Over the 55-year history of the Philadelphia Flyers, there have been countless incredible individual efforts from players. Let’s take at the five objective best seasons in the team’s history.
Claude Giroux (2011-12)
There were a couple of seasons from long-time Flyers’ captain Claude Giroux that could have made this spot. His second-place finish in total points in 2017-18 at age 30 was remarkable, but what sets his 2011-12 season apart was his dominance in the postseason.
During the regular season, the future captain finished with 28 goals and 65 assists for 93 points in just 77 games. Despite the next highest scorer on his team being Scott Hartnell with 67 points, Giroux was third in league scoring that year during the regular season, which allowed him to finish fourth place in Hart Trophy voting.
Giroux doubled down in the postseason, and truly put himself on the national radar. In his first round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, he finished with six goals and eight assists for 14 points in the six-game series, including a hit on Sidney Crosby and a goal just 32 seconds into what ended up being the last game of the series.
Although Giroux and the team went on to lose to the New Jersey Devils in the next round, this full-season performance remains one of the best in Flyers’ history.
Eric Lindros (1994-95)
Again, it was a bit challenging to choose just one year for Eric Lindros. His Hart Trophy season in the shortened 1994-95 NHL season seems to be the winner, given his clutch play in the postseason and his dominance in the regular season.
In 1994-95, Lindros accumulated 29 goals and 41 assists for a league-leading 70 points in just 45 games. For this, he won the Hart Trophy as well as the Lester B. Pearson Award, which is now known as the Ted Lindsay Award. On one of the best lines in league history in the Legion of Doom, the teammate with the next highest point total was Mikael Renberg with 57.
Lindros continued to impress during the playoffs, where he registered four goals and 11 assists for 15 points in 12 games. Even though he and his team lost to the Devils in the Eastern Conference Final, he was the reason they got there in the first place. His 1994-95 season was a defining year in his Hall of Fame career.
Mark Recchi (1992-93)
It would be difficult to make a list without the highest-scoring season in Flyers’ history, so Mark Recchi makes the cut for the greatest seasons for the Orange and Black.
In 84 games with the club, Recchi scored a career-high 53 goals along with 70 assists for 123 points. Although he finished just tenth in league scoring, above him were eight Hall of Fame players, with the only exception being Alexander Mogilny.
Related: Alexander Mogilny Is Hockey Hall Of Fame Worthy
The Flyers did not make the postseason that year, mostly because of the active rebuilding effort that they were undergoing. Recchi’s offensive output was far and away the best on the team, with the second-place finisher in Rod Brind’Amour accumulating 86 points. As such, he should rightfully be included in this list.
Bobby Clarke (1974-75)
Bobby Clarke has two Hart Trophy seasons to choose from in his career which he spent solely with Philadelphia, but the one in which he captured the Stanley Cup seems like a safe pick.
In said season, Clarke had 27 goals and tied for the league lead in assists with 89 for a total of 116 points. For this, he was awarded the first Hart Trophy of his career. After winning the Stanley Cup the year prior, the Flyers’ captain looked to do it again.
In the playoffs, that is exactly what he did. In 17 games, Clarke finished with four goals and 12 assists for 16 points along with a Stanley Cup championship to boot. At the age of 25, he had become the first captain of an expansion team to win the Stanley Cup, and he did it in consecutive seasons. There should be no debate that he belongs on this list.
Bernie Parent (1973-74)
Bernie Parent may have had the best season in Flyers’ history in 1973-74. Actually, he arguably had one of the best goaltending seasons in the history of the NHL.
To start, Parent led the league in save percentage (SV%) that season with .932, goals-against average (GAA) with just 1.89 per game, as well as total shutouts with 12 on the year. The most impressive statistic, however, might be his win total. In 73 games with the Flyers, he posted 47 total wins, which stood as an NHL record until it was broken by a single victory by Martin Brodeur and Braden Holtby, who each registered 48 wins in a post-tie era, unlike the Flyers’ phenom.
Parent won the Vezina Trophy as a result, and was arguably more impressive by the time the playoffs hit. In 17 games, he won 12 of them en route to the Flyers’ first Stanley Cup championship. His .933 SV% led the playoffs, and his 2.02 GAA was incredible as well.
This effort from Parent earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy, completing a trifecta of awards for the player.
Flyers’ Poised for More
There are certainly some players in the future who could get themselves on this list, but for right now nothing is suggesting that. Perhaps, Matvei Michkov could find himself sneaking on here in the very distant future.
