (1986–87)
* Most penalty minutes in a playoff season: Dave Schultz, 139 (1973–74)
Team
* Most points in a season: 118, (1975–76)
* Most wins in a season: 53, (1984–85, 1985–86)
* Most goals scored: 350, (1983–84)
* Least goals allowed (full season): 164, (1973–74)
* Longest undefeated streak: 35 games, (1979–80) (NHL record)
Hall of Famers:The Flyers currently have at least thirteen personnel in the HockeyHall of Fame. At least seven have been inducted into the playerscategory, at least four in the builders category and at least one inthe broadcasters category. Inducted as players were Goaltender BernieParent in 1984, forward Bobby Clarke in 1987, forward Bill Barber in1990. Paul Coffey, Dale Hawerchuk, Darryl Sittler and Allan Stanleywere also inducted as players, each having played no more than two anda half seasons for the Flyers. Inducted as builders were Keith Allenwho was Head coach (1967–69), GM (1969–83) and Executive VP (since1980), Roger Neilson, Head coach (1997–2000), mainly for his overallNHL coaching career, Bud Poile the Flyers GM (1967–69) and Ed Sniderthe Flyers majority owner (1967–96) and Chairman (since 1996). GeneHart (1967–95), was inducted as a broadcaster.
Retired numbers: TheFlyers have retired four of their jersey numbers and taken a number outof circulation. The Flyers have retired number 1 for goaltender BernieParent (1967–71 & 1973–79) on October 11, 1979, number 4 fordefenseman Barry Ashbee (1970–74) on April 3, 1975, number 7 forleft-winger Bill Barber (1972–84) on October 11, 1990, and number 16for center Bobby Clarke (1969–84) on November 15, 1984. The number 99was retired league-wide for Wayne Gretzky on February 6, 2000. Thenumber 31 of goaltender Pelle Lindbergh (1981–86), was taken out ofcirculation after his death in November 1985 and is consideredunofficially retired.
Flyers Hall of Fame:Established in 1988, the Flyers Hall of Fame honors those who have madesignificant contributions to the Flyers in their careers. To date, 19former players and executives have been inducted, including charterinductees Bernie Parent (1988) and Bobby Clarke (1988), as well as BillBarber (1989), Gene Hart (1992), Tim Kerr (1994), Brian Propp (1999),Mark Howe (2001) and Dave Poulin (2004) to name a few. The newestmember to be added was Ron Hextall on February 6, 2008.
Team captains
* Lou Angotti, 1967–68
* Ed Van Impe, 1968–73
* Bobby Clarke, 1973–79
* Mel Bridgman, 1979–81
* Bill Barber, 1981–82
* Bobby Clarke, 1982–84
* Dave Poulin, 1984–89
* Ron Sutter, 1989–91
* Rick Tocchet, 1991–92
* No captain, 1992–93
* Kevin Dineen, 1993–94
* Eric Lindros, 1994–2000
* Eric Desjardins, 2000–01
* Keith Primeau, 2001–06
* Derian Hatcher, 2006
* Peter Forsberg, 2006–07
* Jason Smith, 2007– present
Head coaches
* Keith Allen, 1967–69
* Vic Stasiuk, 1969–71
* Fred Shero, 1971–78
* Bob McCammon, 1978
* Pat Quinn, 1978–82
* Bob McCammon, 1982–84
* Mike Keenan, 1984–88
* Paul Holmgren, 1988–92
* Bill Dineen, 1992–93
* Terry Simpson, 1993–94
* Terry Murray, 1994–97
* Wayne Cashman, 1997–98
* Roger Neilson, 1998–2000
* Craig Ramsay, 2000
* Bill Barber, 2000–02
* Ken Hitchcock, 2002–06
* John Stevens, 2006– present
General managers
* Bud Poile, 1967–69
* Keith Allen, 1969–83
* Bob McCammon, 1983–84
* Bob Clarke, 1984–90
* Russ Farwell, 1990–94
* Bob Clarke, 1994–2006
* Paul Holmgren, 2006– present
