1978–79 Philadelphia Flyers season

The 1978–79 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Philadelphia Flyers' 12th season in the National Hockey League (NHL).

1978–79 Philadelphia Flyers
Division2nd Patrick
Conference2nd Campbell
1978–79 record40–25–15
Home record26–10–4
Road record14–15–11
Goals for281 (8th)
Goals against248 (3rd)
Team information
PresidentJoe Scott
General managerKeith Allen
CoachBob McCammon (fired)[lower-alpha 1]
Pat Quinn[lower-alpha 1]
CaptainBobby Clarke
Alternate captainsNone[lower-alpha 2]
ArenaSpectrum
Average attendance17,077[2]
Minor league affiliate(s)Maine Mariners
Milwaukee Admirals
Jersey Aces
Team leaders
GoalsBill Barber (34)
Reggie Leach (34)
AssistsBobby Clarke (57)
PointsBill Barber (87)
Penalty minutesBehn Wilson (197)
Plus/minusBlake Dunlop (+27)
WinsWayne Stephenson (20)
Goals against averageRobbie Moore (1.77)

Off-season

Head coach Fred Shero, who had one more year left on his contract, submitted a letter of resignation on May 22, 1978,[3] stating that the Flyers needed a change whether they realized it or not. Flyers management had previously heard rumors about Shero wanting to leave Philadelphia and re-join the New York Rangers organization, and refused to accept his letter of resignation.[4] Shero then signed a $250,000, five-year contract with the Rangers to be their new head coach and general manager, believing he no longer had a contractual agreement to the Flyers.[5] A few weeks after signing Shero, the Rangers gave the Flyers their first-round pick (7th overall) in the 1978 draft and cash as compensation, allowing the Rangers to avoid tampering charges.[4] Bob McCammon, who had just coached the Flyers' first year American Hockey League Maine Mariners farm club to a Calder Cup title, was named Shero's replacement on July 6.[6]

The Flyers acquired the 6th overall pick from the Pittsburgh Penguins for three veterans from their Stanley Cup championship teams — Tom Bladon, Orest Kindrachuk and Ross Lonsberry — on the eve of the draft. The trade gave the Flyers three first-round picks and they selected defenseman Behn Wilson and forwards Ken Linseman and Dan Lucas.

Two other longtime Flyers also left the team during the off-season. Gary Dornhoefer retired and Joe Watson was traded to the Colorado Rockies.

Regular season

After an eight-game winless streak in January that saw the team drop to last place in the division, McCammon and assistant coach Terry Crisp were fired.[1] Replacing him was Shero's previous assistant coach Pat Quinn, who had replaced McCammon as head coach in Maine.[1] While McCammon returned to Maine and coached the Mariners to a second consecutive Calder Cup title, the Flyers rallied under Quinn and finished in 2nd place.

On February 17, 1979, Bernie Parent suffered a career-ending eye injury in a game against the New York Rangers.[7] An errant stick entered the right eye hole of his mask, causing permanent damage to his vision.[7] After hospitalization, including the complete loss of sight for two weeks, Parent recovered and eventually regained sight, although not at the level required to resume his playing career.[7]

Season standings
Patrick Division
  GP W L T GF GA PTS
New York Islanders80511514358214116
Philadelphia Flyers8040251528124895
New York Rangers8040291131629291
Atlanta Flames804131832728090

Playoffs

Matched-up against the Vancouver Canucks in the preliminary round, the Flyers won the series in three games. The Flyers' season came to an end against Shero's Rangers in a five-game quarterfinal loss.

Schedule and results

Regular season
1978–79 regular season
October: 3–4–2, 8 Points (Home: 2–3–0; Road: 1–1–2)
November: 9–4–2, 20 Points (Home: 4–1–1; Road: 5–3–1)
December: 7–5–2, 16 Points (Home: 6–1–0; Road: 1–4–2)
January: 3–4–5, 11 Points (Home: 2–1–3; Road: 1–3–2)
February: 5–2–2, 12 Points (Home: 3–2–0; Road: 2–0–2)
March: 11–4–2, 24 Points (Home: 7–1–0; Road: 4–3–2)
April: 2–2–0, 4 Points (Home: 2–1–0; Road: 0–1–0)

