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The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional Ice Hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . They play in the National Hockey League (NHL). FACTS :Founded: 1967-1968 (franchise awarded February 9 , 1966 ) :Arena: Wachovia Center (1996-Present), (Capacity 19,519) ::Former Home Arenas: The Spectrum (1967-1996) :Uniform colors: orange, white, black :Logo design: a lowercase "p" with an orange dot and wings streaking from the back :Division titles won: 1968 , 1974 , 1975 , 1976 , 1977 , 1980 , 1983 , 1985 , 1986 , 1987 , 1995 , 1996 , 2000 , 2002 , 2004 :''' (won), 1975 (won), 1976 (loss), 1980 (loss), 1985 (loss), 1987 (loss), 1997 (loss)) :Rivals: New Jersey Devils , Toronto Maple Leafs , New York Rangers , Pittsburgh Penguins , Ottawa Senators FRANCHISE HISTORY Early years After years of clamoring for an NHL franchise, Philadelphia finally got one when the league expanded in 1967 for the first time in 40 years. The new teams were hampered by restrictive rules that kept all major talent with the " Original Six ". The Flyers' top goal scorer that first season, Leon Rochefort, scored only 21 times. All six new franchises were placed into the "Western Division", where the Flyers finished first in their inaugural season. They would be upset by the St. Louis Blues in the first round of the playoffs, in 1968 . In 1969 , the Flyers were manhandled by those same Blues in a sweep. This prompted owner Ed Snider to tell General Manager Bud Poile to acquire bigger, tougher players. This mandate would eventually lead to one of the most feared teams to ever take the ice in the NHL . Broad Street Bullies The Flyers would prove by the early 1970s that they could challenge the original six. Bobby Clarke would emerge as the expansion teams' first superstar as they became the first expansion team to win the Stanley Cup in 1974 , defeating the Boston Bruins in six games. The Flyers, however, were derided by other teams (and lionized by their fans) for being the "Broad Street Bullies" (after home ice The Spectrum 's location on Philadelphia's Broad Street ): Seven players racked up over 100 penalty minutes during that Cup-winning season, and one (Dave "The Hammer" Schultz) sat in the box for 348 minutes--the equivalent of almost six whole games. Interestingly enough, many players on the Flyers claimed in later years that it was the bullying tactics of the Saint Louis Blues that forced them to load the roster with brawn. The approach worked - they won the Cup again the next year, defeating the Buffalo Sabres , as Dave Schultz set a record for penalty minutes (472). In 1976 , they lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the finals, and would make at least the second round of the playoffs every year until 1982 . Despite failing to capture a third consecutive Stanley Cup, the Flyers were still victorious in what was arguably one of the biggest games in NHL history when they defeated the Soviet Union’s Central Red Army. The game was a continuation of the “Summit Series”, where the official hockey world champions, the Central Red Army, played four games against the best NHL teams with a final game against the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Philadelphia Flyers. The game holds much more merit emotionally as it was held during the “Cold War” between America and the Soviet Union, and sports were often seen as a way for one nation to establish dominance over the other. The game was held on January 11, 1976 at the Spectrum in Philadelphia with an attendance of 17,007. The Central Red Army’s style of play was almost the complete opposite of the Flyers’ who were still in their “Broad Street Bully” days, but the rugged style of the Flyers prevailed, winning the game rather easily 4-1, clinching the only outright victory over the Red Army in the four exhibition games. The Russian team was outplayed by the Flyers. In a typical Soviet-style move, the coach of the Russian team pulled his team off of the ice after a Russian player was hit with a legal check. The Russian coach attempted to intimidate the referee by threatening not to return his team to the ice. The Flyers owner, Ed Snider, showed the Russian coach the contract between the NHL and the Russian Hockey Federation and stated that the Russian team would not be paid for any of the games in the series if the Russian team did not come back to the ice. This was enough incentive for the cash-strapped Soviets to return to the ice, where they were humiliated by the Flyers. The 80's In 1980, with second-year forward Ken Linseman leading the team