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249-746: The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs ) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver . The Avalanche compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference . The team plays its home games at Ball Arena , which it shares with the National Basketball Association 's (NBA) Denver Nuggets and Colorado Mammoth of
498-419: A centre and two wingers : a left wing and a right wing . Forwards often play together as units or lines , with the same three forwards always playing together. The defencemen usually stay together as a pair generally divided between left and right. Left and right side wingers or defencemen are generally positioned on the side on which they carry their stick. A substitution of an entire unit at once
747-571: A hat-trick . In July 2004, Joel Quenneville was hired for the position of head coach, replacing Tony Granato, who became his assistant. The 2004–05 NHL season was canceled because of an unresolved lockout . During the lockout, many Avalanche players played in European leagues. David Aebischer returned home with Alex Tanguay to play for Swiss club HC Lugano ; Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg returned to their former teams in their native countries, HC Pardubice and Modo Hockey . Nine other players from
996-401: A penalty shootout . If the score remains tied after an extra overtime period, the subsequent shootout consists of three players from each team taking penalty shots. After these six total shots, the team with the most goals is awarded the victory. If the score is still tied, the shootout then proceeds to sudden death . Regardless of the number of goals scored by either team during the shootout,
1245-708: A $ 2.5 million rink to seat 20,000 where the Phillies' former ballpark stood at Broad and Huntingdon Streets, and to acquire the franchise of the old Montreal Maroons . The latter was held by the Canadian Arena Company, owner of the Montreal Canadiens . However, Peto's group was unable to raise funding for the new arena project by the league-imposed deadline, and the NHL cancelled the Maroons franchise. While attending
1494-618: A 2–0 series deficit. After dropping Game 1 to New Jersey in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Flyers won three-straight games to take a 3–1 series lead. However, New Jersey won game 5. In Game 6, Lindros returned to the lineup for the first time since March in another losing effort. Early in Game 7, Lindros was handed another concussion and leaving the Philadelphia crowd deflated after being on
1743-703: A 43–30–9 record for 95 points, good enough to finish second in the Division, seven behind the Calgary Flames and tied with the Edmonton Oilers. The season paused in February for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin , Italy . The Avalanche sent a league-leading 11 players from eight countries. Finnish Antti Laaksonen earned the silver medal, while Ossi Vaananen ended up not playing because of an injury; Czech Milan Hejduk won
1992-530: A 45–28–8–1 record, winning the Northwest Division. Colorado had the league's lowest goals conceded: 169, an average of 2.06 per game. The NHL season was interrupted for the 2002 Winter Olympics , in Salt Lake City . The Avalanche had nine players representing six countries. Canada won the ice hockey tournament , with Rob Blake, Adam Foote , and Joe Sakic won gold medals. American Chris Drury took home
2241-573: A basketball game on November 29, 1964, at the Boston Garden , Ed Snider , the then-vice-president of the Philadelphia Eagles , observed a crowd of Boston Bruins fans lining up to purchase tickets to see a last-place ice hockey team. He began making plans for a new arena upon hearing the NHL was looking to expand due to fears of a competing league taking hold on the West Coast and the desire for
2490-562: A berth in the Stanley Cup Finals. Facing the Islanders for the Cup, the Flyers ultimately lost in six games on Bob Nystrom 's overtime Stanley Cup-winning goal. The result of the series was marred by controversy, as the Islanders were offside on the play that resulted in their second goal, but the call was not made. Linesman Leon Stickle admitted after the game that he had blown the call. After
2739-469: A bronze medal. In the conference quarterfinals, Colorado defeated Dallas Stars team that had the second-best record in the conference, in five games. The team was swept in the conference semifinals by the Anaheim Ducks . The next day, Pierre Lacroix resigned after service as GM since 1994 and François Giguère was hired as his replacement. Lacroix remained president of the franchise until spring 2013, when
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#17328449244972988-490: A chance on a 19-year-old diabetic from Flin Flon, Manitoba , Bobby Clarke , with their second draft pick, 17th overall, in the 1969 NHL amateur draft . Keeping to Snider's mandate, the team also drafted future enforcer Dave Schultz 52nd overall. By the time training camp came around, it was clear that Clarke was the team's best player, and he quickly became a fan favorite. His 15 goals and 31 assists in his rookie season earned him
3237-405: A chest protector, a goalie mask, and a large jersey. Goaltenders' equipment has continually become larger and larger, leading to fewer goals in each game and many official rule changes. Ice hockey skates are optimized for physical acceleration, speed and manoeuvrability. This includes rapid starts, stops, turns, and changes in skating direction. In addition, they must be rigid and tough to protect
3486-402: A collapsed lung. Up until that point, Lindros was having an MVP-type season with 40 goals and 53 assists in 71 games. Without Lindros, the Flyers had trouble scoring in the playoffs even after having re-acquired Mark Recchi at the trade deadline. Although Vanbiesbrouck allowed 9 goals to Joseph's 11 allowed, the Flyers lost their first-round series with Toronto in six games. The 1999–2000 season
3735-505: A comeback in the NHL with Colorado mid-season. However, after two games, no points and compiling a plus-minus rating of −4, Forsberg announced his retirement from professional hockey. Captain Adam Foote also retired after the final game of the season. In the off-season, Colorado had two first-round picks. Present at the draft, former Avalanche great Joe Sakic served his first duties as new alternate governor and adviser of hockey operations of
3984-399: A family of sports called hockey . Two opposing teams use ice hockey sticks to control, advance, and shoot a vulcanized rubber hockey puck into the other team's net. Each goal is worth one point. The team with the highest score after an hour of playing time is declared the winner; ties are broken in overtime or a shootout . In a formal game, each team has six skaters on the ice at
4233-411: A first-round, seven-game series. Angotti left the team in the off-season, being replaced by Van Impe as team captain. Led by Van Impe and the team-leading 24 goals of Andre Lacroix, the Flyers struggled during their sophomore season by finishing 15 games under .500. Despite their poor regular season showing in 1968–69 , they made the playoffs . They again lost to St. Louis, this time being dispatched in
4482-463: A former Flyer was named the club's head coach. Despite finishing at the .500 mark in 1988–89 , the Flyers made the playoffs for the 17th consecutive season. Facing first-place Washington in the first round, the Flyers pulled off the upset in six games. Ron Hextall managed to score another empty-net goal in the waning moments of Game 5, becoming the first NHL goalie to score a goal in the playoffs. The Flyers then defeated Pittsburgh in seven games to make
4731-537: A forward. The seventh defenceman may play as a substitute defenceman, spend the game on the bench, or if a team chooses to play four lines then this seventh defenceman may see ice-time on the fourth line as a forward. A professional ice hockey game consists of three periods of twenty minutes, the clock running only when the puck is in play. The teams change ends after each period of play, including overtime. Recreational leagues and children's leagues often play shorter games, generally with three shorter periods of play. If
4980-409: A four-game sweep. Not wanting his team to be physically outmatched again, majority owner Ed Snider instructed general manager Bud Poile to acquire bigger, tougher players. While head coach Keith Allen soon after replaced Poile as general manager, this mandate eventually led to one of the most feared teams to ever take the ice in the NHL. The keystone of those teams was acquired when the Flyers took
5229-534: A game is tied after regulation, then a 20-minute period of 5-on-5 sudden-death overtime will be added. If the game is still tied after the overtime, another period is added until a team scores, which wins the match. Since 2019, the IIHF World Championships and the gold medal game in the Olympics use the same format, but in a 3-on-3 format. In ice hockey, infractions of the rules lead to a play stoppage whereby
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#17328449244975478-400: A goal by firing the puck into an empty net in a December 8 game against Boston. In their first-round playoff series with Washington, the Flyers blew a 3–1 series lead as Washington forced a Game 7. They then blew a 3–0 lead in Game 7 as Washington won in overtime 5–4. It was because of this playoff collapse that "Iron Mike" was fired. Paul Holmgren was named Keenan's replacement, the first time
5727-412: A goal scored by the other team. Major penalties assessed for fighting are typically offsetting, meaning neither team is short-handed and the players exit the penalty box upon a stoppage of play following the expiration of their respective penalties. The foul of boarding (defined as "check[ing] an opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to be thrown violently in the boards") is penalized either by
5976-572: A heavy burden for the Avalanche in the salary cap era. That same season saw an 11-year sell-out streak of 487 home games ended on October 16, 2006, in a home game against the Chicago Blackhawks, that saw the Pepsi Center under capacity by 326 seats. The sell-out streak was an all-time NHL record for the longest consecutive attendance sell-outs at home games with 487; and began on November 9, 1995, on
6225-557: A hit on Valeri Kharlamov , whom Clarke had slashed on the ankle in the famous Summit Series '72 , by Ed Van Impe. After some delay, the Soviets returned after they were warned that they would lose their salary for the entire series. The Flyers went on to win the game rather easily, 4–1, and were the only team to defeat the Red Army outright in the series. After that win, the Spectrum became known as
6474-528: A larger blade and a wide, flat shaft. This stick is primarily intended to block shots, but the goaltender may use it to play the puck as well. Ice hockey is a full-contact sport and carries a high risk of injury. Players are moving at speeds around approximately 20–30 mph (30–50 km/h) and much of the game revolves around the physical contact between the players. Skate blades, hockey sticks, shoulder contact, hip contact, and hockey pucks can all potentially cause injuries. Lace bite , an irritation felt on
6723-492: A matter of some controversy. Ramsay lasted only until December when he was replaced by former Flyer great Bill Barber. Brian Boucher , who as a rookie backstopped the Flyers' playoff run the previous season, could not duplicate his performance and lost the starting goaltending job to Roman Cechmanek , a former star in the Czech Republic . The performance of Cechmanek, worthy of a Vezina nomination, along with Bill Barber winning
6972-458: A minor or major penalty at the discretion of the referee, based on the violent state of the hit. A minor or major penalty for boarding is often assessed when a player checks an opponent from behind and into the boards. Some varieties of penalty do not require the offending team to play a man short. Concurrent five-minute major penalties in the NHL usually result from fighting. In the case of two players being assessed five-minute fighting majors, both
7221-442: A month after Ramsay took over, Lindros suffered his second concussion of the season. He played several games after the initial hit and afterwards criticized the team's training staff for failing to initially diagnose the concussion after it happened. It was after this that the Flyers' organization decided to strip Lindros of the captaincy on March 27 and name defenseman Eric Desjardins the team's captain. With Lindros out indefinitely,
7470-443: A name that fits well with Philadelphia was "Flyers." Instead of going through with the naming contest, Ed Snider took his sister's advice. The team name was announced on August 3. The new teams were hampered by restrictive rules that kept all major talent with the " Original Six " teams. In the 1967 NHL expansion draft , most of the players available were either aging veterans or career minor-leaguers before expansion occurred. Among
7719-436: A neck protector. Goaltenders use different equipment. With hockey pucks approaching them at speeds of up to 100 mph (160 km/h) they must wear equipment with more protection. Goaltenders wear specialized goalie skates (these skates are built more for movement side to side rather than forwards and backwards), a jock or jill, large leg pads (there are size restrictions in certain leagues), blocking glove, catching glove,