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs
1979 Stanley Cup playoffs
Preliminary Round vs. Vancouver Canucks – Flyers win 2–1
Quarterfinals vs. New York Rangers – Rangers win 4–1

Legend:   Win   Loss

Player statistics

Scoring
  • Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
  • = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
  • = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
Regular season Playoffs
No. Player Age Pos GP G A Pts +/- PIM GP G A Pts +/- PIM
7Bill Barber26LW7934468019228347−110
16Bobby Clarke29C8016577312688246−88
10Mel Bridgman23C76243559141848123−717
19Rick MacLeish29LW712632584477011−50
27Reggie Leach28RW76342054−3208516−90
3Behn Wilson20D80133649131975101−68
32Blake Dunlop25C6620284827168112−54
2Bob Dailey25D709303921638123014
9Bob Kelly28LW7773138151328112−510
17Paul Holmgren23RW5719102921688156622
26Ken Linseman20C305202516238268122
20Jimmy Watson26D779132211528022−52
5Rick Lapointe23D773182115537011−414
22Tom Gorence21RW421361916107314−50
29Barry Dean23LW3041317−120——————
11Don Saleski29RW3511516314——————
28, 43Dennis Ververgaert25RW379716−463022−12
15, 37Al Hill23LW31511165287101−22
8Dave Hoyda21LW67313162138300000
6Andre Dupont29D773912211358000−617
23Paul Evans24C446511−312——————
18Yves Preston22LW9314−20——————
31, 38Frank Bathe24D211349766101412
28Drew Callander22C15213−15——————
25Kevin McCarthy21D22123221——————
1Bernie Parent33G36022N/A8——————
15Danny Lucas20LW6101−20——————
35Wayne Stephenson34G40011N/A24000N/A5
39Robbie Moore24G5011N/A05011N/A2
24Terry Murray28D500005——————
33Pete Peeters21G5000N/A6——————
30Rick St. Croix24G2000N/A0——————
44Glen Cochrane21D1000−20——————
25Norm Barnes25D——————2000−20

Goaltending
  • = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
Regular season Playoffs
No. Player Age GP GS W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI GP GS W L SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
35Wayne Stephenson344036201059461223.36.87122,181:40430390164.63.8220207:33
1Bernie Parent33363616127834892.71.89341,970:45——————————
33Pete Peeters2154121109163.47.8530276:41——————————
39Robbie Moore24533019671.77.9272237:185532123184.06.8540266:12
30Rick St. Croix24210115363.08.8870117:00——————————

Awards and records

Awards
Type Award/honor Recipient Ref
League (annual) NHL Second All-Star Team Bill Barber (Left Wing) [8]
League (in-season) Challenge Cup selection Bill Barber [9]
Bobby Clarke
Team Barry Ashbee Trophy Bob Dailey [10]
Class Guy Award Bernie Parent [10]

Individual
Franchise player records set during the 1978–79 season
Record Type Total Player Date(s) Opponent Ref
Penalties in minutes Game 55 Frank Bathe 3/11/1979 Los Angeles Kings [11]
Points by a rookie defenseman Season 49 Behn Wilson — — [12]

Team
Franchise team records set during the 1978–79 season
Record Type Total Date(s) Opponent Player(s) Refs
Fastest three goals Game 0:35 3/1/1979 Boston Bruins Behn Wilson [13]
Blake Dunlop
Al Hill
Goals against Period 6[lower-alpha 3] 4/24/1979 New York Rangers — [14]

Transactions

The Flyers were involved in the following transactions from May 26, 1978, the day after the deciding game of the 1978 Stanley Cup Finals, through May 21, 1979, the day of the deciding game of the 1979 Stanley Cup Finals.[15]

