The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. They are the second NHL team to represent Philadelphia, with the first team, the Philadelphia Quakers, only playing one season in 1930–31. The team plays its home games at Xfinity Mobile Arena in the South Philadelphia Sports Complex, an indoor arena they share with the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League (NLL). Part of the 1967 NHL expansion, the Flyers are the first of the expansion teams in the post-Original Six era to win the Stanley Cup, victorious in and again in . Since their two Stanley Cup victories, they have been in the Final five other times, most recently in .
The Flyers play their home games on Broad Street, first at the Spectrum from 1967 until 1996, and then at Xfinity Mobile Arena since 1996. Their association with Broad Street, along with the players consistently brawling with other teams, earned them the nickname "Broad Street Bullies" during the 1970s.
History
NHL in Philadelphia before 1967
Prior to 1967, the Philadelphia Quakers played one season in the NHL after the Pittsburgh Pirates relocated in 1930. The Quakers' only season established a single season NHL record for futility, compiling a dismal record of 4–36–4, still the fewest games ever won in a season by an NHL club. The Quakers suspended operations after that season to leave the Can-Am League's Philadelphia Arrows as Philadelphia's lone hockey team. The Quakers' dormant NHL franchise was finally canceled by the league in 1936. The Arrows would also suspend operations in 1942 following the United States' involvement in World War II.
In 1946, a group led by Montreal and Philadelphia sportsman Len Peto announced plans to put another NHL team in Philadelphia, to build a $2.5 million rink to seat 20,000 where the Phillies' former ballpark stood at Broad and Huntingdon Streets, and to acquire the franchise of the old Montreal Maroons. The latter was held by the Canadian Arena Company, owner of the Montreal Canadiens. However, Peto's group was unable to raise funding for the new arena project by the league-imposed deadline, and the NHL cancelled the Maroons franchise.
While attending a basketball game on November 29, 1964, at the Boston Garden, Ed Snider, the then-vice-president of the Philadelphia Eagles, observed a crowd of Boston Bruins fans lining up to purchase tickets to see a last-place ice hockey team. He began making plans for a new arena upon hearing the NHL was looking to expand due to fears of a competing league taking hold on the West Coast and the desire for a new television contract in the United States. Snider formed a group made up of himself, Bill Putnam, Jerome Schiff and Philadelphia Eagles owner Jerry Wolman to the league.
On April 4, 1966, Putnam announced a name-the-team contest.For details, see #Colors, name and logo. Details of the contest were released on July 12. Snider's sister, Phyllis, thought that a name that fits well with Philadelphia was "Flyers". Instead of going through with the naming contest, Ed Snider took his sister's advice. The team name was announced on August 3.
Early years (1967–1971)
Among the Flyers' 20 selections in the 1967 NHL expansion draft were goaltender Bernie Parent, Ed Van Impe, and Gary Dornhoefer. Their debut in 1967–68 occurred on October 11, 1967, losing 5–1 to the California Seals. The Flyers won their division with a sub-.500 record despite being forced to play their last seven home games on the road due to a storm blowing parts of the Spectrum's roof off. The Flyers were defeated by the St. Louis Blues in the first round in seven games.
Van Impe was named team captain in the offseason. In the 1969 playoffs, they lost to St. Louis again, this time in a four-game sweep. Not wanting his team to be physically outmatched again, majority owner Ed Snider instructed general manager Bud Poile to acquire bigger, tougher players. While head coach Keith Allen soon after replaced Poile as general manager, this mandate eventually led to one of the most feared teams to ever take the ice in the NHL. In the 1969 draft, they selected Bobby Clarke at 17th overall. Keeping to Snider's mandate, the team also drafted enforcer Dave Schultz.
Clarke's 15 goals and 31 assists in his rookie season earned him a trip to the NHL All-Star Game. However, the team struggled in 1969–70, recording only 17 wins — the fewest in franchise history — while also setting the NHL record for most ties in a season (24). They lost the tiebreaker for the final playoff spot to the Oakland Seals, missing the playoffs for the first time.
On December 11, 1969, the Flyers introduced what became one of the team's best-known traditions: playing a recording of Kate Smith singing "God Bless America" instead of "The Star-Spangled Banner" with specific games. The perception was that the team was more successful on these occasions, so the tradition grew. The move was initially done by Flyers Promotion Director Lou Scheinfeld as a way to defray national tensions at the time of the Vietnam War: Scheinfeld noticed that people regularly left their seats and walked around during the anthem, but showed more respect and often sang along to "God Bless America".
In 1970–71, the Flyers bounced back from the previous season and returned to the playoffs, but were swept by the Chicago Black Hawks in the first round. Even though the team improved their record in his second season behind the bench, head coach Vic Stasiuk was replaced by Fred Shero in the offseason. The team was involved in a three-way trade that sent Bernie Parent to the Toronto Maple Leafs while receiving Rick MacLeish from the Boston Bruins.