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7968-530: A new television contract in the United States. Snider made his proposal to the league, which chose the Philadelphia group – including Snider, Bill Putnam, Jerome Schiff and Philadelphia Eagles owner Jerry Wolman – over the Baltimore group. On April 4, 1966, Putnam announced that there was going to be a name-the-team contest. Details of the contest were released on July 12. Snider's sister, Phyllis, thought that
8217-469: A non-expansion team since 1967. During the 2017 NHL draft , Colorado held the fourth overall pick, which they used to draft defenseman Cale Makar . Ice hockey This is an accepted version of this page Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates , usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to
8466-535: A penalty, but was an infraction in the NHL before recent rules changes, is the two-line offside pass . Prior to the 2005–06 NHL season, play was stopped when a pass from inside a team's defending zone crossed the centre line, with a face-off held in the defending zone of the offending team. Now, the centre line is no longer used in the NHL to determine a two-line pass infraction, a change that the IIHF had adopted in 1998. Players are now able to pass to teammates who are more than
8715-409: A player may receive up to nineteen minutes in penalties for one string of plays. This could involve receiving a four-minute double-minor penalty, getting in a fight with an opposing player who retaliates, and then receiving a game misconduct after the fight. In this case, the player is ejected and two teammates must serve the double-minor and major penalties. A penalty shot is awarded to a player when
8964-404: A playoff berth, again falling four points short of the final playoff spot. Jay Snider stepped down as president, forcing his father Ed Snider to take over day-to-day operations. The elder Snider had decided he had seen enough of Farwell as general manager, and began courting Bobby Clarke to leave his general manager post with Florida to return to Philadelphia. Farwell's last move as general manager
9213-616: A preeminent star in Philadelphia, the trade proved heavily lopsided in favor of the Nordiques – soon to become the Colorado Avalanche – providing the core of their two Stanley Cup teams and an unprecedented eight-straight division championships, with Forsberg becoming a franchise player. The trio of Lindros, Recchi and Brent Fedyk formed the Crazy Eights line in Lindros' first two years in
9462-466: A record of 22–56–4 and 48 points, the worst record in the league and the franchise's worst since moving to Denver (only the 1989–90 and 1990–91 Nordiques finished with fewer points). It was also the worst record of any team in the NHL since the Atlanta Thrashers finished with a record of 14–61–7 and 39 points in the 1999–2000 season (which was their first season in the league) and one of the worst for
9711-496: A recording of Kate Smith singing " God Bless America " instead of " The Star-Spangled Banner " before important games. The perception was that the team was more successful on these occasions, so the tradition grew. The move was initially done by Flyers Promotion Director Lou Scheinfeld as a way to defray national tensions at the time of the Vietnam War : Scheinfeld noticed that people regularly left their seats and walked around during
9960-489: A result, the Flyers missed the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 1972. Bobby Clarke, having been with the Flyers organization since he was drafted in 1969, was fired and replaced as general manager by Russ Farwell . Ron Hextall continued to be hampered by injuries during the 1990–91 season . He only played in 36 games and as a result the Flyers missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year, finishing fifth in
10209-606: A row that the defending champions lost in the Finals, as the Devils themselves defeated the Dallas Stars in 2000 . After being handed the Cup from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman , captain Joe Sakic immediately turned and gave it to Ray Bourque, capping off Bourque's 22-year career with his only championship. Sakic was the playoffs' leading scorer with 26 points (13 goals and 13 assists). He won
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10458-516: A run towards the Stanley Cup by acquiring Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Ray Bourque and forward Dave Andreychuk . Bourque, who had been a Bruin since 1979 , requested a trade to a contender for a chance to win the Stanley Cup. However, Colorado lost in the conference finals against the Dallas Stars in seven games after defeating the Phoenix Coyotes and Detroit Red Wings in five games. The Avalanche's success came amid considerable turmoil in
10707-472: A season by an NHL club. The Quakers quietly suspended operations after that single dreadful campaign to again leave the Can-Am League's Philadelphia Arrows as Philadelphia's lone hockey team. The Quakers' dormant NHL franchise was finally canceled by the league in 1936. In 1946, a group led by Montreal and Philadelphia sportsman Len Peto announced plans to put another NHL team in Philadelphia, to build
10956-447: A shot from just inside the blue line that eluded Flyers goaltender Doug Favell . The Flyers lost the head-to-head tiebreaker to Pittsburgh and missed the playoffs. As it turned out, it was the last time the Flyers missed the playoffs for 18 years. In the 1972–73 season the Flyers got rid of the mediocre expansion team label and instead became the intimidating "Broad Street Bullies", a nickname coined by Jack Chevalier and Pete Cafone of
11205-415: A shot or pass play. Officials also stop play for puck movement violations, such as using one's hands to pass the puck in the offensive end, but no players are penalized for these offences. The sole exceptions are deliberately falling on or gathering the puck to the body, carrying the puck in the hand, and shooting the puck out of play in one's defensive zone (all penalized two minutes for delay of game). In
11454-603: A silver medal. With the win, Blake and Sakic became members of the Triple Gold Club. The Avalanche advanced through the first two rounds of the playoffs, winning 4–3 against the Los Angeles Kings and 4–3 against the San Jose Sharks. Patrick Roy had a shutout on the decisive game of each series. The Avalanche made the conference finals for the fourth consecutive season (and sixth overall in the last seven seasons), meeting
11703-416: A single line with 141 (Leach 61, Clarke 30, Barber 50). Clarke, on his way to a third Hart Trophy, set a club record for points in one season with 119. Heading into the playoffs, the Flyers squeaked past Toronto in seven games and defeated Boston in five games, with Game 5 featuring a five-goal outburst by Leach, the " Riverton Rifle ", to head to a third-straight appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals. However,
11952-465: A somewhat controversial move by naming Clarke a playing assistant coach and giving the captaincy to Mel Bridgman . While Clarke was against this initially, he accepted his new role. The Flyers went undefeated for a North American professional sports record 35-straight games (25–0–10), before losing 7–1 to the Minnesota North Stars, a record that still stands to this day. The streak started after
12201-492: A team losing a skater during regulation instead causes the other side to add a skater. Once the penalized team's penalty ends, the penalized skater exits the penalty box and the teams continue at 4-on-4 until the next stoppage of play, at which point the teams return to three skaters per side. International play and several North American professional leagues, including the NHL (in the regular season), now use an overtime period identical to that from 1999–2000 to 2003–04 followed by
12450-660: A third straight Atlantic Division title, the Flyers blitzed their way through the first three rounds of the playoffs, dominating Pittsburgh, Buffalo and the Rangers all in five games apiece to win the Eastern Conference championship, and clinch a berth in the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1986–87 . Despite having home-ice advantage, the Flyers were swept in four-straight games by the Detroit Red Wings . The goaltending tandem of Hextall and Garth Snow fared poorly in
12699-593: A third time and eventually succumbed to the Oilers, 3–1, in Game 7. Hextall was voted playoff MVP, the second time a Flyer won the Conn Smythe Trophy despite being on the losing team (the other being another Manitoban, Reggie Leach, in 1976). The Flyers stumbled in 1987–88 , finishing third in the Patrick Division (after a first-place finish the previous three years). Hextall became the first NHL goaltender to score
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#173284492449712948-409: A tie occurs in tournament play, as well as in the NHL playoffs, North Americans favour sudden death overtime , in which the teams continue to play twenty-minute periods until a goal is scored. Up until the 1999–2000 season, regular-season NHL games were settled with a single five-minute sudden death period with five players (plus a goalie) per side, with both teams awarded one point in the standings in
13197-546: A time, barring any penalties, including a goaltender . It is a full contact game and one of the more physically demanding team sports. The modern sport of ice hockey was developed in Canada, most notably in Montreal , where the first indoor game was played on March 3, 1875. Some characteristics of that game, such as the length of the ice rink and the use of a puck, have been retained to this day. Amateur ice hockey leagues began in
13446-671: A tough, five-game preliminary round series win against the Quebec Nordiques , the team's 1980–81 season came to an end as they lost in the quarterfinals to the Calgary Flames in seven games. Soon the last of the Broad Street Bullies guard moved on. Gone were the likes of Leach, MacLeish, Dupont, Kelly, Jimmy Watson and finally Barber and Clarke in 1984, and taking their spots over the next few seasons were young talent such as Brian Propp , Tim Kerr , Dave Poulin , Pelle Lindbergh and Mark Howe , who upon arrival instantly became
13695-543: A trip to the NHL All-Star Game . Despite his arrival, the team struggled in 1969–70 , recording only 17 wins – the fewest in franchise history and set the NHL team record for most ties in a season (24). They lost the tiebreaker for the final playoff spot to the Oakland Seals , missing the playoffs for the first time. On December 11, 1969, the Flyers introduced what became one of the team's best-known traditions: playing
13944-462: Is a full-contact sport, body checks are allowed so injuries are a common occurrence. Protective equipment is mandatory and is enforced in all competitive situations. This includes a helmet with either a visor or a full face mask, shoulder pads, elbow pads, mouth guard, protective gloves, heavily padded shorts (also known as hockey pants) or a girdle, athletic cup (also known as a jock, for males; and jill, for females), shin pads, skates, and (optionally)
14193-410: Is also a penalty in certain leagues in order to reduce the chance of injury to players. Often the term checking is used to refer to body checking, with its true definition generally only propagated among fans of the game. One of the most important strategies for a team is their forecheck . Forechecking is the act of attacking the opposition in their defensive zone. Forechecking is an important part of
14442-459: Is called a line change . Teams typically employ alternate sets of forward lines and defensive pairings when short-handed or on a power play . The goaltender stands in a, usually blue, semi-circle called the crease in the defensive zone keeping pucks out of the goal. Substitutions are permitted at any time during the game, although during a stoppage of play the home team is permitted the final change. When players are substituted during play, it
14691-418: Is called changing on the fly . An NHL rule added in the 2005–06 season prevents a team from changing their line after they ice the puck. The boards surrounding the ice help keep the puck in play and they can also be used as tools to play the puck. Players are permitted to bodycheck opponents into the boards to stop progress. The referees, linesmen and the outsides of the goal are "in play" and do not stop
14940-422: Is ice hockey. While the general characteristics of the game remain constant, the exact rules depend on the particular code of play being used. The two most important codes are those of the IIHF and the NHL. Both of these codes, and others, originated from Canadian rules of ice hockey of the early 20th century. Ice hockey is played on a hockey rink . During normal play, there are six players on ice skates on
15189-528: Is if a team opts to pull their goalie in exchange for an extra skater during overtime and is subsequently scored upon (an empty net goal), in which case the losing team receives no points for the overtime loss. Since the 2015–16 season, the single five-minute sudden-death overtime session involves three skaters on each side. Since three skaters must always be on the ice in an NHL game, the consequences of penalties are slightly different from those during regulation play; any penalty during overtime that would result in
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#173284492449715438-403: Is the left wing lock , which has two forwards pressure the puck and the left wing and the two defencemen stay at the blueline. Offensive tactics include improving a team's position on the ice by advancing the puck out of one's zone towards the opponent's zone, progressively by gaining lines, first your own blue line, then the red line and finally the opponent's blue line. NHL rules instated for
15687-675: 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, Clarke