Trades
Date Details Ref
June 2, 1978[lower-alpha 4] To Philadelphia Flyers
1st-round pick in 1978
cash		 To New York Rangers
Fred Shero		 [16]
June 14, 1978 To Philadelphia Flyers
1st-round pick in 1978
future considerations[lower-alpha 5]		 To Pittsburgh Penguins
Tom Bladon
Orest Kindrachuk
Ross Lonsberry		 [17]
June 15, 1978 To Philadelphia Flyers
2nd-round pick in 1979		 To Colorado Rockies
2nd-round pick in 1978
June 15, 1978 To Philadelphia Flyers
10th-round pick in 1978
11th-round pick in 1978		 To Buffalo Sabres
cash
June 15, 1978 To Philadelphia Flyers
12th-round pick in 1978		 To Chicago Black Hawks
cash
August 31, 1978 To Philadelphia Flyers
cash		 To Colorado Rockies
Joe Watson		 [18]
December 29, 1978 To Philadelphia Flyers
Dennis Ververgaert		 To Vancouver Canucks
Drew Callander
Kevin McCarthy		 [19]
March 3, 1979 To Philadelphia Flyers
future considerations		 To Colorado Rockies
Don Saleski		 [20]

Free agency

The following players were signed by the Flyers via free agency.

Date Player Previous team (league) Term Ref
September 1978M. F. SchurmanSpokane Flyers (WIHL)[21]
October 9, 1978Yves PrestonMilwaukee Admirals (IHL)[22]
November 7, 1978Robbie MooreUniversity of Western Ontario (OUAA)[23]
November 20, 1978Reid BaileyPort Huron Flags (IHL)[24]

Waivers

The Flyers were not involved in any waivers transactions. The 1978 NHL Waiver Draft was held on October 9, 1978.[25] The Flyers protected the following players: goaltenders Bernie Parent and Wayne Stephenson, defensemen Bob Dailey, Andre Dupont, Rick Lapointe, Kevin McCarthy, Terry Murray, and Jimmy Watson, and forwards Bill Barber, Mel Bridgman, Drew Callander, Bobby Clarke, Barry Dean, Blake Dunlop, Paul Holmgren, Dave Hoyda, Bob Kelly, Reggie Leach, Rick MacLeish, and Don Saleski.[26]

Departures

The following players left the team via free agency, release, or retirement. Players who were under contract and left the team during the season are marked with an asterisk (*).

Date Player New team (league) Via Ref
N/AGary Dornhoefer—Retirement[27]
July 19, 1978Brian Burke—Retirement
July 22, 1978Mike KorneySt. Louis BluesFree agency[28]

Draft picks
See also: List of Philadelphia Flyers draft picks

Philadelphia's picks at the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft, which was held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec, on June 15, 1978.[29]

Round Pick Player Position Nationality Team (league) Notes
1 6 Behn Wilson Defense  Canada Kingston Canadians (OHA) [lower-alpha 6]
1 7 Ken Linseman Forward  Canada Birmingham Bulls (WHA) [lower-alpha 7]
1 14 Dan Lucas Wing  Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHA)
2 33 Mike Simurda Right Wing  Canada Kingston Canadians (OHA)
3 37 Gord Salt Right Wing  Canada Michigan Tech University (WCHA) [lower-alpha 8]
3 50 Glen Cochrane Defense  Canada Victoria Cougars (WCHL)
4 67 Russ Wilderman Center  Canada Seattle Breakers (WCHL)
5 83 Brad Tamblyn Defense  Canada Toronto Marlboros (OHA)
6 100 Mark Taylor Forward  Canada University of North Dakota (WCHA)
7 117 Mike Ewanouski Right Wing  United States Boston College (HE)
8 126 Jerry Price Goaltender  Canada Portland Winter Hawks (WCHL) [lower-alpha 6]
8 134 Darre Switzer Left Wing  Canada Medicine Hat Tigers (WCHL)
9 151 Greg Francis Defense  Canada St. Lawrence University (ECAC)
10 167 Rick Berard Defense  Canada Saint Mary's University (CIAU) [lower-alpha 9]
10 168 Don Lucia Defense  United States University of Notre Dame (CCHA)
11 182 Mike Berge Forward  United States University of North Dakota (WCHA) [lower-alpha 9]
11 183 Ken Moore Goaltender  United States Clarkson University (ECAC)
12 195 Jim Olson Right Wing  United States St. Paul Vulcans (USHL) [lower-alpha 10]
12 198 Anton Stastny Forward  Slovakia Slovan ChZJD Bratislava (CFIHL) [lower-alpha 11]

Farm teams

The Flyers were affiliated with the Maine Mariners of the AHL,[32][33] the Milwaukee Admirals of the IHL,[34] and the Jersey Aces of the NEHL.[34]

