1979–80 Philadelphia Flyers season



The 1979–80 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Philadelphia Flyers' 13th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Flyers finished 1st in the Patrick Division and lost in the 1980 Stanley Cup Finals to the New York Islanders 4 games to 2.

Regular Season
The Flyers began the 1979–80 season with a somewhat controversial move by naming Clarke a playing assistant coach and giving the captaincy to Mel Bridgman. While Clarke was against this initially, he accepted his new role. The Flyers would go undefeated for a North American professional sports record 35 straight games (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 spare and the No.1 overall seed in the playoffs. The Flyers' regular-season success continued into the playoffs, as the Flyers swept a young Wayne Gretzky and his Edmonton Oilers in the first round, then went on to get revenge against Fred Shero and his Rangers by beating them in five before disposing of Minnesota in five to lock up a berth in the Stanley Cup Finals. Facing the Islanders for the Cup, the Flyers would ultimately lose in six games on Bob Nystrom's overtime Cup-winning goal. The end result of the series was marred by controversy, as the Islanders were offside on the play that resulted in their second goal in Game 6, but the call was not made. Linesman Leon Stickle admitted after the game that he had blown the call.

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; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average

Transactions
The Flyers were involved in the following transactions before/during the 1979–80 season.

Draft Picks
Philadelphia's picks at the 1979 NHL Entry Draft.

Farm Teams
The Flyers were affiliated with the Maine Mariners of the AHL, the Toledo Goaldiggers of the IHL, and the Hampton Aces of the Eastern Hockey League.