15936-457: The dump and chase strategy (i.e. shooting the puck into the offensive zone and then chasing after it). Each team uses their own unique system but the main ones are: 2–1–2 , 1–2–2, and 1–4. The 2–1–2 is the most basic forecheck system where two forwards go in deep and pressure the opposition's defencemen, the third forward stays high and the two defencemen stay at the blueline. The 1–2–2 is a bit more conservative system where one forward pressures
16185-525: The 1975–76 season had no bearing on the season standings. On January 11 at the Spectrum, the Flyers, as part of the Super Series '76 , played a memorable exhibition game against the Soviet Union's dominant Central Red Army team. As the Bullies had put intimidation to good use the past three years, the Flyers' rugged style of play led the Soviets to leave the ice midway through the first period, protesting
16434-630: The 2001 Stanley Cup Finals , the Avalanche defeated the New Jersey Devils in seven games to win their second championship. In the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals , the Avalanche defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games to win their third championship. As a result, they remain the only active NHL team that has won all of its appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals . The Avalanche have won twelve division titles since moving to Denver (and set
16683-560: The American Hockey League (AHL), as head coach. Bednar walked into a difficult situation. He was hired just a month before the opening of training camp, and thus had nowhere near enough time to install his own system. He was also unable to bring his own staff, having to make do with holdovers from Roy's staff. On December 10, 2016, the Avalanche allowed ten goals in a 10–1 loss to the Canadiens. The Avalanche closed out their season with
16932-503: The Denver Nuggets . In May 1995, COMSAT announced an agreement in principle to purchase the team. The deal became official on July 1, 1995, and 12,000 season tickets were sold in the 37 days after the announcement of the move. COMSAT considered several names for the team, including "Extreme," "Blizzards," and "Black Bears." It also debated whether to brand the team as a Denver team or as a regional franchise representing either Colorado or
17181-665: The Detroit Red Wings . It marked a return of the NHL to Denver after an absence of 13 years, when the Colorado Rockies (not to be confused with the Major League Baseball team of the same name ) moved to New Jersey to become the New Jersey Devils . Valeri Kamensky scored the first goal as the Avalanche, as well as the game-winning goal in the final minutes. Led on the ice by captain Joe Sakic , forward Peter Forsberg , and defenseman Adam Foote and with Pierre Lacroix as
17430-795: The Eastern Conference . The team plays its home games in Wells Fargo Center in the South Philadelphia Sports Complex , an indoor arena they share with the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League (NLL). Part of the 1967 NHL expansion , the Flyers are the first of the expansion teams in the post– Original Six era to win
17679-689: The Hart Memorial Trophy , given to the NHL's most valuable player during the regular season; the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy , awarded to the player that has shown the best sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with performance in play; the Lester B. Pearson Award ; and shared the NHL Plus/Minus Award with Patrik Elias of the Devils. Patrick Roy won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of
17928-505: The Jack Adams Award as head coach of the year, helped the Flyers stay afloat, but they lost in the first round of the playoffs to Buffalo in six games. In the off-season, the Flyers re-vamped their lineup by signing Jeremy Roenick and finally trading Eric Lindros to the Rangers for Kim Johnsson , Jan Hlavac , Pavel Brendl and a 2003 third-round draft pick ( Stefan Ruzicka ). Desjardins stepped down as team captain eight games into
18177-719: The Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace , in Paris , France, the precursor to the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The sport was played for the first time at the Olympics during the 1920 Summer Games —today it is a mainstay at the Winter Olympics . In 1994, ice hockey was officially recognized as Canada's national winter sport. While women also played during the game's early formative years, it
18426-473: The Minnesota Wild in the first round . Nonetheless, for his outstanding job as a first-year coach, Roy won the Jack Adams Award for the NHL's top coaching honors. Just prior to the start of the 2014–15 season , Sakic was given the title of general manager while Sherman was demoted to assistant GM, formalizing the de facto arrangement that had been in place since 2013. Despite the front office changes,
18675-753: The NHL's First All-Star Team , with Rob Blake elected to the Second All-Star Team. The following season, 2002–03 , saw the Avalanche claim the NHL record for most consecutive division titles, nine, breaking the Montreal Canadiens' streak of eight titles from 1974 to 1982. The division title came after a bad start by the team, that led to the exit of head coach Bob Hartley in December. General manager Pierre Lacroix promoted assistant coach Tony Granato , who had only three months of coaching experience as an assistant, to
18924-633: The National Lacrosse League (NLL). Founded in 1972 as the Quebec Nordiques , the team was one of the charter franchises of the World Hockey Association (WHA). The franchise joined the NHL in 1979 as a result of the NHL–WHA merger . Following the 1994–95 season , they were sold to the COMSAT Entertainment Group and moved to Denver. During their first season in Denver, the Avalanche won
19173-809: The New York Rangers , with an intense rivalry stretching back to the 1970s. They have also waged lengthy campaigns against the New York Islanders in the 1970s and 1980s, the Boston Bruins in the 1970s and 2010s, the Washington Capitals , since their days in the Patrick Division , as well as the New Jersey Devils , with whom they traded the Atlantic Division title every season between 1994–95 and 2006–07 , and with their cross-state rivals,
19422-609: The Pacific Division and went on to sweep the Florida Panthers in the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals . The 1996 Avalanche became the first Denver-based team in the four major North American professional sports leagues to win a league championship. They were also the second major North American sports team to win a championship a year after moving, joining the National Football League (NFL)'s 1937 Washington Redskins . In
19671-554: The Pittsburgh Penguins , which is considered by many to be the best rivalry in the league. Prior to 1967, Philadelphia had only iced a team in the NHL in the 1930–31 season , when the financially struggling Pittsburgh Pirates relocated in 1930 as the Philadelphia Quakers , playing at The Arena at 46th and Market Streets. The club, garbed in orange and black like today's Flyers, was coached by J. Cooper Smeaton , who
19920-495: The St. Louis Blues for the most playoff appearances out of all expansion teams (40 out of 56 seasons). The Flyers have played their home games on Broad Street since their inception, first at the Spectrum from 1967 until 1996, and then at the Wells Fargo Center since 1996. The Flyers have had rivalries with several teams over the years. Historically, their biggest adversaries have been
20169-539: The Stanley Cup , victorious in 1973–74 and again in 1974–75 . The Flyers' all-time points percentage of 56.8% (as of the 2023–24 NHL season ) is the fourth-best in the NHL, behind only the Vegas Golden Knights , Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins . Additionally, the Flyers have the most appearances in the conference finals of all 24 expansion teams (16 appearances, winning 8), and they are second behind
20418-602: The Triple Gold Club , the exclusive group of ice hockey players who have won Olympic gold , World Championship gold , and the Stanley Cup. In 1996–97 , Colorado won the Pacific Division again as well as the Presidents' Trophy for finishing the regular season with the best record in the NHL, at 49–24–9 for 107 points. The team was also the NHL's best scoring with an average of 3.38 goals scored per game. The Avalanche met
20667-530: The general manager and Marc Crawford as the head coach , the Avalanche became stronger when All-Star Montreal Canadiens goaltender Patrick Roy joined the team. Roy joined the Avalanche on December 6, 1995, together with ex-Montreal captain Mike Keane in a trade for Jocelyn Thibault , Martin Rucinsky , and Andrei Kovalenko . The Avalanche finished the regular season with a 47–25–10 record for 104 points, won
20916-536: The "most intimidating building to play in and has the most intimidating fans." Head coach Fred Shero proclaimed, "Yes we are world champions. If they had won, they would have been world champions. We beat the hell out of a machine." The Flyers recorded the best record in team history (points-wise) with a record of 51–13–16 and set the record for most consecutive home wins in regulation (20). The LCB line, featuring Reggie Leach at right-wing, Bobby Clarke at center and Bill Barber at left-wing, set an NHL record for goals by
21165-457: The 1880s, and professional ice hockey originated around 1900. The Stanley Cup , emblematic of ice hockey club supremacy, was initially commissioned in 1892 as the "Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup" and was first awarded in 1893 to recognise the Canadian amateur champion and later became the championship trophy of the National Hockey League (NHL). In the early 1900s, the Canadian rules were adopted by
21414-485: The 18th and 19th centuries in Britain, Ireland, and elsewhere, primarily bandy , hurling , and shinty . The North American sport of lacrosse , derived from tribal Native American games, was also influential. The former games were brought to North America and several similar winter games using informal rules developed, such as shinny and ice polo, but later were absorbed into a new organized game with codified rules which today
21663-659: The 1930s, hockey was an on-side game, meaning that only backward passes were allowed. Those rules emphasized individual stick-handling to drive the puck forward. With the arrival of offside rules, the forward pass transformed hockey into a true team sport, where individual performance diminished in importance relative to team play, which could now be coordinated over the entire surface of the ice as opposed to merely rearward players. The six players on each team are typically divided into three forwards, two defencemen, and one goaltender. The term skaters typically applies to all players except goaltenders. The forward positions consist of
21912-416: The 2006 season redefined the offside rule to make the two-line pass legal; a player may pass the puck from behind his own blue line, past both that blue line and the centre red line, to a player on the near side of the opponents' blue line. Offensive tactics are designed ultimately to score a goal by taking a shot. When a player purposely directs the puck towards the opponent's goal, he or she is said to "shoot"
22161-596: The 2010–11 season, the Avalanche saw their worst season yet since moving to Denver. They only had 68 points in the standings and had winless streaks after the All-Star break. They finished 29th in the 30-team NHL, besting only their division mates, the Edmonton Oilers. Matt Duchene set a franchise record as the youngest scoring leader in Quebec/Colorado history with 67 points, sharing the club goals-leader title with David Jones . Former Avalanche player Peter Forsberg attempted
22410-607: The 3–1 victory on February 11, 1995, against the New Jersey Devils), the Flyers went 25–9–3 and outscored their opponents 128–98 en route. Lindros tied Jaromir Jagr for the regular season scoring lead (though Jagr won the Art Ross Trophy with more goals), and captured the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's MVP. The playoff drought came to an end as the Flyers won their first division title in eight years and clinched
22659-585: The Avalanche failed to qualify for the 2015 playoffs after finishing with a record of 39–31–12, resulting in a seventh-place finish in the Central Division. After failing to qualify for the playoffs again following the 2015–16 season , Roy resigned his posts on August 11, 2016. Following the departure of Roy, the Avalanche hired Jared Bednar from the Calder Cup champions, the Lake Erie Monsters of
22908-619: The Avalanche had since moving to Denver. Posting a record of 32–45–5, finishing 15th in the Western Conference (28th overall), and recording the fewest points since their days in Quebec during the 1979–80 season. The Avalanche missed the postseason for the second time in three seasons. It would be the first time in Avalanche history the team's top scorer would score less than 70 points on the season, as Milan Hejduk and Ryan Smyth would register only 59 points each. On April 13, 2009, just one day after
23157-662: The Avalanche had their longest ever winning streak with 12 games. Following the Columbine High School massacre , Colorado postponed their first two playoff games to a later date; they would wear patches in honor of the Columbine victims on their jerseys during the playoffs. The series was altered to a 2–3–2 format as a result of the tragedy. After defeating both the San Jose Sharks and the Detroit Red Wings in six games in
