Thirty years ago this week, the Flyers set a team record for goals scored in a 13-4 rout at the Spectrum versus the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Surprisingly, the game was pretty well played for the first two periods by both teams —- if you're one for a lot of scoring. The Flyers jumped out to a lead in the first minute of the game on a Dave Poulin tally, followed by the 50th and 51st goals of the season by sniper Tim Kerr just before the five-minute mark. The teams would then trade goals, and the Flyers went to the locker room after one with a 4-1 lead.
Just over a minute into the second, Flyer Len Hachborn made it 5-1, and Illka Sinisalo scored at 7:20 to put the Flyers up by five. However, the Flyers let the Pens back into the game as Pittsburgh scored the next three. They scored one on the power play and another at even strength to make it 6-3. Then, former Flyer Ron “Flocky Hockey” Flockhart scored with less than five minutes left in the period to make it a close game at 6-4.
Like in the first period, the Flyers scored early in the third. Just 31 seconds in, defenseman Mark Howe got in on the action, making it 7-4. Then, the floodgates opened for Philadelphia. Dave Poulin scored two more times, and Illka Sinisalo also added a pair. Len Hachborn added his second of the game, and even rookie defenseman Thomas Eriksson banged one home in a seven-goal third period outburst. Both Poulin and Sinisalo recorded hat tricks for the game, Tim Kerr led the game with six points (2G-4A) and fifteen Flyers recorded at least one point. The late Pelle Lindbergh picked up the win, and Denis Heron was in net for the Penguins for all 13 goals. He was peppered with 46 Flyers shots and took the loss.
The 13-goal barrage broke the team's prior record of 12, set in February of 1974 against the Detroit Red Wings.
Mike Watson is a contributing writer for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on twitter @Mwats_99