Notes
  1. McCammon was fired on January 30 and replaced by Quinn. Crisp was also fired.[1]
  2. The alternate captain position was abolished from the 1975–76 season through the 1984–85 season.
  3. Tied during 1988–89 season.
  4. The Flyers received the draft pick and cash as compensation for the Rangers hiring Shero as general manager and head coach.[16]
  5. The Flyers later received the Penguins' 1978 8th-round pick.
  6. The Flyers acquired the 6th overall pick from the Pittsburgh Penguins along with future considerations (Penguins' eighth-round pick, 126th overall) for Tom Bladon, Ross Lonsberry and Orest Kindrachuk on June 14, 1978.[30]
  7. The Flyers received the 7th overall pick from the New York Rangers in exchange for the right to hire head coach Fred Shero on June 2, 1978.[30]
  8. The Flyers traded Harvey Bennett to the Minnesota North Stars for Blake Dunlop and the North Stars' third-round pick, 37th overall, on October 28, 1977.[30]
  9. The Flyers traded cash to the Buffalo Sabres for the Sabres' tenth and eleventh-round picks on June 15, 1978.[30]
  10. The Flyers traded cash to the Chicago Black Hawks for the Black Hawks' twelfth-round pick, 195th overall, on June 15, 1978.[30]
  11. Draft pick was ruled invalid after it was determined Stastny was too young to be drafted.[31]

References
General
Specific
  1. "Flyers Ax Coach McCammon, Name Quinn as Replacement". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 31, 1979. Retrieved October 9, 2013.
  2. "All Time Team Attendance". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  3. Juliano, Joe (November 25, 1990). "Fred Shero, Ex-flyers Coach, Dead". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved December 8, 2014. he announced his resignation on May 22, 1978
  4. Karabell, Eric (2008), The Best Philadelphia Sports Arguments: The 100 Most Controversial, debatable questions for die-hard fans, Sourcebooks Inc., pp. 235, ISBN 978-1-4022-1412-7
  5. Kirshenbaum, Jerry (1978-11-20). "A Revival Is A Smash Off Broadway". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
  6. "Flyers hire McCammon". AP. The Free Lance–Star. July 7, 1978. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
  7. "Parent's eye injury forces his retirement". AP. Lakeland Ledger. June 1, 1979. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
  8. 2014–15 NHL Official Guide & Record Book, p. 230–32
  9. "Legends of Hockey – Time Capsule – Pro Classics: Challenge Cup 1979 NHL All-Star Team Roster". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
  10. "Flyers History – Team Awards". P.Anson. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
  11. 2016–2017 Philadelphia Flyers Media Guide, p. 264
  12. 2016–2017 Philadelphia Flyers Media Guide, p. 263
  13. 2016–2017 Philadelphia Flyers Media Guide, p. 262
  14. 2016–2017 Philadelphia Flyers Media Guide, p. 349
  15. "Hockey Transactions Search Results". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved April 12, 2014.
  16. "Rangers hire Shero for reported $200,000". AP. Chicago Tribune. June 2, 1978. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  17. "Flyers Trade Three Veterans to Penguins". AP. Kane Republican. June 15, 1978. Retrieved December 14, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. "Joe Watson – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  19. "Dennis Ververgaert – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  20. "Donald Saleski – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  21. "Maynard Schurman – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  22. "Yves Preston – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  23. "Robert Moore – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  24. "Reid Bailey – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  25. Parsons, Mark (November 8, 2013). "1978 NHL Waiver Draft". Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  26. "Winnipeg Free Press, Oct 7, 1978, p.189". October 7, 1978. Retrieved April 4, 2019 – via newspaperarchive.com.
  27. Gary Dornhoefer biography at Legends of Hockey, retrieved December 14, 2014
  28. "Mike Korney – Notes". NHL.com. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  29. "1978 NHL Amateur Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". hockeyDB.com. Retrieved November 12, 2013.
  30. "1978 NHL Amateur Draft Pick Transactions". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved November 7, 2013.
  31. "1978 NHL Amateur Draft – Anton Stastny". Hockey Draft Central. Retrieved April 25, 2015.
  32. "AHL Franchise Statistics". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  33. "AHL Season Overview: 1978–79". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  34. "Non-AHL Affiliates". P. Anson. Flyers History. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.