1972–73 Philadelphia Flyers season
| 1972–73 Philadelphia Flyers | |
|---|---|
| Division | 2nd West |
| 1972–73 record | 37–30–11 |
| Home record | 27–8–4 |
| Road record | 10–22–7 |
| Goals for | 296 (4th) |
| Goals against | 256 (11th) |
| Team information | |
| General Manager | Keith Allen |
| Coach | Fred Shero |
| Captain |
Ed Van Impe (to Jan 17) Bobby Clarke (from Jan 17) |
| Alternate captains |
Bill Clement Joe Watson |
| Arena | Spectrum |
| Average attendance | 16,063 |
| Team leaders | |
| Goals | Rick MacLeish (50) |
| Assists | Bobby Clarke (67) |
| Points | Bobby Clarke (104) |
| Penalties in minutes | Dave Schultz (259) |
| Plus/minus | Bobby Clarke (+32) |
| Wins | Doug Favell (20) |
| Goals against average | Doug Favell (2.83) |
The 1972–73 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Philadelphia Flyers' sixth season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Flyers earned the nickname "Broad Street Bullies" en route to their first winning season and first playoff series victory, beating the Minnesota North Stars, before losing in the semifinals to the Montreal Canadiens.
It was during the 1972–73 season that the Flyers shed the mediocre expansion team label by recording their first winning season and becoming known as the intimidating "Broad Street Bullies", a nickname coined by Jack Chevalier and Pete Cafone of the Philadelphia Bulletin on January 3, 1973 after a 3–1 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 who had stepped aside in favor of Clarke.Rick MacLeish became the first Flyer to score 50 goals in a season.
After the season, Clarke was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player.
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 semifinals by the Montreal Canadiens, however, losing in five games.
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