23406-654: The Avalanche hosted the 51st NHL All-Star Game . Patrick Roy, Ray Bourque, and Joe Sakic played for the North American team, who won 14–12 against the World team, which featured Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg. All but Hejduk were part of the starting lineups. Before the playoffs, the Avalanche acquired star defenseman Rob Blake and center Steven Reinprecht from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Adam Deadmarsh , Aaron Miller , and their first-round 2001 draft pick. In
23655-532: The Avalanche's 2006–07 season, no team in the history of the NHL had ever made it to 95 points without earning a spot in the playoffs. In the Eastern Conference , three teams progressed to the playoffs with fewer than 95 points: the New York Rangers (94), the Tampa Bay Lightning (93) and the New York Islanders (92). For the 2007–08 season , the Avalanche signed two free agents: defenseman Scott Hannan and left winger Ryan Smyth . These acquisitions filled
23904-593: The Avalanche's eighth regular season home game during the 1995–96 season at the McNichols Sports Arena . The record has since been broken by the Pittsburgh Penguins, who saw their own streak end in October 2021 at 633 games. The Avalanche missed the playoffs for the 2006–07 season, missing it for the first time since 1993–94 , when they were still in Quebec. The team had a 15–2–2 run in the last 19 games of
24153-550: The Avalanche's lone representative at the 2012 NHL Awards, won the Calder Memorial Trophy, joining Chris Drury, Peter Forsberg and Peter Stastny for earning top rookie honors for the Avalanche. On September 4, 2012, Gabriel Landeskog was named the fourth captain of the Avalanche. Milan Hejduk relinquished the captaincy a week earlier. At 19 years and 286 days old, Landeskog became the youngest captain in NHL history at that time, being 11 days younger than when Sidney Crosby
24402-549: The Boston Bruins, took Game 1 in Boston, but Bobby Clarke scored an overtime goal in Game 2 to even the series. The Flyers then won Games 3 and 4 at home to take a 3–1 series lead, though Boston won Game 5 to stave off elimination. That set the stage for Game 6 at the Spectrum. Kate Smith appeared in person before Game 6 to sing her rendition of "God Bless America", even miming a "knockout punch" after her performance. The Flyers picked up
24651-481: The City of Denver refused to transfer the parcel of land on which Pepsi Center stood unless Sturm promised to keep the Avalanche and Nuggets in Denver for at least 25 years. Sturm had made his bid in his own name, and the city wanted to protect taxpayers in the event Sturm either died or sold the teams. While Sturm was willing to make a long-term commitment to the city, he was not willing to be held responsible if he died or sold
24900-559: The Detroit Red Wings in the playoffs for the fifth time in seven years. Colorado had a 3–2 lead after five games, but lost Game 6 at home, 2–0, and Game 7 in Detroit, 7–0. As in 1997, Detroit went on to win the Stanley Cup . Peter Forsberg was the playoffs' leading scorer with 27 points (9 goals, 18 assists). Roy won the William M. Jennings Trophy , given to the goaltenders of the team with fewest goals scored against. Roy and Sakic were both elected to
25149-474: The Division and three points short of a playoff spot after a late-season collapse. Prior to the 1991–92 season , the Flyers acquired Rod Brind'Amour from St. Louis. Brind'Amour led the Flyers in goals (33), assists (44) and points (77) in his first season with the club. With Ron Sutter gone to St. Louis in the Brind'Amour trade, Rick Tocchet was named team captain. As the Flyers continued to flounder, Paul Holmgren
25398-411: The Finals, as both conceded soft goals, and Murray's strategy of alternating starters in goal was criticized. After Game 3 which was a 6–1 loss, Murray blasted his team in a closed-door meeting and then described to the media that the Flyers were in a "choking situation", a remark which angered his players and likely cost Murray his job, as his contract was not renewed. In July, Mikael Renberg was traded to
25647-469: The Flyers acquired Sami Kapanen and Tony Amonte prior to the trade deadline; however, they fell one point short of a second straight Atlantic Division title. Consequently, the Flyers endured a long, brutal seven-game first-round match-up with Toronto that featured three multiple overtime games, all in Toronto. After winning Game 7, 6–1, the Flyers fought Ottawa in the second round with equal vigor as they split
25896-481: The Flyers could not muster much offense, scoring only two goals in their five-game, first-round playoff loss to the Ottawa Senators . It turned out there was much discontent in the locker room as Bill Barber was fired. The Flyers hired a proven winner when they turned to former Dallas Stars and Stanley Cup-winning head coach Ken Hitchcock . In 2002–03 , Roman Cechmanek had a 1.83 goals against average (GAA) and
26145-485: The Flyers did not come close to a third straight championship without an injured Bernie Parent, as they ran into an up-and-coming dynasty in Montreal, and were swept in four-straight games. Despite the loss, Leach was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for scoring a record 19 goals in 16 playoff games. Dethroned, the heyday of the Broad Street Bullies began to come to an end, as prior to the 1976–77 season , tough-guy Dave Schultz
26394-488: The Flyers rallied to overcome the distractions and a 15-point deficit in the standings to win the Atlantic Division and the top seed in the East on the last day of the regular season. They easily defeated their first-round opponent, Buffalo, in five games. Primeau's goal in the fifth overtime of Game 4 against the team's second-round opponent, Pittsburgh, turned that series in the Flyers' favor as they won in six games, coming back from
26643-406: The Flyers set an NHL record in a game against Ottawa where they set a combined record of 419 penalty minutes in a single game . Esche entrenched himself as starter and remained in that position even after the Flyers re-acquired Sean Burke from the Phoenix Coyotes as the Flyers clinched the Atlantic Division title over New Jersey on the last day of the season. Though solid in net, Esche's performance
26892-586: The Flyers swept the Atlanta Flames in four games in the first round. In the Semi-finals, the Flyers faced the New York Rangers . The series, which saw the home team win every game, went seven games. Fortunately for the Flyers, they had home-ice advantage as they advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals by winning Game 7 and in the process made history by becoming the first expansion team to win a playoff series over an Original Six team. Their opponent, Bobby Orr and
27141-439: The Flyers' 20 selections were Bernie Parent , Doug Favell , Bill Sutherland , Ed Van Impe , Joe Watson , Lou Angotti , Leon Rochefort and Gary Dornhoefer . Having purchased the minor-league Quebec Aces , the team had a distinctly francophone flavor in its early years, with Parent, Rochefort, Andre Lacroix , Serge Bernier , Jean-Guy Gendron , Simon Nolet and Rosaire Paiement among others. Beginning play in 1967–68 ,
27390-496: The Flyers' season in Game 6. The Flyers said goodbye to the Spectrum and prepared to open a new arena – the CoreStates Center – for the next season. The 1996–97 season started off slowly, as Lindros missed 30 games, but LeClair still managed to score 50 goals for the second consecutive year, while the mid-season acquisition of defenseman Paul Coffey gave the Flyers a veteran presence. Despite finishing just one point shy of
27639-400: The Flyers' top defenseman for the next decade. Over the next three seasons the team would suffer early playoff exits and manage to win only one playoff game during that span. They were eliminated two years in a row in 1981–82 and 1982–83 by the New York Rangers and then were swept by the Washington Capitals in 1983–84 . Following the loss to Washington, Bobby Clarke retired from play and
27888-453: The Hart Memorial Trophy for the regular season's most valuable player, and shared the NHL Plus/Minus Award with teammate Hejduk. Hejduk scored 50 goals to win the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy , awarded annually to the leading goal scorer in the NHL. Forsberg was elected to the NHL's First All-Star Team; Hejduk was elected to the Second All-Star Team. Patrick Roy retired after that season, and
28137-512: The Mariners. Adding to the problems, Bernie Parent suffered a career-ending eye injury. The Flyers rallied under Quinn and finished in second place. 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 Fred Shero's Rangers in a five-game quarterfinal loss. The Flyers began the 1979–80 season with
28386-456: The Minnesota Wild in six games. In the conference semifinals, however, the Avalanche were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings . On May 9, 2008, the Avalanche announced that Joel Quenneville would not return to coach the team next season. Two weeks later, Tony Granato was named head coach of the Avalanche for the second time. The 2008–09 season was the worst season
28635-661: The NFL's St. Louis Rams in 2010. Since the NFL does not allow its owners to hold majority control of major-league teams in other NFL cities, Kroenke turned over day-to-day control of the Nuggets and Avalanche to his son, Josh, toward the end of 2010. Kroenke had to sell his controlling interest in both teams by 2014. In 2010, the Avalanche made it to the playoffs but lost in the conference quarterfinals 4–2 against San Jose. Joe Sacco finished third in Jack Adams Trophy voting that season. In
28884-410: The NHL, a unique penalty applies to the goalies. The goalies now are forbidden to play the puck in the "corners" of the rink near their own net. This will result in a two-minute penalty against the goalie's team. Only in the area in front of the goal line and immediately behind the net (marked by two red lines on either side of the net) can the goalie play the puck. An additional rule that has never been
29133-447: The NHL, the eights being the player's jersey numbers (88, 8 and 18 respectively). In 1992–93 , Recchi set the franchise record for points in a season with 123 (53 goals and 70 assists) and Lindros scored 41 goals in 61 games. After struggling early, the Flyers made a run at the playoffs, but came four points short of the last spot. Head coach Bill Dineen was fired at the season's end, while Clarke left town again to become general manager of
29382-538: The National Hockey League, a number of leagues have implemented the "four-official system", where an additional referee is added to aid in the calling of penalties normally difficult to assess by one referee. The system is used in every NHL game since 2001, at IIHF World Championships , the Olympics and in many professional and high-level amateur leagues in North America and Europe. Officials are selected by
29631-443: The New York Rangers. As compensation for Shero, the Flyers received the Rangers' first-round draft pick in 1978 . Bob McCammon , who had just coached the Flyers' first year American Hockey League (AHL) Maine Mariners farm club to a Calder Cup title, replaced Fred Shero behind the bench. After a slow start in 1978–79 , the Flyers switched McCammon with Pat Quinn , Shero's previous assistant coach, who had replaced McCammon with
29880-492: The Nordiques started to decline. From 1987–88 to 1991–92 , the team finished last in their division every season, with three of those finishes landing them last in the league. This included a dreadful 12-win season in 1989–90 that is still the worst in franchise history. As a result, the team earned three consecutive first overall draft picks, used to select Mats Sundin ( 1989 ), Owen Nolan ( 1990 ), and Eric Lindros ( 1991 ). Lindros made it clear he did not wish to play for
30129-523: The Nordiques, to the extent he did not wear the team's jersey for the press photographs, only holding it when it was presented to him. On advice from his mother, he refused to sign a contract and began a holdout that lasted over a year. On June 30, 1992, he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for five players, the rights to Swedish prospect Peter Forsberg , two first-round draft picks, and US$ 15 million. The Eric Lindros trade turned
30378-578: The Nordiques. Paul Stastny , son of Nordiques legend Peter Stastny , also provided a link to the franchise's past. Before the previous season's playoffs, in a move reminiscent of Patrick Roy's trade, the Avalanche traded Aebischer to the Montreal Canadiens for the Vezina Trophy -winning Jose Theodore . However, the move would not turn out to be as successful when Theodore posted a 13–15–1 record in 2006–07, with an .891 save percentage , and 3.26 goals against average (GAA). His US$ 6 million salary became
30627-417: The Northwest Division and ninth in the Western Conference with a 44–31–7 record for 95 points, one less than eighth-seeded Calgary. Nonetheless, the result was greater than expected by hockey pundits; Sports Illustrated previewed before the start of the season that the Avalanche would finish 13th in the Western Conference. During that last game of the season, Joe Sakic scored a goal and two assists and became
30876-418: The Pacific Division of the Western Conference. After purchasing the team, COMSAT organized its Denver sports franchises under a separate subsidiary, Ascent Entertainment Group Inc., which went public in 1995. COMSAT retained an 80% controlling interest, with the other 20% available on NASDAQ . The Avalanche played their first game in the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver on October 6, 1995, winning 3–2 against
