Division 1st Patrick 1979–80 record 48–12–20 Road record 21–7–12 | Conference 1st Campbell Home record 27–5–8 Goals for 327 (2nd) | |
The 1979–80 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Philadelphia Flyers' 13th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). This team owns the longest unbeaten streak in North American sports history in 35 consecutive games without a loss, from October 14 to January 6. The Flyers reached the Stanley Cup Finals but lost in six games to the New York Islanders.
Contents
Off-season
On August 10, 1979, Bobby Clarke was named a player-assistant coach. In order to become an assistant coach Clarke had to give up the captaincy due to NHL rules. Mel Bridgman was named Clarke's replacement as team captain on October 11.
Regular season
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.
Season standings
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
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
Records
Transactions
The Flyers were involved in the following transactions from May 22, 1979, the day after the deciding game of the 1979 Stanley Cup Finals, through May 24, 1980, the day of the deciding game of the 1980 Stanley Cup Finals.
Trades
Free agency
The following players were signed by the Flyers via free agency.
Re-signed
The following players were re-signed by the Flyers.
Draft picks
The Flyers signed the following of their draft picks.
NHL Reclamation
The Flyers held the NHL rights to the following five players who had played the previous season in the World Hockey Association (WHA). They reclaimed one player on June 9, 1979.
NHL Expansion Draft
The 1979 NHL Expansion Draft was held on June 13, 1979. It featured four World Hockey Association (WHA) teams entering the NHL as expansion teams, the Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, Quebec Nordiques, and Winnipeg Jets, selecting players from the 17 existing NHL teams. Each NHL team placed 15 skaters and 2 goaltenders on a protected list from which the four expansion teams could not select.
The Flyers protected the following players: goaltenders Phil Myre and Rick St. Croix, and skaters Bill Barber, Mel Bridgman, Bobby Clarke, Bob Dailey, Andre Dupont, Paul Evans, Tom Gorence, Al Hill, Paul Holmgren, Bob Kelly, Reggie Leach, Rick MacLeish, Terry Murray, Dennis Ververgaert, and Jimmy Watson.
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 (*).
Draft picks
Philadelphia's picks at the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, which was held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec, on August 9, 1979.
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.