Note: This post was supposed to be up last night. I got caught up in things. Excuse me for the mishap. Whether or not a Phillies ALL-PHILLY TEAM post will be up tonight is yet to be seen. We just might push all the Info Sessions back one night each.
Starting off though, I expect you guys to know Bobby Clarke, Bill Barber and Bernie Parent. They are arguably the best players the franchise has ever seen.
I expect you guys to know Ron Hextall because he played so many years here and in two different decades.
I expect you guys to know Eric Lindros, John LeClair, Eric Desjardin, Simone Gagne, Jeremy Roenick, Keith Primeau, Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Kimmo Timonen because they are all pretty recent.
And lastly, some might argue that Mark Recchi should have been on the ballot. That is a valid point, but realize that Recchi's best years were when the team went through its worst stretch, the early '90s. When he came back and the team was better, he contributed less. If there is a Wild Card Ballot though, without question he will be on it.
So...let's learn about some of the other Flyers on this list.
1. Ed Van Impe
-Great defensive player for the Flyers on the 1974 and 1975 Stanley Cup Championship teams
-At one point a Captain of the team
-Famous for his awesome check against the Russians in 1976
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
-Right winger on the Flyers 1974 and 1975 Championship teams
-Famous for his overtime goal against the Minnesota North Stars in the 1973 playoffs (there is a statue of that goal outside the Spectrum)
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
3. Barry Ashbee
-Defensive player on the 1974 Stanley Cup Championship team
-He had a +52 plus/minus that season
-Died in 1977 due to leukemia
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
-His No. 4 is retired by the Flyers (one of four to have it---other three are Bobby Clarke, Bernie Parent and Bill Barber)
-The annual award for the team's best defensive player is named after him
4. Reggie Leach
-Member of the Flyers 1975 Stanley Cup Championship team
-Member of the famous "LCB Line" of Clarke, Barber and himself
-Although the Flyers lost in the 1976 Stanley Cup Finals, he won the Conn Smythe award that year for the playoff's Most Valuable Player
-Scored 5 goals in one game during the '76 Playoffs
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
-Member of the Flyers two Stanley Cup Championship teams
-Scored 50 goals and collected 100 points in 1973
-Scored 13 goals in the '74 playoffs and 11 goals in the '75 playoffs
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
6. Joe Watson
-Member of the Flyers two Stanley Cup Championship teams as a defensive player
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
-Goalie for the 1985 Prince of Wales Conference Championship team
-First ever winner of the Bobby Clarke Trophy for the team's Most Valuable Player in 1985
-Won the Vezina Trophy in 1985 for the NHL's best goalie (first European to do so in NHL history)
-Died in a fatal car crash in the beginning of the 1985-86 season
-The Flyers Most Improved player award is named after him
-Member of the Flyers two Stanley Cup Championships
-Scored 20 goals in 1974
-Known for being one of the most brutal guys on the "Broad Street Bullies"
9. Brian Propp
-Member of the Flyers 1980 Clarence Campbell Conference Championship team and 1985 and 1987 Prince of Wales Conference Championship teams
-In 1980, his rookie season, he was on the same line as Reggie Leach and Bobby Clarke
-Scored over 40 goals and collected over 90 points four times each as a Flyer
-Holds two Flyers team records—most shorthanded goals (seven...Mike Richards might break that this season) and most points in a playoff year (28 points in the 1987 playoffs)
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
-Captain of the Flyers 1985 and 1987 Prince of Wales Conference Championship teams
-Scored the memorable 5 on 3 shorthanded breakaway goal against the Quebec Nordiques at the Spectrum in the 1985 Conference Championship to help propel the Orange and Black to the Stanley Cup Finals (as seen in his picture above holding the Prince of Wales Trophy)
-Won the Frank J. Selke Trophy in 1987 for defensive skills (even though he was a center)
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
11. Tim Kerr
-Member of the Flyers 1985 and 1987 Conference Championship teams
-Scored four goals in a row during one game
-He scored over 50 goals every season from the 1983 to 1987 seasons (three out of those four seasons he had over 90 points)
-After dealing with severe injury problems in the 1988 season, he made a triumphant comeback in the 1989 season, scoring 48 goals and collecting 88 points
-Won the Bill Masterton Trophy in 1989 for showing the most perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication in the league
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
12. Mark Howe
-Defensive player on the 1985 and 1987 Conference Championship teams
-Was an All-Star three times as a Flyer
-In 1986 he scored 24 goals, with 58 assists for a combined total of 82 points. His plus/minus was a +85 and he had seven shorthanded goals. He was the plus/minus leader in the league that year. He won the Bobby Clarke Award in '86 and was a finalist for the Norris Trophy (league's best defensive player) three times as a member of the Orange and Black.
-In the Flyers Hall of Fame
13. Rick Tocchet
-Member of the 1985 and 1987 Conference Championship teams
-Was a Captain in the early '90s
-Won the Bobby Clarke Trophy in 1990
-Scored 40 or more goals in 1989 and 1991 and reached over 70 points three times as a Flyer
-Made a return trip to the team earlier this decade
Here is a video that sums up the Flyers at their 40th Anniversary season two years ago.
Alright, I guess after watching this video, Recchi probably should have been on the list. Also, Rod Brind'amour should have been on it as well. I guess a Wild Card ballot is looking ever more immanent. More details to come on this later if it happens.
Oh yeah, and I don't care what anybody says. Peter Forsberg is NOT going on any ballot. He falls under that stiffs post I had about Elton Brand when he got hurt again a couple of weeks ago.
And as far as the Phillies post goes, it will go up tomorrow. Everything will be pushed back a day.
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