31125-423: The Pacific Division, and finished second in the Western Conference. Colorado progressed to the playoffs, defeating the Vancouver Canucks , Chicago Blackhawks , and the Presidents' Trophy -winning Detroit Red Wings in the conference finals, all in six games. In the Stanley Cup Finals , the Avalanche met the Florida Panthers , who were also in their first Finals. The Avalanche swept the series 4–0. In Game 4, during
31374-426: The Patrick Division in 1977–78 and settled for second place. After sweeping the Colorado Rockies in two games in the preliminary round, the Flyers moved on to beat Buffalo in five games. They then faced Boston in the semi-finals for the second consecutive season, and lost again, this time in five games. Following the season, the Flyers were stunned when head coach Shero left to become general manager and head coach of
31623-548: The Philadelphia Flyers made their debut on October 11, 1967, losing 5–1 on the road to the California Seals . They won their first game a week later, defeating the St. Louis Blues on the road, 2–1. The Flyers made their home debut in front of a crowd of 7,812, shutting-out their intrastate rivals, the Pittsburgh Penguins , 1–0 on October 19. Lou Angotti was named the first captain in Flyers history, while Rochefort
31872-461: The Rangers by beating them in six games in the division semifinals, as well as surviving a tough seven-game test from a gritty Islanders club, in the division finals. The Flyers then defeated the defending Stanley Cup champion Canadiens in a fiery six-game series (notable for a famous bench-clearing brawl during the Game 6 warmup) to win the Wales Conference and return to the Stanley Cup Finals. As
32121-446: The Rangers. It was determined that Quebec had made a deal with the Flyers before making a deal with the Rangers. In order to acquire Lindros' rights, the Flyers parted with six players, trading Steve Duchesne , Peter Forsberg , Ron Hextall, Kerry Huffman , Mike Ricci , Chris Simon , a 1993 first-round draft pick ( Jocelyn Thibault ), a 1994 first-round draft pick ( Nolan Baumgartner ) and $ 15 million to Quebec. While Lindros became
32370-491: The Stanley Cup their first season after a move, and only the second team to win a championship their first season after a move in any of the four major North American sports leagues, following the NFL's Washington Commanders . They also became the second team from the WHA to win the Cup. With the Cup win, Russians Alexei Gusarov and Valeri Kamensky, and Swede Peter Forsberg became members of
32619-464: The Tampa Bay Lightning, in exchange for Chris Gratton , thus splitting up the famed Legion of Doom line. The trio of Lindros, LeClair and Renberg scored a combined total of 666 points in 547 regular season games. The man picked to replace Murray as coach, Wayne Cashman , was deemed ill-suited for the job as the Flyers played inconsistently throughout the 1997–98 season . With 21 games to go in
32868-521: The United States, Ruslan Salei for Belarus and Peter Budaj for Slovakia . Following the Winter Olympics, the Avalanche struggled but eventually clinched a playoff spot with 95 points on the season, a 26-point improvement from the previous year's effort, and good enough for eighth place in the Western Conference. The Avalanche fell in the conference quarterfinals to the top-seeded San Jose Sharks in six games. Stan Kroenke purchased full ownership in
33117-563: The Wales Conference Finals before bowing out to Montreal in six games. The 1989–90 season got off to a bad start for the Flyers, and continued to get worse. Hextall missed all but eight games due to suspension for attacking Chris Chelios at the end of the Montreal playoff series the previous spring, contract holdout issues, and injury. Holmgren replaced Dave Poulin as captain in December with Ron Sutter , which led to Poulin's (and later that season, Brian Propp's) trade to Boston. As
33366-516: The anthem, but showed more respect and often sang along to "God Bless America". As of the close of the 2016–17 season, the Flyers have a record of 100–29–5 when "God Bless America" was sung prior to Flyers home games. In 1970–71 , the Flyers had bounced back from the previous season and returned to the playoffs, but were swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round. Even though the team had improved their record in his second season behind
33615-415: The app determines that a particular impact has the potential to cause brain injury, it will alert the coach who can in turn seek medical attention for the individual. Defensive ice hockey tactics vary from more active to more conservative styles of play. One distinction is between man-to-man oriented defensive systems, and zonal oriented defensive systems, though a lot of teams use a combination between
33864-497: The bench, head coach Vic Stasiuk was replaced by Fred Shero in the off-season. The team was involved in a three-way trade that sent Bernie Parent to the Toronto Maple Leafs while receiving Rick MacLeish from the Boston Bruins. The team began to shift to a more aggressive style of play while also dominating on offense during this time. Bobby Clarke continued to progress as he led the team in scoring in 1971–72 and became
34113-534: The best record in the Wales Conference and matching their win total (53) from the previous year. Tim Kerr scored 58 goals and the defense pairing of Howe and Brad McCrimmon led the League in plus-minus, a +85 and a +83, respectively. Bob Froese filled in admirably in net for Lindbergh, being named a second Team All-Star and sharing the William M. Jennings Trophy with teammate Darren Jensen . Despite their regular season success, an emotionally exhausted Flyers team lost in
34362-477: The blue and centre ice red line away. The NHL has taken steps to speed up the game of hockey and create a game of finesse, by reducing the number of illegal hits, fights, and "clutching and grabbing" that occurred in the past. Rules are now more strictly enforced, resulting in more penalties, which provides more protection to the players and facilitates more goals being scored. The governing body for United States' amateur hockey has implemented many new rules to reduce
34611-666: The club history since their move to Denver. Head coach Joe Sacco signed a two-year contract extension shortly after the end of the season. Stand out rookie Gabriel Landeskog overtook Matt Duchene as the youngest in franchise history to lead the team in goals, scoring 22 in 82 games. Having resigned most of their free agents, the club wouldn't see much change in the 2012 off-season, with the exception of losing unrestricted free agents Peter Mueller , Jay McClement and Kevin Porter . Colorado would add Greg Zanon , John Mitchell and high scoring winger P. A. Parenteau to its roster. Gabriel Landeskog,
34860-759: The club. With their first pick, second overall, they selected Gabriel Landeskog , the young captain of the Ontario Hockey League 's Kitchener Rangers . Second, they selected defenseman Duncan Siemens 11th overall, a pick acquired from the St. Louis Blues in the controversial trade that sent power-forward Chris Stewart , long time top prospect Kevin Shattenkirk and a second-round pick to the Blues in exchange for their first-round pick, veteran Jay McClement and 2006 former first overall pick, Erik Johnson . A complete overhaul at
35109-521: The days of the Edmonton Oilers" was not good enough as the franchise failed to win the Northwest Division title, ending the NHL record streak. The 40–22–13–7 record was good enough for 100 points, one less than the Northwest Division champion Vancouver Canucks. This ended a streak of nine consecutive division titles dating to the team's last year in Quebec. During a game against Vancouver on March 8, 2004, Canucks player Todd Bertuzzi punched Colorado's Steve Moore from behind, leaving Moore unconscious. It
35358-423: The deal contingent upon Ascent selling both the Avalanche and Nuggets. After almost two years, Ascent sold the teams to Wal-Mart heirs Bill and Nancy Laurie for $ 400 million. However, a group of Ascent shareholders sued, claiming the sale price was several million dollars too low. Ascent then agreed to sell the teams to Denver banking tycoon Donald Sturm for $ 461 million. A new wrinkle appeared when
35607-527: The deal, Kroenke organized his sports assets under Kroenke Sports Enterprises . The 2000–01 season was the best season the team has ever had due to phenomenal play by the all-time leading scorer in Avalanche history, Joe Sakic. The Avalanche won the Division and captured their second Presidents' Trophy after having finished the regular season with 52–16–10–4 for 118 points. Sakic finished the regular season with 118 points (54 goals and 64 assists), only three behind Jaromir Jagr 's 121 points. On February 4, 2001,
35856-418: The end of the season, the Avalanche relieved Francois Giguere of his general manager duties. Colorado would go on to receive the highest draft pick in Avalanche history, third overall. That pick turned out to be Brampton Battalion star Matt Duchene . In the 2009 off-season, the Avalanche named Greg Sherman the new general manager and Joe Sacco the new head coach. The following month, top scorer Ryan Smyth
36105-492: The end of the season. It was in the 1999–2000 season that the Colorado Avalanche played their first game in the new Pepsi Center , which cost US$ 160 million. Milan Hejduk scored the first goal of a 2–1 victory against the Boston Bruins on October 13, 1999. The Avalanche finished the season with a 42–28–11–1 record for 96 points, winning the Division. Before the playoffs, the Avalanche strengthened their defense for
36354-414: The entire Rocky Mountain region. Initially, COMSAT filed for copyright protection for "Black Bears", but reportedly decided to name the team Rocky Mountain Extreme . When The Denver Post leaked the intended name, fan reaction was so negative that COMSAT reconsidered and chose the name Colorado Avalanche . The new name was revealed on August 10, 1995. With the move, the newly relocated team transferred to
36603-452: The event of a tie. With a goal, the winning team would be awarded two points and the losing team none (just as if they had lost in regulation). The total elapsed time from when the puck first drops, is about 2 hours and 20 minutes for a 60-minute game. From the 1999–2000 until the 2003–04 seasons, the National Hockey League decided ties by playing a single five-minute sudden-death overtime period with each team having four skaters per side (plus
36852-407: The expansion Florida Panthers . For 1993–94 , Terry Simpson was hired as the new head coach in hopes of returning the Flyers to the playoffs after four consecutive off-years. Mark Recchi recorded 107 points (40 goals and 67 assists) and Lindros 97 (44 goals and 53 assists), while Mikael Renberg set a Flyers rookie record with 82 points. Offense was generated yet the Flyers still failed to clinch
37101-413: The final say on hockey matters. The Avalanche held the top overall pick in the 2013 NHL draft , which they used to draft Nathan Mackinnon , who had previously played against the team that Patrick Roy had coached in the QMJHL . Under Roy, in 2013–14 , the Avalanche returned to the playoffs, finishing first in the Central Division and second in the Western Conference, but would lose a seven-game series to
37350-411: The final score recorded will award the winning team one more goal than the score at the end of regulation time. In the NHL if a game is decided in overtime or by a shootout the winning team is awarded two points in the standings and the losing team is awarded one point. Ties no longer occur in the NHL. Overtime in the NHL playoffs differs from the regular season. In the playoffs there are no shootouts. If
37599-404: The first Flyer to win an NHL award, the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. However, in the season's final game, the Flyers needed a win or a tie against the second-year Buffalo Sabres to beat out Pittsburgh for the final playoff spot. The score was tied late in the game, but with just four seconds on the clock, former Flyer Gerry Meehan took
37848-425: The first four games of the series, with Cechmanek earning shutouts in both wins. His inconsistency showed through, however, as he allowed ten goals in the final two games, and Ottawa advanced in six games. He was later traded to Los Angeles for a 2004 second-round draft pick during the off-season despite having the second-best GAA in the League over his three years in Philadelphia. Free-agent goaltender Jeff Hackett
38097-449: The first round of the playoffs to the Rangers in five games. During the 1986–87 season, the Flyers were rejuvenated by the ascension of 22-year-old goaltender Ron Hextall . In his rookie season, he became the third Flyers goaltender to win the Vezina Trophy, joining Parent and Lindbergh. With Hextall providing the critical stops at crucial times, the Flyers captured a third-straight Patrick Division title, and were able to gain revenge on
38346-423: The first two rounds, Colorado met the Presidents' Trophy-winning Dallas Stars in the conference finals, where they lost in seven games. Forsberg, the playoffs' leading scorer with 24 points (8 goals and 16 assists), was again elected to the NHL's First All-Star team, and Chris Drury won the Calder Memorial Trophy for the best rookie of the season. Both Drury and Hejduk were elected to the NHL All-Rookie Team at
38595-438: The following season, Colorado won the Pacific Division with a 39–26–17 record for 95 points. The team lost in the conference quarterfinals against the Edmonton Oilers in seven games, having led the series 3–1. Peter Forsberg was the NHL's second-highest scorer in the regular season with 91 points (25 goals and 66 assists) and was elected for the NHL's First All-Star Team. After the end of the season, head coach Marc Crawford rejected
