1972–73 Philadelphia Flyers season



The 1972–73 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Philadelphia Flyers' 6th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Flyers finished 2nd in the West Division and lost in the Semi-finals to the Montreal Canadiens 4 games to 1.

Regular Season
It was during the 1972–73 season that the Flyers shed the mediocre expansion team label and became the intimidating Broad Street Bullies, a nickname coined by Jack Chevalier and Pete Cafone of the Philadelphia Bulletin on January 3, 1973 after a 3 to 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". That same month, Bobby Clarke was the youngest player (at that time) in NHL history to be named team captain, replacing Ed Van Impe. Rick MacLeish became the first Flyer to score 50 goals in a season and the Flyers recorded their first winning season. After the season, Clarke was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player.

Playoffs
An overtime goal by Gary Dornhoefer in Game 5 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 goal was later immortalized as a bronze statue on the south side of the Spectrum. They were outmatched in the Semi-finals by the Montreal Canadiens, however, losing in five games.

Skaters
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes

†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Flyers. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.

‡Traded mid-season

Bold/italics denotes franchise record

Goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average

Transactions
The Flyers were involved in the following transactions before/during the 1972–73 season.

Draft Picks
Philadelphia's picks at the 1972 NHL Amateur Draft in Montreal, Quebec.

Farm Teams
The Flyers were affiliated with the Richmond Robins of the AHL, the San Diego Gulls of the WHL, and the Jersey Devils of the EHL.