Flyers become the seventh club

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The NHL has decided they will expand to seven teams starting with the 1947-48 season, and they are adding Philadelphia to the league, the 4th largest city in the country, which was 3rd not very long ago.

The team will be named the Flyers, and start a rivalry with the New York Rangers, their rivals less than 2 hours up the road.

Buffalo, Cleveland, and St. Louis were interested in the team but it is going to Philadelphia because a new arena is opening for the 1948-49 season, one of the largest in the league.

An expansion draft will be held in order to help funnel talent in the team. It will be very limited, only one player from each of the 6 NHL teams being drafted.

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The Flyers have drafted their first six players in the expansion draft. The other 6 NHL owners really wanted to limit the expansion team's talent, so they decided to allow only one player to get drafted from each club. 3 goalies and 3 defensemen went for the Flyers.

The first pick was New York Ranger goalie Sugar Jim Henry.

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Andrew Fields, the new 26 year old coach and GM, his wife Frances and 2 year old son Michael have moved into a house near Philadelphia, in the town of Upper Darby, and will be building the new expansion team in the image of the city of Philadelphia, tough-minded.

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Clint Smith will be the first captain of the Philadelphia Flyers, as that was named today before the Prospects Tournament which begins August 14.

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Fred Pearson scored the first goal in Flyer colors as they ended up losing to the Black Hawks 4-1 in their first game in the prospect tournament.

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The Philadelphia Flyers won their first game in team history, in the prospect tourney against other prospects, but it still counts somewhat. They beat the Maple Leafs 2-1 at Maple Leaf Gardens.

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Two weeks before preseason begins as training camp is going on, and the Flyers have secured a radio and a television deal, with WHAT 1340 AM or WDAS 1400 AM carrying games along with the new WFIL-TV Channel 6.

Preseason games start September 6 with the Montreal Canadiens at home.

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The Philadelphia Flyers played in front of their own fans in a somewhat meaningful game for the first time on September 6 against the Montreal Canadiens at the Philadelphia Civic Center. Not much was expected of this Philly team, against a Montreal team filled with stars.

The attendance was small, only 5,746 in the 9,600 seat Philadelphia Civic Center. But the Flyers scored three times in a minute and 21 seconds to take a 3rd period lead, before Butch Bouchard's tying goal from 170 feet with 4:06 to play.

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The Philadelphia Flyers continued their preseason schedule with road trips to New York and Chicago sandwiched around a home game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

9/7: NYR 6, PHI 3; Goals- PHI: McMurdy 2 (2), Bauer (1); NYR: Warwick (1), Moe 2 (2), O'Connor (1), Eddolls (1), Watson (1); A- 11,881

The Flyers played a representative game at the Garden, within 1 goal with less than 30 seconds to go before allowing two quick empty-net goals to make the margin more lopsided.

9/9: PHI 5, TOR 3; Goals- PHI: Rittinger (1), Smith 2 (3), Martin (1), Bauer (2); TOR: Apps (1), Kennedy 2 (2), A- 6,691

A dominant first two periods for the Philadelphia Flyers, scoring 5 straight goals before allowing three in the 3rd. This included four unanswered goals in the first period.

9/11: CHI 3, PHI 3; Goals- PHI: Bauer (3), Smith (4), Schmidt (1); CHI: Baldwin (1), Hamill (2), Conacher (2); A- 13,125

Another well-played game for Philadelphia, leading in the 3rd period before allowing the tying goal with less than 4 to play.

Three more preseason games are ahead.

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The Philadelphia Flyers finished their preseason schedule with two home games and a road trip to Chicago.

9/12: DET 5, PHI 4 (OT); Goals- DET: Abel (3), Lundy (1), Guidolin 2 (2), Horeck (2); PHI: Rittinger 2 (3), Buchanan (1), Evanshen (1); A- 6,036

A very closely contested game as the Flyers pulled back from a 4-2 deficit with under 3 minutes to go with two goals in 32 seconds to tie but allowed the winning goal from Guidolin with 7 seconds left in overtime.

9/14: PHI 4, CHI 3; Goals- PHI: Burlington (2), C. Smith 2 (6), Bauer (4); CHI: Gee (2), M. Bentley (4), Nattrass (2); A- 12,987

The Flyers had to hold on here, as they had a 4-1 lead for most of the third period, but allowed two late goals as the Black Hawks set up a late comeback.

9/15: PHI 7, TOR 4; Goals- PHI: Burlington (3), C. Smith (7), McMurdy 3 (5), Hellyer (2), J. Schmidt (2); TOR: Poile (3), Ezinicki (1), Kennedy (3), A- 6,692

An absolutely shocking start for the Flyers as Philadelphia put five past Turk Broda in the first period, scoring seven in the game on just 19 shots, the first six in succession.