38844-438: The front of the foot or ankle, is a common ice hockey injury. Compared to athletes who play other sports, ice hockey players are at higher risk of overuse injuries and injuries caused by early sports specialization by teenagers. According to the Hughston Health Alert, prior to the widespread use of helmets and face cages, "Lacerations to the head, scalp, and face are the most frequent types of injury [in hockey]." One of
39093-425: The front office. COMSAT's diversification into sports ownership was proving a drain on the company. Cost overruns associated with the construction of Pepsi Center had shareholders up in arms. Finally, in 1997, COMSAT agreed in principle to sell Ascent to Liberty Media . However, Liberty was not interested in sports ownership at the time (though it has since purchased Major League Baseball's Atlanta Braves ), and made
39342-427: The game , too many players on the ice , boarding , illegal equipment, charging (leaping into an opponent or body-checking him after taking more than two strides), holding, holding the stick (grabbing an opponent's stick), interference, hooking , slashing , kneeing, unsportsmanlike conduct (arguing a penalty call with referee, extremely vulgar or inappropriate verbal comments), "butt-ending" (striking an opponent with
39591-448: The game to be played in heavy fog, as Buffalo's arena lacked air conditioning. The Flyers lost Games 3 and 4, but won Game 5 at home in dominating fashion, 5–1. On the road for Game 6, Bob Kelly scored the decisive goal and Parent pitched another shutout (a playoff record fifth shutout) as the Flyers repeated as Stanley Cup champions. Parent also repeated as the playoff MVP, winning a second consecutive Conn Smythe Trophy. The highlight of
39840-411: The game when the puck or players either bounce into or collide with them. Play can be stopped if the goal is knocked out of position. Play often proceeds for minutes without interruption. After a stoppage, play is restarted with a faceoff . Two players face each other and an official drops the puck to the ice, where the two players attempt to gain control of the puck. Markings (circles) on the ice indicate
40089-406: The game. There are typically two linesmen who are mainly responsible for calling "offside" and " icing " violations, breaking up fights, and conducting faceoffs, and one or two referees , who call goals and all other penalties. Linesmen can report to the referee(s) that a penalty should be assessed against an offending player in some situations. The restrictions on this practice vary depending on
40338-442: The goal-tending position sent Peter Budaj to the Montreal Canadiens and Brian Elliott to St. Louis, Elliott having been acquired from the Ottawa Senators for Craig Anderson during the team's downward spiral the season previous. Goaltender Semyon Varlamov was dealt to Colorado from the Washington Capitals in exchange for a first and second pick, while veteran netminder and former Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jean-Sébastien Giguère
40587-401: The goalie). In the event of a tie, each team would still receive one point in the standings but in the event of a victory the winning team would be awarded two points in the standings and the losing team one point. The idea was to discourage teams from playing for a tie, since previously some teams might have preferred a tie and 1 point to risking a loss and zero points. The exception to this rule
40836-402: The goaltender carries a stick consisting of a long, relatively wide, and slightly curved flat blade, attached to a shaft. The curve itself has a big impact on its performance. A deep curve allows for lifting the puck easier while a shallow curve allows for easier backhand shots. The flex of the stick also impacts the performance. Typically, a less flexible stick is meant for a stronger player since
41085-404: The governing rules. On-ice officials are assisted by off-ice officials who act as goal judges, time keepers, and official scorers. The most widespread system is the "three-man system", which uses one referee and two linesmen. A less commonly used system is the two referee and one linesman system. This system is close to the regular three-man system except for a few procedure changes. Beginning with
41334-465: The head and most types of forceful stick-on-body contact are illegal. A delayed penalty call occurs when an offence is committed by the team that does not have possession of the puck. In this circumstance the team with possession of the puck is allowed to complete the play; that is, play continues until a goal is scored, a player on the opposing team gains control of the puck, or the team in possession commits an infraction or penalty of their own. Because
41583-422: The head coach position. The team's playoff spot seemed in doubt at one point, but the Avalanche managed to finish with 105 points, ahead of the Vancouver Canucks by one. The race to the title was exciting, namely the second-to-last game of the season, as the Avalanche needed to win the game to stay in the race, and Milan Hejduk scored with ten seconds left in overtime to defeat the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim . The title
41832-496: The heads, as well as checks to unsuspecting players. Studies show that ice hockey causes 44.3% of all sports-related traumatic brain injuries among Canadian children. Some teams in the Swiss National League are testing out systems that combine helmet-integrated sensors and analysis software to reveal a player's ongoing brain injury risk during a game. These sensors provide players and coaches with real-time data on head impact strength, frequency, and severity. Furthermore, if
42081-458: The ice per side, one of them being the goaltender. The objective of the game is to score goals by shooting a hard vulcanized rubber disc, the puck , into the opponent's goal net at the opposite end of the rink. The players use their sticks to pass or shoot the puck. With certain restrictions, players may redirect the puck with any part of their body. Players may not hold the puck in their hand and are prohibited from using their hands to pass
42330-426: The ice. Loafing , also known as cherry-picking , is when a player, usually a forward, skates behind an attacking team, instead of playing defence, in an attempt to create an easy scoring chance. Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia . The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in
42579-417: The illegal actions of another player stop a clear scoring opportunity, most commonly when the player is on a breakaway . A penalty shot allows the obstructed player to pick up the puck on the centre red-line and attempt to score on the goalie with no other players on the ice, to compensate for the earlier missed scoring opportunity. A penalty shot is also awarded for a defender other than the goaltender covering
42828-422: The knob of the stick), "spearing" (jabbing an opponent with the blade of the stick), or cross-checking . As of the 2005–2006 season, a minor penalty is also assessed for diving , where a player embellishes or simulates an offence. More egregious fouls may be penalized by a four-minute double-minor penalty, particularly those that injure the victimized player. These penalties end either when the time runs out or when
43077-416: The lead early when Rick MacLeish scored a first-period goal. Late in the game, Orr hauled down Clarke on a breakaway, a penalty which assured the Flyers of victory. Time expired as the Flyers brought the Stanley Cup to Philadelphia for the first time. Parent, having shutout Boston in Game 6, won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. Under the 1974–75 season , Dave Schultz topped his mark from
43326-482: The leading causes of head injury is body checking from behind. Due to the danger of delivering a check from behind, many leagues – including the NHL – have made this a major and game misconduct penalty. Another type of check that accounts for many of the player-to-player contact concussions is a check to the head resulting in a misconduct penalty (called "head contact"). In recent years, the NHL has implemented new rules which penalize and suspend players for illegal checks to
43575-418: The league record for most consecutive division titles at nine in a row from 1995 to 2003; one in Quebec, the rest in Colorado), and qualified for the playoffs in each of their first ten seasons after the move; this streak ended in 2007. The Quebec Nordiques were one of the World Hockey Association 's (WHA) original teams when the league began play in 1972 . Though first awarded to a group in San Francisco ,
43824-492: The league they work for. Amateur hockey leagues use guidelines established by national organizing bodies as a basis for choosing their officiating staffs. In North America, the national organizing bodies Hockey Canada and USA Hockey approve officials according to their experience level as well as their ability to pass rules knowledge and skating ability tests. Hockey Canada has officiating levels I through VI. USA Hockey has officiating levels 1 through 4. Since men's ice hockey
44073-562: The locations for the faceoff and guide the positioning of players. Three major rules of play in ice hockey limit the movement of the puck: offside , icing , and the puck going out of play. Under IIHF rules, each team may carry a maximum of 20 players and two goaltenders on their roster. NHL rules restrict the total number of players per game to 18, plus two goaltenders. In the NHL, the players are usually divided into four lines of three forwards, and into three pairs of defencemen. On occasion, teams may elect to substitute an extra defenceman for
44322-427: The minor league. Peter Forsberg's number 21 became the fourth jersey number retired by the Avalanche on opening night, a contest Colorado would lose to Detroit 3–0. Colorado redeemed themselves in game two of the season on October 10, 2011, against the 2011 Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins . Varlamov negated all 30 shots registered by Boston and posted the fifth shutout of his career and first win as an Avalanche in
44571-435: The misconduct (a two-and-ten or five-and-ten ). In this case, the team designates another player to serve the minor or major; both players go to the penalty box, but only the designee may not be replaced, and he is released upon the expiration of the two or five minutes, at which point the ten-minute misconduct begins. In addition, game misconducts are assessed for deliberate intent to inflict severe injury on an opponent (at
44820-410: The moribund Nordiques into a Stanley Cup contender almost overnight, and is seen in hindsight as one of the most one-sided deals in sports history. In the first season after the trade, 1992–93 , the Nordiques reached the playoffs for the first time in six years. Two years later , they won the Northeast Division and had the second best regular season record during the lockout-shortened season . While
45069-417: The number of stick-on-body occurrences, as well as other detrimental and illegal facets of the game ("zero tolerance"). In men's hockey, but not in women's, a player may use his hip or shoulder to hit another player if the player has the puck or is the last to have touched it. This use of the hip and shoulder is called body checking . Not all physical contact is legal—in particular, hits from behind, hits to
45318-420: The off-season, the Flyers went looking for a new goaltender. Burke was let go and Hextall was about to enter his final season as a backup. They chose to sign former Panther John Vanbiesbrouck as the starting goaltender. The 1998–99 season was marred by a life-threatening injury sustained by Eric Lindros on April Fools' Day during a game against the Nashville Predators , a season-ending injury later diagnosed as
45567-431: The offer, which instigated a salary raise for NHL players. The Avalanche sent 10 players representing seven countries, as well as head coach Marc Crawford representing Canada, to the 1998 Winter Olympics ice hockey tournament in Nagano , Japan . Milan Hejduk won the gold medal with Czech Republic , Alexei Gusarov and Valeri Kamensky won the silver medal with Russia , and Jari Kurri won bronze with Finland . In
45816-442: The officials' discretion), or for a major penalty for a stick infraction or repeated major penalties. The offending player is ejected from the game and must immediately leave the playing surface (he does not sit in the penalty box); meanwhile, if an additional minor or major penalty is assessed, a designated player must serve out of that segment of the penalty in the box (similar to the above-mentioned "two-and-ten"). In some rare cases,
46065-540: The other team scores during the power play. In the case of a goal scored during the first two minutes of a double-minor, the penalty clock is set down to two minutes upon a score, effectively expiring the first minor penalty. Five-minute major penalties are called for especially violent instances of most minor infractions that result in intentional injury to an opponent, or when a minor penalty results in visible injury (such as bleeding), as well as for fighting. Major penalties are always served in full; they do not terminate on
46314-413: The other, the opposing team gets a power play for the remainder of the time); this applies regardless of current pending penalties. In the NHL, a team always has at least three skaters on the ice. Thus, ten-minute misconduct penalties are served in full by the penalized player, but his team may immediately substitute another player on the ice unless a minor or major penalty is assessed in conjunction with