Broad Street Bullies (1971–1981)
Bobby Clarke continued to progress as he led the team in scoring in 1971–72 and became the first Flyer to win an NHL award, the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. However, the Flyers lost their final game of the season, losing the head-to-head tiebreaker to the Pittsburgh Penguins and missed the playoffs.
In the 1972–73 season, the Flyers earned the "Broad Street Bullies" nickname, coined by Jack Chevalier and Pete Cafone of the Philadelphia Bulletin on January 3, 1973, after a 3–1 brawling victory over the Atlanta Flames that led Chevalier to write in his game account, "The image of the fightin' Flyers spreading gradually around the NHL, and people are dreaming up wild nicknames. They're the Mean Machine, the Bullies of Broad Street and Freddy's Philistines." Cafone wrote the accompanying headline: "Broad Street Bullies Muscle Atlanta." Rick MacLeish became the first Flyer to score 50 goals in a season and the Flyers recorded their first winning season.
An overtime goal by Gary Dornhoefer in game five turned the tide of their first-round series with the Minnesota North Stars in the Flyers' favor, as the Flyers got their first playoff series win in six games. The Flyers subsequently created a statue of Dornhoefer's overtime goal. However, they were outmatched in the semifinals by the Montreal Canadiens, losing in five games. After the season, Clarke became the first expansion team player to be awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player.
1973–74 Stanley Cup champions Goaltender Bernie Parent returned to the franchise in the offseason. The Flyers continued their rough-and-tumble ways, led by Dave Schultz's 348 penalty minutes, and reached the top of the West Division with a record of 50–16–12. Parent won 47 games for the Flyers, a record which stood in the NHL for 33 years. Since the Flyers, along with Chicago, allowed the fewest goals in the league, Parent also shared the Vezina Trophy with Chicago's Tony Esposito.
In the playoffs, the Flyers swept the Atlanta Flames in four games in the first round. In the semifinals, the Flyers defeated the New York Rangers in seven games, becoming the first team to win a series against an Original Six team. In the 1974 Stanley Cup Final, they defeated the Bobby Orr-led Boston Bruins in six games. Parent, with his shutout against Boston in game six, won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs.
1974–75 Stanley Cup champions Under the 1974–75 season, Dave Schultz topped his mark from the previous season by setting an NHL record for penalty minutes with 472. Clarke's efforts earned him his second Hart Trophy and Parent was the lone recipient of the Vezina Trophy. The Flyers as a team improved their record slightly with a mark of 51–18–11, the best record in the NHL. After a first-round bye, the Flyers swept the Toronto Maple Leafs and faced the New York Islanders in the semifinals. Despite holding a 3–0 series lead against the Islanders, New York tied the series. The Flyers defeated the Islanders in game seven 4–1.
Facing the Buffalo Sabres in the Stanley Cup Final, the Flyers won the first two games at home. Game three, played in Buffalo, went down in hockey lore as "The Fog Game" due to an unusual May heatwave in Buffalo that forced parts of the game to be played in heavy fog, as Buffalo's arena lacked air conditioning. Though the Flyers lost both games in Buffalo, they won games five and six to win their second Stanley Cup. Parent also repeated as the playoffs MVP, winning a second consecutive Conn Smythe Trophy.
Victory against the Soviets and diminishing playoff success
On January 11, 1976 at the Spectrum, the Flyers, as part of the Super Series '76, played an exhibition game against the Soviet Union's Central Red Army team. As the Flyers had put intimidation to good use the past three years, the Flyers' rugged style of play led the Soviets to leave the ice midway through the first period, protesting a hit on Valeri Kharlamov by Ed Van Impe, whom Clarke also slashed on the ankle in the Summit Series '72. After some delay, the Soviets returned after they were warned that they would lose their salary for the entire series. The Flyers went on to win the game rather 4–1, and were the only team to defeat the Red Army in the series. After that win, the Spectrum became known as the "most intimidating building to play in and has the most intimidating fans." Head coach Fred Shero proclaimed, "Yes we are world champions. If they had won, they would have been world champions. We beat the hell out of a machine."
The Flyers recorded the best record in team history with a 51–13–16 record, while also setting the NHL record for most consecutive home wins in regulation (20). The LCB line, featuring Reggie Leach at right-wing, Bobby Clarke at center and Bill Barber at 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 Hart Trophy, set a club record for points in one season with 119. Heading into the playoffs, the Flyers defeated Toronto in seven games and defeated Boston in five games, with game five featuring a five-goal outburst by Leach to head to a third straight appearance in the Stanley Cup Final. However, the Flyers were swept in four games by Montreal. Despite the loss, Leach was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for scoring a record 19 goals in 16 playoff games.
Prior to the 1976–77 season, Dave Schultz was traded to the Los Angeles Kings. Despite a slight drop-off in performance, the Flyers won the Patrick Division with their fourth consecutive division title. In the playoffs, they lost in a four-game sweep against the Bruins in the semifinals. In the 1978 playoffs, they had a repeat of the prior season, losing to Boston in the semifinals. Following the season, Shero left to become general manager and head coach of the New York Rangers.