1974–75 Philadelphia Flyers season



The 1974–75 Philadelphia Flyers season was the franchise's 8th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Flyers finished 1st in the Patrick Division and defeated the Buffalo Sabres in the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals 4 games to 2.

Pre-season
On September 28, 1974, the Flyers won an exhibition game 4-2 against the New England Whalers.

Regular Season
In 1974–75, Dave Schultz topped his mark from the previous season by setting an NHL record for penalty minutes (472 in all). Bobby Clarke's efforts earned him his second Hart Trophy and Bernie 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 league.

Playoffs
After a first-round bye, the Flyers easily swept the Toronto Maple Leafs and were presented with another New York-area team in the semifinals. The Flyers looked to be headed toward another sweep against the New York Islanders after winning the first three games. The Islanders, however, fought back by winning the next three games, setting up a deciding seventh game. The Flyers were finally able to shut the door on the Islanders, winning Game 7, 4–1.

Facing the Buffalo Sabres in the Stanley Cup Finals, the Flyers won the first two games at home. Game 3, played in Buffalo, would go down in hockey lore as The Fog Game due to an unusual May heat wave in Buffalo which forced parts of the game to be played in heavy fog, as Buffalo's arena lacked air conditioning. The Flyers lost Games 3 and 4, but won Game 5 at home in dominating fashion, 5–1. On the road for Game 6, Bob Kelly scored the decisive goal and Parent posted another shutout (his fourth of the playoffs) as the Flyers repeated as Stanley Cup Champions. Parent also repeated as the playoff MVP, winning his second consecutive Conn Smythe Trophy. The 1974–75 Flyers were the last Stanley Cup champion to be comprised entirely of Canadian born players.

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

Draft Picks
Philadelphia's picks at the 1974 NHL Amateur Draft in Montreal, Quebec.

Farm Teams
The Flyers were affiliated with the Richmond Robins of the AHL and the Philadelphia Firebirds of the NAHL. The Flyers and the expansion Washington Capitals had a joint affiliation agreement with Richmond and both teams sent players there. Richmond finished 2nd in their division and lost in seven games to the Hershey Bears in the first round of the playoffs. Playing in the Pennsylvania Convention Center, the first-year Firebirds finished 2nd in the league but lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Long Island Cougars.