For the Philadelphia Flyers, this seven-day respite between crucial Metropolitan Division matchups is the rarest of the rare, especially in a schedule matrix which tries to shoehorn 82 games into the course of six months for 30 teams.
Once again, I've decided to scour the archives. Exempting the recent four cessations for Olympic hockey, but including any rest that came about due to the All-Star Break or exhibitions against the Soviets, the Philadelphia Flyers have had at least five whole days off between games on 32 previous occasions in 46 seasons.
Below are the results and brief recaps.
October 24, 1968: North Stars 3, Flyers 3 -- Three games into their second NHL campaign, the club saw a seven-day break after having beaten the Pens by a 3-0 score for their first win of the season. They returned to action with a tie at the Spectrum as Ed Van Impe, Gary Dornhoefer and Earl Heiskala recorded their first goals of the season, Bernie Parent made 32 saves and Keith Allen's team improved to 1-2-1 on the year.
December 25, 1971: Bruins 5, Flyers 1 -- The Flyers were waxed, 4-0, at home by Toronto, then had six days to sit and stew about it. There were better places for the club to be than on Causeway Street on Christmas Day against the eventual Stanley Cup champions, and it showed. Bobby Orr, Ken Hodge, Phil Esposito, Wayne Cashman and Derek Sanderson bested the crease combo of Doug Favell and Bruce Gamble. Bobby Clarke recorded the lone score for the visitors.
December 8, 1973: Flyers 3, Maple Leafs 1 -- Six days after beating California at home, the Broad Street Bullies rolled into Toronto and laid a licking on the Leafs. Tom Bladon, Bob Kelly and Rick MacLeish lit the lamp and Parent came up with 31 saves. The win came in the midst of a 4-0-3 stretch.
January 15, 1976: Flyers 4, Penguins 1 -- Winners of five straight and an unofficial sixth in that famous exhibition with the Soviet Central Red Army team, the two-time defending Cup champions easily turned back the Pens on home ice. Clarke had three assists, four different players hit the back of the net and Wayne Stephenson stopped 26 shots.
January 27, 1979: North Stars 3, Flyers 1 -- Six days after a 5-5 tie at Madison Square Garden, the Flyers played a total clunker against one of the lesser clubs in the NHL. Gilles Meloche outdueled Stephenson and Bill Barber notched the lone goal, with rookie head coach Bob McCammon suffering through the midst of a nine-game winless string (0-4-5) that ultimately proved to be his undoing.
February 14, 1979: Flyers 2, Maple Leafs 2 -- The schedule dictated a 10-day break to accomodate Super Series '79, and Pat Quinn earned the first tie of his NHL coaching career with this Toronto deadlock. Tom Gorence and Mel Bridgman scored to wipe out an early 2-0 Leafs edge and Parent turned away 36 shots.
December 27, 1980: Flames 2, Flyers 1 -- Fresh from a franchise-worst 6-0 beating on home ice to the Washington Capitals, the Orange and Black headed West for their first-ever game in Calgary. The six-day gap didn't spur a better result, as Brad Smith notched the game winner on Rick St. Croix with 3:35 left in regulation in front of a sellout crowd at the Corral.
November 9, 1984: Flyers 6, Blues 0 -- Nearly a week off since a 5-1 home win over Minnesota did little to dull the senses of Mike Keenan's club. On this Friday night at the Spectrum, Tim Kerr scored twice and the Flyers took control with a four-goal first period. Pelle Lindbergh posted his first shutout of a Vezina Trophy-winning season by making 29 saves.
February 14, 1987: Flyers 4, Blues 2 -- Prior to Rendezvous '87, the injury-riddled Flyers lost four in a row, including a one-goal result at New Jersey. After the break, things got going at the expense of the Blues once more. Dave Poulin scored twice and Ron Hextall made 33 saves.