in scoring, they would make the finals again, but would lose to the New York Islanders on Bob Nystrom's overtime goal in game 6. The Islanders' fourth goal in that game remains in dispute by Flyers fans to this day, as the Islanders were clearly offside, but no whistle was forthcoming. It was also during this season that the Flyers were undefeated for a North American professional sports record 35 straight games (25-0-10), a record that still stands more than 25 years later. The Flyers would return to the finals in 1985 , behind the goaltending of Pelle Lindbergh (who led the league with 40 wins) and two 40-goal scorers, Tim Kerr and Brian Propp . They would prove to be no match for the Edmonton Oilers however, losing in five games. Lindbergh would die in a car accident just after the start of the 1985-86 NHL Season , and the Flyers would lose in the first round of the playoffs to a Cinderella New York Rangers team. A rejuvenated Flyers team (with Ron Hextall as Goaltender ) would return to the finals in 1987 , but lose again to the Oilers, in seven games. The Flyers stumbled in 1988 , finishing third in the Patrick division (after a first-place finish the previous three years). Coach Mike Keenan was fired and replaced by Paul Holmgren in 1989, Kerr and Rick Tocchet would score 40 goals, and the Flyers would make the Wales conference finals before losing to the Canadiens. Eric Lindros era They would not make the playoffs again for another five years, despite winning the arbitration battle for 1991 #1 overall pick Eric Lindros against the New York Rangers. Lindros, Hextall (who had been traded to the Quebec Nordiques in the Lindros deal, then re-acquired in a trade with the New York Islanders prior to the 1994-95 season) Mikael Renberg , Rod Brind'Amour , Eric Desjardins , and John LeClair (LeClair, Desjardins, and Gilbert Dionne acquired mid-season in a trade with Montreal for Mark Recchi ) would shine in the abbreviated 1994-95 NHL Season season as the Flyers made the conference finals before losing to the New Jersey Devils . Lindros teamed up with John LeClair and Mikael Renberg to form the famous "Legion of Doom" line - a mix of scoring talent, and big, physical presence, a la the Broad Street Bullies. Two years later, they won the Eastern Conference, but were swept in four straight games by the Detroit Red Wings in the Stanley Cup finals. The Flyers would get high-scoring right winger Mark Recchi back in time for the 1999 playoffs (after a very successful three-year stint in the early 1990s), and they would lose the first round series to the Toronto Maple Leafs , despite giving up only nine goals in the six-game series. In 2000 , the Flyers made it back to the conference final on the heels of an amazing goaltending performance by rookie Brian Boucher . They went up three games to one in the series, but lost the last three games to the New Jersey Devils (4-1, 2-1, and 2-1). Pre-Salary Cap This would set off a string of disappointing postseasons, as well as erratic goaltending from Boucher, who would be replaced by Roman Cechmanek , a former star goalie in the Czech Republic . In 2001 , they again lost to the Buffalo Sabres in the first round, which featured a matchup between former Czech National Team teammates Dominik Hasek and Roman Cechmanek, as well as an 8-0 loss in the final game of the series. The next season, the Flyers would again lose in the first round of the playoffs, this time to the Ottawa Senators . Roman Cechmanek, much maligned for giving up "soft goals", took most of the blame for this loss, despite lackluster play from marquee players such as Adam Oates , Mark Recchi , and John LeClair . LeClair and Recchi failed to record a single point in the series, and the Flyers as a whole only managed to score two goals in the entire five-game series. During the offseason, GM Bob Clarke would clean house, firing coach Bill Barber and hiring former Cup winner and Dallas Stars head coach Ken Hitchcock . There were also a few roster moves, with former rookie sensation Brian Boucher being dealt to the Phoenix Coyotes for Michal Handzus and goaltender Robert Esche . In 2003 , the Flyers endured a seven game first-round matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs , but would lose once again to the Ottawa Senators in a gutsy six game series. The Flyers did not escape the playoffs without controversy, however, as Roman Cechmanek, despite allowing fluky goals, publicly lambasted his team for playing poorly against the Senators. Cechmanek would be traded to the Los Angeles Kings during the offseason for a third round draft choice, despite having the