46563-405: The penalty is still assessed to the offending player, but not served. In 2012, this rule was changed by the United States' National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for college level hockey . In college games, the penalty is still enforced even if the team in possession scores. A typical game of hockey is governed by two to four officials on the ice, charged with enforcing the rules of
46812-499: The play is restarted at a faceoff. Some infractions result in a penalty on a player or team. In the simplest case, the offending player is sent to the penalty box and their team must play with one less player on the ice for a designated time. Minor penalties last for two minutes, major penalties last for five minutes, and a double minor penalty is two consecutive penalties of two minutes duration. A single minor penalty may be extended by two minutes for causing visible injury to
47061-411: The player is looking for the right balanced flex that allows the stick to flex easily while still having a strong "whip-back" which sends the puck flying at high speeds. It is quite distinct from sticks in other sports games and most suited to hitting and controlling the flat puck. Its unique shape contributed to the early development of the game. The goaltender carries a stick of a different design, with
47310-461: The players serve five minutes without their team incurring a loss of player (both teams still have a full complement of players on the ice). This differs with two players from opposing sides getting minor penalties, at the same time or at any intersecting moment, resulting from more common infractions. In this case, both teams will have only four skating players (not counting the goaltender) until one or both penalties expire (if one penalty expires before
47559-442: The playoffs by sweeping the Rangers in three games, defeating the Islanders in five and beating Quebec in six to return to the Stanley Cup Finals. Though they defeated the defending Stanley Cup champion Oilers in Game 1 by a score of 4–1 at home, Edmonton won the next four games in a row and the series. A month into the 1985–86 season , Pelle Lindbergh was killed in a car accident. The team rallied and showed perseverance by garnering
47808-410: The playoffs, Colorado swept their conference quarterfinals against the Vancouver Canucks. In the conference semifinals, the Avalanche defeated the Los Angeles Kings in seven games, after having wasted a 3–1 lead. After the last game of the series, Peter Forsberg underwent surgery to remove a ruptured spleen and it was announced he would not play until the following season. The injury was a huge upset for
48057-420: The playoffs. Shjon Podein was awarded the King Clancy Memorial Trophy for significant humanitarian contributions to his community, namely his work on charitable organizations and his own children foundation. Ray Bourque and Joe Sakic were elected to the NHL's First All-Star Team. Rob Blake was elected to the Second All-Star Team. In the 2001–02 season , Colorado finished the regular season with 99 points from
48306-413: The previous season by setting an NHL record for penalty minutes with 472. Clarke's efforts earned him his second Hart Trophy and Parent was the lone recipient of the Vezina Trophy. The Flyers as a team improved their record slightly with a mark of 51–18–11, the best record in the NHL. After a first-round bye, the Flyers easily swept the Toronto Maple Leafs and were presented with another New York-area team in
48555-439: The puck carrier and the other two forwards cover the oppositions' wingers, with the two defencemen staying at the blueline. The 1–4 is the most defensive forecheck system, referred to as the neutral zone trap, where one forward applies pressure to the puck carrier around the oppositions' blueline and the other four players stand basically in a line by their blueline in hopes the opposition will skate into one of them. Another strategy
48804-406: The puck carrier in the neutral zone preventing him from entering the offensive zone. Body checking is using one's shoulder or hip to strike an opponent who has the puck or who is the last to have touched it (the last person to have touched the puck is still legally "in possession" of it, although a penalty is generally called if he is checked more than two seconds after his last touch). Body checking
49053-405: The puck in the goal crease, a goaltender intentionally displacing his own goal posts during a breakaway to avoid a goal, a defender intentionally displacing his own goal posts when there is less than two minutes to play in regulation time or at any point during overtime, or a player or coach intentionally throwing a stick or other object at the puck or the puck carrier and the throwing action disrupts
49302-443: The puck to their teammates unless they are in the defensive zone. Players can knock a puck out of the air with their hands to themselves. Players are prohibited from kicking the puck into the opponent's goal, though unintentional redirections off the skate are permitted. Players may not intentionally bat the puck into the net with their hands. Hockey is an off-side game, meaning that forward passes are allowed, unlike in rugby. Before
49551-442: The puck, whenever his team faced the Avalanche at Pepsi Center. In the 2004 playoffs , Colorado won the conference quarterfinals against the Dallas Stars in five games, but lost in the conference semifinals against the Sharks in six games. Joe Sakic was, once again, elected to the 2004 All-star team , winning the NHL/Sheraton Road Performer Award , and became the first Avalanche player ever to be chosen as game MVP , when he scored
49800-409: The puck. A deflection is a shot that redirects a shot or a pass towards the goal from another player, by allowing the puck to strike the stick and carom towards the goal. A one-timer is a shot struck directly off a pass, without receiving the pass and shooting in two separate actions. Headmanning the puck , also known as breaking out , is the tactic of rapidly passing to the player farthest down
50049-412: The receiving end of a controversial hit by Scott Stevens . Without him, the Flyers lost the decisive game 2–1. It was the second time in franchise history the team lost a series after being up 3–1. Lindros never again wore a Flyers uniform, as he sat out the following season awaiting a trade. Craig Ramsay was named the permanent head coach as Neilson was not asked to return for the 2000–01 , which became
50298-412: The regular season. Milan Hejduk scored the game-winning goal and first goal of the season for the club in a 1–0 victory over the defending champions. In April 2012, the Avalanche were eliminated from playoff contention and finished 11th place in the Western Conference. Despite a 20-point improvement from last season's efforts, the team failed to reach the playoffs for the second-straight year, the first time
50547-405: The rest of the season; Neilson later recovered but was informed that he would not return. In January, longtime Flyer and fan-favorite Rod Brind'Amour was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Keith Primeau , with the intention of acquiring a big center to complement Lindros. Meanwhile, the strife between Flyers management (particularly Clarke) and Lindros, continued to worsen. Less than
50796-418: The right side" (of the puck). Another popular concept in ice hockey defensive tactics is that of playing a 200-foot game . An important defensive tactic is checking—attempting to take the puck from an opponent or to remove the opponent from play. Stick checking , sweep checking , and poke checking are legal uses of the stick to obtain possession of the puck. The neutral zone trap is designed to isolate
51045-418: The roster played in Europe during the lockout. After the 2004–05 lockout and implementation of a salary cap, the Avalanche were forced to release some of their top players. Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote were lost in free agency to save room in the cap for Joe Sakic and Rob Blake. Although the salary cap was a blow to one of the highest spenders of the league, the team finished the 2005–06 regular season with
51294-407: The season and was replaced by Primeau. The Flyers began 2001–02 with high expectations and with Roenick leading the team in scoring, the Flyers finished with an Atlantic Division title. The power play was one of the NHL's worst however, so Adam Oates , the third leading point-producer in the League at the time, was acquired from Washington at the NHL trade deadline . However, it was of no benefit as
51543-421: The season to keep their playoffs hopes alive until the penultimate day of the season. A 4–2 loss against the Nashville Predators on April 7, with former player Peter Forsberg assisting the game-winning goal scored by another former player, Paul Kariya, eliminated Colorado from the playoff race. As consolation, the team won the last game of the season against the Calgary Flames the following day and finished fourth in
51792-405: The season, Roger Neilson took over as coach while Cashman was retained as an assistant. John LeClair was able to score at least 50 goals for the third consecutive year (netting 51), the first time for an American-born player, and goaltender Sean Burke was acquired at the trade deadline. Burke proved ineffective in net, as the Flyers were eliminated in the first round by Buffalo in five games. In
52041-445: The second seed in the Eastern Conference. After dispatching Buffalo in five and sweeping the defending Stanley Cup champion Rangers, the Flyers were upset in the Eastern Conference Finals to the eventual Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils in six games. Lindros eclipsed the 100-point mark for the first time in 1995–96 , gathering 115 points, and LeClair scored 51 goals, as the Flyers repeated as Atlantic Division champs and clinched
52290-414: The second-oldest player in NHL history to reach 100 points, behind only Gordie Howe , who had 103 points at age 40 in the 1968–69 season . During the season, Paul Stastny set an NHL record for longest point streak by a rookie, with 20 games, three more than the previous record, held by Teemu Selanne and Karlis Skrastins set a new NHL record for the longest game streak by a defenseman, with 495 games. Until
52539-478: The semi-finals by the Montreal Canadiens, losing in five games. After the season, Clarke became the first expansion team player to be awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player . Goaltender Bernie Parent returned to the franchise in the off-season, and the Flyers proved that the expansion teams could challenge the Original Six in 1973–74 . The Bullies continued their rough-and-tumble ways, led by Dave Schultz's 348 penalty minutes, and reached
52788-543: The semi-finals, the New York Islanders . The Flyers looked to be headed toward another sweep after winning the first three games. However, the Islanders fought back by winning the next three games, setting up a deciding seventh game. The Flyers were finally able to shut the door on the Islanders, winning Game 7, 4–1. Facing Buffalo in the Stanley Cup Finals , the Flyers won the first two games at home. Game 3, played in Buffalo, went down in hockey lore as "The Fog Game" due to an unusual May heatwave in Buffalo that forced parts of
53037-544: The skater's feet from contact with other skaters, sticks, pucks, the boards, and the ice itself. Rigidity also improves the overall manoeuvrability of the skate. Blade length, thickness (width), and curvature (rocker/radius) (front to back) and radius of hollow (across the blade width) are quite different from speed or figure skates. Hockey players usually adjust these parameters based on their skill level, position, and body type. The blade width of most skates are about 1 ⁄ 8 inch (3.2 mm) thick. Each player other than
53286-493: The team experienced on-ice success, it spent most of its first 23 years struggling financially. Quebec City was by far the smallest market in the NHL, and the changing financial environment in the NHL made things even more difficult. In 1995, team owner Marcel Aubut asked for a bailout from Quebec's provincial government as well as a new publicly funded arena. The bailout fell through, and Aubut subsequently began talks with COMSAT Entertainment Group in Denver , which already owned
53535-407: The team on which the penalty was called cannot control the puck without stopping play, it is impossible for them to score a goal. In these cases, the team in possession of the puck can pull the goalie for an extra attacker without fear of being scored on. It is possible for the controlling team to mishandle the puck into their own net. If a delayed penalty is signalled and the team in possession scores,
53784-409: The team owner's son, Josh Kroenke, took over as team president and governor. Pierre Lacroix remained an advisor to the team until his death in 2020 from COVID-19 . By the beginning of the 2006–07 season , Joe Sakic and Milan Hejduk were the only two remaining members from the 2000–01 Stanley Cup-winning squad, with Sakic being the only one from the team's days in Quebec, though Hejduk was drafted by
54033-503: The team signed star wingers Paul Kariya from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and Teemu Selanne from the San Jose Sharks. Both struggled during their first season with the team—Kariya spent most of the 2003–04 season injured and Selanne scored only 32 points (16 goals and 16 assists) in 78 games. There were doubts if goaltender David Aebischer could perform at the top level the team was used to while having Roy. Having "nine elite players", "the most talented top six forwards on one team since
54282-485: The team was 1–1 on October 14, and ended on January 7, 1980. In doing so, the Flyers wrapped up the Patrick Division title with 14 games to spare and the first overall seed in the playoffs. Their 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 "The Fog" Shero and his Rangers by beating them in five before disposing of Minnesota in five to lock up