February 12, 1988: Flames 3, Flyers 2 -- Calgary came into Philadelphia after that season's All-Star Break in the early stages of a massive road trip caused by the Winter Olympics. The rested Flyers poured 36 shots on Mike Vernon and gave up only 15, but Mike Bullard's tally midway through the third period proved to be the decider.
October 31, 1991: Flyers 5, Sharks 2 -- What's the best solution to the problem of being shut out in two of the last three games? Send an expansion team to Pattison Avenue. San Jose's first trip to Philly woke up the Flyers after a six-day break following a 2-0 loss at Winnipeg, as Rick Tocchet scored twice, Rod Brind'Amour added two helpers and Hextall halted 25 pucks.
April 12, 1992: Whalers 4, Flyers 2 -- An 11-day halt in the schedule due to an NHLPA strike ruined whatever momentum Bill Dineen's club had of trying to snatch the last playoff spot in the Patrick Division. They lost in Kevin Dineen's return to Hartford after a November trade shipped him to Philadelphia, with Yvan Corriveau contributing two goals to the Flyers' misery.
February 9, 1993: Flyers 8, Senators 1 -- Dineen posted a hat trick, Eric Lindros scored twice, Pelle Eklund and Mark Recchi added three assists each and expansion Ottawa was routed at the Spectrum in the Flyers' first game back after the All-Star Game in Montreal.
October 22, 1993: Flyers 4, Islanders 3 -- An interminable season made worse by the fifth straight year without a playoff berth. This home game was pushed back a night due to Game 5 of the World Series between the Phillies and Blue Jays, creating a six-day gap following a one-goal win over the Rangers. Terry Simpson's team escaped this one with goals in the third period from Lindros, Josef Beranek and Dmitri Yushkevich -- the last one being the winner with 4:56 left in regulation.
January 6, 1994: Stars 8, Flyers 0 -- The second of three ridiculous breaks in the schedule produced this total dud in the club's first visit to Reunion Arena in Dallas. Dominic Roussel and Tommy Soderstrom combined to stop only 15 shots. Ulf Dahlen bracketed the rout with goals, Neal Broten produced a goal and three assists.
January 25, 1994: Nordiques 6, Flyers 4 -- Lindros enjoyed his first All-Star selection, but not another return to Quebec City. Despite his two assists, the defense gave up 42 shots and Reggie Savage potted the lead goal early in the third period. Mike Ricci and Scott Young added insurance tallies for the victorious Nords.
February 23, 1995: Flyers 6, Nordiques 6 -- A lockout-shortened schedule gave Terry Murray's struggling team 15 games in the first 26 days of the season. Having lost to Quebec at home seven days earlier, the franchise's last trip to Le Colisee was a classic. Karl Dykhuis scored his first career goal, Lindros netted a hat trick and the Legion of Doom racked up 10 points, but the visitors wasted a 6-3 lead in the final period. Hextall performed a minor miracle with his 40-save effort.
January 22, 1996: Panthers 1, Flyers 1 -- After a week off due to All-Star festivities in Boston, Florida came to the Spectrum and sucked the hosts down into the vortex of neutral-zone trap style hockey. Brind'Amour answered the bell with the tying goal coming 2:39 before the end of regulation.
March 9, 1996: Bruins 3, Flyers 2 -- This late-year inexplicable six-day respite after a shutout loss in Washington saw the visitors squander a 2-0 lead. Philly spent most of the remainder of the game chasing Boston's Sandy Moger for an unpenalized hit on Lindros and lost their cool. Moger assisted on the winner from Don Sweeney at 17:22 of the third period.
January 21, 1997: Stars 3, Flyers 3 -- Another post All-Star tilt saw two clubs at the top of their games dance to a deadlock. Dale Hawerchuk scored his 12th goal of the season -- and final regular-season tally -- of his Hall of Fame career, Mikael Renberg and John LeClair also produced friendly red lights.