second-best goal-against average in the league over his three years in Philadelphia. With the departure of Cechmanek, the Flyers signed free agent journeyman goaltender Jeff Hackett , but would lose him midseason due to vertigo. Instead, backup Robert Esche quickly established himself as the number one goalie, and along with the inspired play of captain Keith Primeau led the Flyers to the Eastern Conference final. They came up just short as they bowed out in Game Seven to the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning . With the NHL preparing for looming labor unrest, the Flyers let their leading scorer from the previous season, Mark Recchi , leave for Pittsburgh via free agency. Unsure about what the future would bring, the Flyers were unsure about Recchi's worth. The only notable signing of the offseason leading up to the lockout was winger Mike Knuble , who was termed a poor-man's John LeClair . Recent years The Flyers were one of the more active teams once the NHL Lockout came to an end. They began by buying out the contracts of Tony Amonte and longtime fan-favorite John LeClair in order to free some space under the salary cap. When the Free Agency period began, they addressed a perceived weakness by signing towering defensemen Derian Hatcher and Mike Rathje . If left at that, many Flyers fans would have been more than satisfied. After all, AHL sensations such as Jeff Carter , Mike Richards , and Antero Niittymäki were set to make their debuts with the Flyers. But on August 3, 2005 the Flyers signed former Colorado Avalanche star Peter Forsberg to a 2-year deal. The Flyers had drafted Forsberg 14 years previously, but had included him in the infamous Eric Lindros deal. In order to accomodate the Forsberg signing, the Flyers traded another fan-favorite, Jeremy Roenick , to Los Angeles. When all was said and done, the team had experienced a turnover of nearly two-thirds of the team. The Flyers began with high expectations and didn't disappoint the first couple months of the 2005-06 season. After a lengthy undefeated streak (most of which came on the road), the Flyers reached their zenith in January as they had the most points in the NHL. However, injuries began to take their toll. Captain Keith Primeau suffered a concussion during an October game in Montreal and would miss the rest of the regular season. All told, the Flyers would end up leading the NHL in man games lost to injury. With injuries came inconsistency and with inconsistency came mediocrity. The Flyers would fall short of expectations as they lost the Atlantic Division by a tie-breaker to the New Jersey Devils and settled into the 5th seed and a date with the Buffalo Sabres in the first round. Following The Flyers have had a devoted following since the days of the Broad Street Bullies. It is safe to say that the Flyers are one of the more popular United States based teams in the NHL. In fact, in 2005 The Sporting News named Philadelphia the #1 hockey city. Philadelphia fans have a reputation for being tough and opinionated and are generally recognized as being knowledgeable hockey fans. While the Eagles are the de facto #1 team in the city of Philadelphia as far as fan affection goes, a strong case could be made that the Flyers are #2 on the pecking order. It has often been suggested by a number of media personalities in Philly that the only people in the city who care about the Flyers are the 19,000 who show up every night. However, this could be a result of sour grapes, as the personalities suggesting this usually cover the Phillies and 76ers, teams with sagging attendance and indifferent fan bases as of late. Memorable Moments
SEASON-BY-SEASON RECORD ''Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes'' :1 Season was shortened due to the 1994-95 NHL Lockout . :2 Season was cancelled due to the 2004-05 NHL Lockout . :3 As of 2005-2006 season, games may no longer end in ties. :4 Postseason in progress; Game 6 Tuesday, May 2, 2006 @ 7:00 pm NOTABLE PLAYERS Current squad ''As of April 20 , 2006 '' {Link without Title} Hall Of Famers
Team captains
Retired numbers
Franchise scoring leaders These are the top-ten point-scorers in the history of the Flyers. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season. ''Note: GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points'' Broadcasters The Flyers' home television stations are Comcast SportsNet and UPN 57 while 610 WIP broadcasts games on radio.
TEAM AWARDS Every season, the Flyers give out these awards to one or two of their players for achievement in the following categories:
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