54531-434: The team was subsequently sold and moved to Quebec City prior to the start of the league's opening. During their seven WHA seasons, the Nordiques won the Avco World Trophy once, in 1977 , and lost the finals once, in 1975 . In 1979 , the franchise entered the NHL, along with the WHA's Edmonton Oilers , Hartford Whalers , and Winnipeg Jets . After making the postseason for seven consecutive years, from 1981 to 1987 ,
54780-412: The team's needs and were expected to help make an impact in the playoffs. On February 25, 2008, unrestricted free agent Peter Forsberg signed with the Avalanche for the remainder of the 2007–08 season. A day later, at the trade deadline, they re-acquired defenseman Adam Foote from the Columbus Blue Jackets as well as Ruslan Salei from the Florida Panthers. In the conference quarterfinals, Colorado defeated
55029-441: The team's offer of a two-year contract. Bob Hartley was hired to the head coach position in June 1998. In 1998–99 , with the addition of the Nashville Predators , the NHL realigned their divisions, moving the Avalanche to the new Northwest Division . Despite a slow 2–6–1 start, Colorado finished with a 44–28–10 record for 98 points, won the Division and finished second in the Western Conference. Between January 10 and February 7,
55278-461: The teams. After negotiations fell apart, Liberty bought all of Ascent, but kept the Nuggets and Avalanche on the market. Finally, in July 2000, the teams and the Pepsi Center were bought by real estate entrepreneur Stan Kroenke , and brother-in-law to the Lauries, in a $ 450 million deal, with Liberty retaining a 6.5% interest. As part of the deal, Kroenke placed the teams into a trust that would ensure they stay in Denver until at least 2025. After
55527-417: The team—former NHL goaltender Darren Pang considered it "devastating... to the Colorado Avalanche". The team would overcome Forsberg's injury; in the conference finals, Colorado defeated the St. Louis Blues 4–1 and progressed to the Stanley Cup Finals, where they faced the defending champion New Jersey Devils. The Avalanche came back from a 3–2 series deficit and won the series 4–3, marking the second year in
55776-408: The third overtime and after more than 100 minutes of play with no goals, defenseman Uwe Krupp scored to claim the franchise's first Stanley Cup . Joe Sakic was the playoff's scoring leader with 34 points (18 goals and 16 assists), winning the Conn Smythe Trophy . The 1995–96 Cup was the first major professional championship won by a Denver team. The Avalanche are the only team in NHL history to win
56025-450: The third consecutive year, due in large part to an awful road record (10–26–4). With Tocchet traded, the Flyers remained without a captain until Kevin Dineen was named to the post in 1993–94 , and instead went with three alternate captains. In June 1992, the Flyers persuaded Bobby Clarke to return to the team as senior vice president after Jay Snider won the hard-fought arbitration battle for 1991 first overall pick Eric Lindros against
56274-416: The top of the West Division with a record of 50–16–12. The return of Parent proved to be of great benefit, as he established himself as one of if not the best goaltender in the league after winning 47 games, a record which stood for 33 years. Since the Flyers, along with Chicago, allowed the fewest goals in the league, Parent also shared the Vezina Trophy with Chicago's Tony Esposito . Come playoff time,
56523-439: The top seed in the East. Facing the eighth-seeded Tampa Bay Lightning , the Flyers dropped two of the first three games. They rallied by winning three straight games to win the series. After taking two of the first three games against the Florida Panthers in the second round, the Flyers were defeated in overtime in Game 4 and double-overtime in Game 5. An upstart Florida club with stellar goaltending from John Vanbiesbrouck ended
56772-421: The two lowest scorers of the Western Conference in the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Edmonton Oilers , defeating them in six and five games, respectively. During a rematch of the previous year conference finals, the Avalanche lost to the Detroit Red Wings in six games. Detroit went on to sweep the Stanley Cup Finals just as the Avalanche had done the year before. Sandis Ozolinsh
57021-399: The two. Defensive skills involve pass interception , shot blocking , and stick checking (in which an attempt to take away the puck or cut off the puck lane is initiated by the stick of the defensive player). Tactical points of emphasis in ice hockey defensive play are concepts like "managing gaps" (gap control), "boxing out"' (not letting the offensive team go on the inside), and "staying on
57270-498: The victimized player. This is usually when blood is drawn during high sticking. Players may be also assessed personal extended penalties or game expulsions for misconduct in addition to the penalty or penalties their team must serve. The team that has been given a penalty is said to be playing short-handed while the opposing team is on a power play . A two-minute minor penalty is often charged for lesser infractions such as tripping , elbowing , roughing , high-sticking , delay of
57519-440: Was also announced that Josh Kroenke, son of owner Stan Kroenke, was named President of the Avalanche, succeeding Pierre Lacroix. On May 23, Patrick Roy returned to the Avalanche as head coach and Vice President of hockey operations. Although Sherman retained his role as general manager, he was largely reduced to an advisory role. Roy and Sakic shared most of the duties held by a general manager on most other NHL teams, though Sakic had
57768-411: Was elected for the NHL's first All-Star team at the end of the season. As a free agent during the summer of 1997, Joe Sakic signed a three-year, $ 21 million offer sheet with the New York Rangers . Under the collective agreement in place at the time between the NHL and NHL Players' Association (NHLPA), the Avalanche had one week to match the Rangers' offer or let go of Sakic. Colorado would match
58017-410: Was fired midway through the season and replaced by Bill Dineen , father of Flyer Kevin Dineen . On February 19, the Flyers and Pittsburgh made a major five-player deal which featured Tocchet – who never grew comfortably into the role of captain – heading to Pittsburgh and Mark Recchi coming to Philadelphia. Recchi recorded 27 points in his first 22 games as a Flyer, but the team missed the playoffs for
58266-431: Was firing Simpson after a lackluster performance. Clarke returned to the general manager position prior to the lockout-shortened 1994–95 season and immediately began putting his stamp on the team. New head coach Terry Murray replaced Kevin Dineen as team captain with Lindros prior to the start of training camp. In order to shore up the defense, Ron Hextall was re-acquired from the Islanders and high-scoring winger Recchi
58515-462: Was guaranteed in the final day of the regular season, when the Avalanche defeated the St. Louis Blues 5–2 and the Vancouver Canucks lost against the Los Angeles Kings 2–0. In the conference quarterfinals, the Avalanche blew a 3–1 series lead over the Minnesota Wild , losing in overtime in Game 7. Peter Forsberg won the Art Ross Trophy for the leading scorer of the regular season, which he finished with 106 points (29 goals, 77 assists). Forsberg also won
58764-522: Was named captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins at 19 years and 297 days. After a disappointing 2012–13 season which saw the Colorado Avalanche finish 15th in the Conference and 29th overall in the League, it was announced on April 28, 2013, that head coach Joe Sacco had been relieved of his duties. On May 10, it was announced that former long-time Avalanche captain and Hockey Hall of Famer Joe Sakic would be named Executive Vice President of hockey operations, overseeing all matters involving hockey personnel. It
59013-443: Was named vice-president and general manager of the team. Mike Keenan , a relative unknown at the time, was hired in 1984 to coach the team, and named second-year player Dave Poulin team captain. Behind the goaltending of Pelle Lindbergh (who led the NHL with 40 wins and was the first European to win the Vezina Trophy), the Flyers won a franchise-record 53 games – best in the NHL – during the 1984–85 season . The Flyers rolled through
59262-436: Was not until organizers began to officially remove body checking from female ice hockey beginning in the mid-1980s that it began to gain greater popularity, which by then had spread to Europe and a variety of other countries. The first IIHF Women's World Championship was held in 1990, and women's play was introduced into the Olympics in 1998 . Ice hockey is believed to have evolved from simple stick and ball games played in
59511-534: Was one of the most tumultuous seasons in franchise history and the tumult actually started three months prior to the start of the regular season. In the span of a few days in July, longtime broadcaster Gene Hart died due to illness and defenseman Dmitri Tertyshny , coming off his rookie season, was fatally injured in a freak boating accident. Head coach Roger Neilson was diagnosed with bone cancer, forcing him to step aside in February 2000 to undergo treatment, so assistant coach Craig Ramsay took over as interim coach for
59760-453: Was said to be retaliation for a hit Moore had delivered to Canucks captain Markus Naslund the month before. Moore sustained three fractured neck vertebrae , among other injuries caused by the hit and subsequent pile up, ending his career. Bertuzzi was away from professional hockey for 17 months as a result of suspensions. In Denver, after the Moore hit, it became tradition for the home fans to boo Todd Bertuzzi every time he gained possession of
60009-413: Was signed as a free agent in hopes to mentor the young Varlamov. Duncan Siemens was sent back to his major junior team, the Saskatoon Blades in camp, while Gabriel Landeskog made the opening night roster against the Red Wings on October 8, 2011, at Pepsi Center. Adam Deadmarsh was promoted from video/developmental coach to offensive assistant coach after Steve Konowalchuk accepted a job as head coach in
60258-423: Was signed from Boston to replace Cechmanek and challenge backup Robert Esche for the starter's spot in 2003–04 , but he was forced to retire in February due to vertigo . During the course of the season, serious injuries suffered by both Roenick (broken jaw) and Primeau (concussion) in February forced the Flyers to trade for Chicago's Alexei Zhamnov , who filled in well and kept the Flyers afloat. On March 5, 2004,
60507-411: Was the Flyers' top goal scorer after netting a total of 21 goals. With all six expansion teams grouped into the same division, the Flyers were able to win the division with a sub-.500 record despite being forced to play their last seven home games on the road due to a storm blowing parts of the Spectrum 's roof off. However, playoff success did not come so quickly, as the Flyers were upset by St. Louis in
60756-406: Was the case two seasons prior, the Flyers became decimated by injuries, the most significant of which was losing Kerr for the remainder of the playoffs. After falling behind three games to one in the Stanley Cup Finals, the Flyers rallied from a two-goal deficit on the road in Game 5 to extend the series, then won Game 6 at home with another late-game comeback. However, they could not overcome the odds
61005-466: Was the youngest player (at that time) in NHL history to be named team captain, replacing Ed Van Impe. Rick MacLeish became the first Flyer to score 50 goals in a season and the Flyers recorded their first winning season. 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. However, they were outmatched in
61254-423: Was to be elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame 30 years later, for his far more notable role as an NHL referee. Among the young Quakers' skaters in 1930–31 was another future Hall of Famer in 19-year-old rookie center Syd Howe . The Quakers' only "claim to fame" was to establish a single season NHL record for futility which has stood ever since, by compiling a dismal record of 4–36–4, still the fewest games ever won in
61503-399: Was traded to Montreal for Eric Desjardins , Gilbert Dionne and John LeClair early in the abbreviated season. The Flyers initially struggled out of the gate, going only 3–7–1 through their first 11 games while being outscored 34–22. Lindros and LeClair then teamed with Renberg to form the Legion of Doom line, a mix of scoring talent and physical intimidation. In their 37 games (including
61752-477: Was traded to the Los Angeles Kings . Despite a slight drop-off in performance, the Flyers dominated the Patrick Division with what proved to be their fourth-straight division title. After disposing of Toronto in six games, the Flyers found themselves in the Semi-finals for the fifth consecutive season. Pitted against Boston, the Flyers lost Games 1 and 2 at home in overtime and did not return home as they were swept in four straight games. The Flyers lost their hold on
62001-484: Was traded to the Los Angeles Kings and Joe Sakic, the only team captain the Avalanche had ever known, retired after 21 seasons in the NHL. The Avalanche named Adam Foote as his replacement. Sakic's jersey retirement ceremony took place on October 1, 2009, before the season opener at home against the San Jose Sharks where the Avalanche won 5–2. The Avalanche started the season off strong until the Olympic break . Three Avalanche team members played in Vancouver: Paul Stastny for
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