November 26, 1997: Flyers 3, Sabres 1 -- Six days earlier the Flyers were chastened by a 3-0 home loss to the San Jose Sharks, jumped out to a 3-0 lead thanks to two scores from Brind'Amour and one by Eric Desjardins and never allowed Buffalo a foothold thereafter.
December 11, 1997: Flyers 4, Islanders 3 -- Lindros picked up another trifecta, including the winner with 1:27 on the third-period clock, in this unexpected death battle with the Isles. It was a strong way to respond after a 4-4 tie in New York less than a week before resulted after Philly blew a 4-1 second period lead.
January 20, 1998: Flyers 3, Sabres 0 -- Three days after the Daigle for Falloon and Prospal deal shocked the fan base and six days following a pre-All-Star-break tie with Montreal, Wayne Cashman's club snapped back to attention. Hextall recorded a 29-save clean sheet and Brind'Amour once again supplied a pair of first-period scores to fuel the victory.
February 9, 2000: Flyers 4, Maple Leafs 2 -- Rejoining the schedule after the mid-season classic in Toronto, Lindros scored twice and Simon Gagne once with Brian Boucher adding 26 saves to a winner at Air Canada Centre.
October 22, 2005: Flyers 5, Maple Leafs 2 -- Ken Hitchcock's squad received a seven-day break just five games into the first year back from the scrapped 2004-05 season and made some history. Rookie Mike Richards netted the franchise's first 3-on-5 goal in almost 14 years to give his team the lead in the second period, then Mike Knuble, Donald Brashear and Branko Radivojevic poured in a goal each in the third to offset a Lindros tally for Toronto.
October 26, 2006: Flyers 3, Thrashers 2 (SO) -- With "Bloody Sunday" four days in the past, John Stevens had a successful NHL head coaching debut. Simon Gagne and Peter Forsberg scored in the breakaway round, while Forsberg and Randy Robitaille picked up a goal apiece in regulation. Antero Niittymaki made sure the contest ended in the hosts' favor with a stop on Ilya Kovalchuk.
January 27, 2007: Rangers 2, Flyers 1 -- The most recent season of misery continued after seven days off, only to see the Broadway Blueshirts take another road win. Former Hobey Baker winner Jason Krog (New Hampshire) won it on his goal at 3:49 of the third, assisted by current Flyer Adam Hall. Joni Pitkanen provided the lone offense for the Orange and Black.
January 27, 2009: Panthers 3, Flyers 2 -- Opening a three-game road trip after the All-Star Game, Claude Giroux scored his first career goal in the third period, but it wasn't enough. Michal Frolik and David Booth scored in the third period to back 33 saves from Tomas Vokoun.
October 16, 2009: Panthers 4, Flyers 2 -- Five games into the 2009-10 season and a six-day break after a home shootout loss to Anaheim, and the O&B come up empty once more in South Florida. Giroux and Arron Asham pick up their first goals of the year, but Radek Dvorak and Steve Reinprecht snap a tie with third-period goals and Scott Clemmensen stops 25 pucks.
December 28, 2010: Canucks 6, Flyers 2 -- The start of a holiday road trip dictated an eight-day gap between games for Philadelphia, and the result was no better than a 5-0 pasting the Panthers laid at the WFC in their previous tilt. The Sedin twins combined for five points, Ryan Kesler chipped in a goal and a helper as Vancouver unleashed 49 shots on net.
February 1, 2011: Lightning 4, Flyers 0 -- Another post All-Star egg was laid in Florida, this time on the Gulf Coast. Ageless wonder Dwayne Roloson blanked the visitors with 38 saves, while the Bolts assumed control with first-period goals from Teddy Purcell (2) and reformed ex-Flyer Steve Downie.
January 31, 2012: Jets 2, Flyers 1 (SO) -- It wasn't nearly as nuts as Winnipeg's previous visit, a 9-8 win the previous October, but the result was the same. Bryan Little scored the only goal of the shootout on Ilya Bryzgalov for the win. Brayden Schenn notched the lone goal for the hosts.
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