97.5 The Fanatic Flyers Roundup: Eric Lindros On Physicality in the Modern NHL

The Philadelphia Flyers announced their Alumni Weekend festivities on January 26-28 as part of the golden anniversary celebration of the 1974 Stanley Cup team. Eric Lindros, who will suit up for the Flyers Alumni Game, also shared some interesting commentary on the lack of physical play in the modern NHL.

On the ice, they finished a rare eight-game stretch of all Metropolitan Division opponents with a 4-3-1 record. They began a Western Conference stretch with a win over the Arizona Coyotes at Mullett Arena on Thursday. The victory capped off a 3-0-0 week.

Wins against the Penguins used to set the city on fire. The Flyers swept their cross-state rivals in a home-and-home series with two victories after regulation. Sam Ersson stopped 29 of 32 shots he faced in the first matchup, and Carter Hart turned away 31 of 32 in the second.

Why wasn’t the juice there when Sean Couturier scored the game-winner at the Wells Fargo Center on Monday?

The Penguins are desperately trying to keep open their window of Stanley Cup contention during the careers of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang. However, their hopes are fading fast.

The Flyers, while optimistic about a 14-10-2 start, don’t expect to contend anytime soon. Give the Flyers credit for their success. Don’t overreact to one minimal page that is part of a brutal chapter in the rivalry’s history for Philadelphia. 

The Flyers reached three Eastern Conference Finals and one Stanley Cup with Eric Lindros as their top-line center. However, serious concussion issues kept the Hall of Famer off the ice for long stretches. Issues snowballed and ultimately caused his tenure in Philadelphia to spiral out of control.

Despite his injury history and work to increase concussion awareness, Lindros spoke on The John Kincade Show about how the modern game could use more physicality. 

Lindros was a fearless power forward when he wore the #88 sweater for the Flyers, but he acknowledges how rule changes have dictated the evolution of the NHL. 

Flyers color commentator Brian Boucher also joined The John Kincade Show to discuss Philadelphia’s success early in the season. He gave credit to the approach of their second-year head coach John Tortorella.

Boucher, who stood between the pipes for 13 NHL seasons, spoke highly of Carter Hart for his development into a number one goaltender throughout his early 20s.

The Flyers will finish up their three-game Western Conference road swing before returning to the Wells Fargo Center on Thursday night.

The iconic brand of the Philadelphia Flyers has developed through a storied history since Ed Snider founded the franchise in 1967.

The days of the Broad Street Bullies during the 1970s put the Flyers on the map in Philadelphia. They’ve since transitioned into different eras that have inspired the perception around the NHL of the seventh integral team to hockey tradition outside the Original Six.

Back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1974-75 established the identity of the Flyers. They revolutionized the NHL with intimidation tactics that changed the game of hockey forever. The organization still considers the Broad Street Bullies the root of their DNA. It's no surprise that four players with retired numbers skated for the notorious Bullies.

Their success as one of the top teams in the NHL continued during the 1980s. They made it back to three Stanley Cup Finals in one decade, unfortunately losing all of them. The Flyers proved they could never stay out of the spotlight when they sent shockwaves through the NHL by acquiring Eric Lindros in 1992.

The era that followed kept them in the conversation as a Stanley Cup contender through the 1990s. They maintained that status into the first decade of the 2000s. They hope to revitalize that tradition in the modern era.

The Flyers have consistently kept their alumni involved to honor their accomplishments of the past. Their reputation around the league as an organization who takes care of people who’ve made contributions to the organization still proceeds them around the NHL.

Fans who look in the rafters of the Wells Fargo Center see banners proudly displaying the accomplishments of the Broad Street Bullies era, multiple Patrick Division crowns, and the 2009-10 Eastern Conference Championships.

However, the Philadelphia Flyers have reserved the honor of retired numbers for only six former players.

“Only the Lord saves more than Bernie Parent.”

Countless drivers in Philadelphia during the 1970s read the iconic bumper sticker about the future Hall of Fame goaltender. Parent accumulated Hall of Fame numbers over 13 NHL seasons, 10 of which included stints with the Flyers.

The real mark of his legacy came in the 1973-74 and 1974-75 seasons. He won the Vezina Trophy as the top goaltender in the NHL after both regular seasons. His 47 wins in 1973-74 stood as a league record until 2007.

Parent won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP for each of the only two Stanley Cups in franchise history after both of his Venzina seasons. The famed Broad Street Bullies built their reputation on intimidation and grit, but they never would’ve sniffed a Stanley Cup without Bernie Parent between the pipes.

Mark Howe played six seasons in the WHA to begin his professional career and didn’t make his debut with the Flyers until age 27. However, he established himself as the indisputable best defenseman in franchise history.

He still holds franchise records for goals, assists, points, shorthanded goals, and plus/minus rating among defensemen. Most of the blueliners behind him in the major statistical categories played more games with the Flyers. Howe published a book cleverly named Gordie Howe’s Son in 2013.

Barry Ashbee began his career in Philadelphia at age 31. He played 287 regular-season and playoff games in orange and black. He finished fourth in Norris Trophy voting for the best NHL defenseman in 1973-74, when he became a key member of the first Stanley Cup team in Flyers history.

Ashbee suffered an unfortunate eye injury that ended his playing career in 1974. He joined the Flyers staff as an assistant coach but passed away from leukemia three years later.

The organization has consistently honored his legacy after the two tragic occurrences. They award the Barry Ashbee Trophy to the team’s best defenseman every season, and they retired his number shortly after his death.

Bill Barber still holds the franchise record with 420 goals decades after his retirement in 1983-84. The “LCB line” with Reggie Leach, Bobby Clarke, and Barber brought the offensive firepower the Broad Street Bullies needed to win two Stanley Cups.

The Flyers organizational lifer built his reputation with a Hall of Fame playing career, a stint as head coach, and a long tenure as a front office executive.

It’s tough to come up with a player who can define the identity of a franchise in the NHL or in all of professional sports more than Bobby Clarke defines the Flyers. He incredibly won three of four Hart Trophies as the league MVP from 1972-73 through 1975-76. Clarke wore the “C” as the heart and soul of the Broad Street Bullies during the best era in franchise history.

He has remained around the organization in various roles since his retirement in 1984.

The Flyers made arguably the biggest splash in NHL history when they acquired the rights to Eric Lindros in 1992 after some lengthy drama. He was supposed to be the next Wayne Gretzky, and his dynamic skill and intimidating power didn’t disappoint when he was on the ice. He won the Hart Trophy after the shortened 1994-95 season and helped the Flyers to an appearance in the 1997 Stanley Cup Final.

Concussions derailed the career of arguably the most talented hockey player ever to lace up the skates. He struggled to stay healthy in a stretch that infamously ended with a devastating hit from Scott Stevens in the 2000 Eastern Conference Final.

He ranks sixth in franchise history in scoring, but his 1.36 points per game average blows every other Flyers skater out of the water. The organization has properly moved on from disagreements with one of their all-time greats whose number has hung in the rafters of the Wells Fargo Center since 2018.

The Flyers were in Stanley Cup contention when Claude Giroux broke into the NHL. The crafty forward developed into the organizational centerpiece, but the team dragged through a forgettable era in franchise history during his captaincy.

Giroux is second in Flyers history in points, games played, and assists trailing only the legendary Bobby Clarke. He played on teams that won six total playoff series and recorded 73 postseason points, including an overtime goal in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final in 2010. He has finished fourth or higher in Hart Trophy voting three times during his tenure in Philadelphia.

The Flyers will someday retire the number of one of their all-time greats who unfortunately never broke through with a Stanley Cup.