The Flyers travel to Maple Leaf Gardens for the opener on Saturday (September 20) to open their franchise account in the regular season.

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The Flyers have signed two new players, Hal Laycoe and Cliff Thompson from waivers. Here are the first lines for the opener at Toronto.

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The Philadelphia Flyers began their first season in the National League, the 1947-48 season, with low expectations. Almost no one expected any more than a last-place finish in seventh, maybe beating the Black Hawks or somebody else for sixth.

They hoped to stop that with their first two games being a tough gauntlet, at Toronto, the defending Stanley Cup champions, followed by a home game against their potential rival coming up, the Rangers.

The new WFIL-TV Channel 6 would initially pick up ten home games and broadcast the entire game around the Delaware Valley, with more potentially coming to help introduce the sport of hockey to new viewers.

What happened in the first two games of the season shocked every observer of the NHL, and even the players on the Flyers themselves.

9/20: PHI 9, TOR 6; Goals- PHI: Burlington 2 (2), Bauer 2 (2), Evanshen (1), Halder (1), Hellyer (1), Smith (1), Rittinger (1); TOR: Apps 3 (3), Bodnar (1), Watson (1), Thomson (1); A- 14,550

A shocking outcome in Maple Leaf Gardens, as the Flyers were down 3-0 1:45 into the game, including two goals in the first 24 seconds, but came all the way back, scoring six goals in the 2nd period. The Flyers scored seven in a row between the 2nd and start of the 3rd period.

All of the goals were also at even strength making it even more shocking. The Maple Leafs got a hat trick from Syl Apps, including a short-handed goal, but it was not enough to stop the potent Philly attack. Only two dressed players, Clare Martin and Cliff Thompson did not get a point.

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Back home after the stunning win in Toronto, getting in late on the train, many expected a letdown going against the Rangers in Philadelphia. With the season starting so early and football and baseball still at the heart of mind, the game did not sell out Convention Hall—not even close. There were about 3,000 empty seats.

But those who were in attendance saw an incredibly impressive game.

9/21: PHI 8, NYR 1; Goals- NYR: Lancien (1), PHI: Burlington 2 (4), Bauer 2 (4), Smith 3 (4), Halder (2); A- 6,923

An exhibition by the Flyers, limiting the Rangers to just 18 shots with their backup goalie, Goodwin Harding, just signed out of free agency. Philly scored 3 straight to start the game, sandwiched around a Ranger breakaway.

Then they closed the 2nd with 3 in 1:47 to go up 6-1, and closed out the 3rd with 2 more to end in a blowout victory. The Flyers have an incredible 17 goals in 2 games.

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The Philadelphia Flyers continued their first month in the National Hockey League with a road trip to Boston and Toronto on back to back days. This is not an easy task for any NHL club, let alone an expansion one. But the Flyers remained undefeated.

9/25: PHI 4, BOS 2; Goals- PHI: McMurdy (1), Smith (5), Stearns (1), Burlington (5); BOS: Gallinger (3), Dumart (3); A- 12,702

In front of a non-sellout crowd in the home opener at Boston Garden, the Flyers continued their unbeaten streak with a 3rd period comeback, scoring 3 to turn a 2-1 deficit into a victory.

9/26: TOR 4, PHI 4; Goals- PHI: Burlington 2 (7), Bauer 2 (6); TOR: Apps (5), Meeker (3), Smith (1), Poile (2); A- 14,550

Philadelphia got a hard-fought tie in Maple Leaf Gardens, coming back from two down in the 3rd period with Tom Burlington's 7th goal in just 4 games being the tier.

Philly remains in first place in the NHL.

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The Flyers came back home to face the Maple Leafs, before making their first trip in the regular season to Montreal and the Forum.

9/29: PHI 6, TOR 3; Goals- TOR: Meeker 2 (6), Bodnar (2); PHI: Smith (6), Burlington 3 (10), Martin (1), Rittinger (2); A- 7,609

Another hat trick for Tom Burlington, who now has 10 goals already as a rookie for the Flyers, leading the league. Clare Martin also got his first of the season.

9/30: PHI 4, MTL 4; Goals- PHI: Rittinger (3), Burlington (11), Bauer (7), Smith (7); MON: M. Richard (7), Fillion (1), Locas (2), Lach (6); A- 13,428

Philly comes back from two down in the 3rd period to tie their first game at the Montreal Forum, led by Clint Smith who scored with just 4:09 remaining.

10/2: MTL 5, PHI 2; Goals- PHI: C. Smith (6), Halder (3); MTL: Leger (3), M. Richard (8), Locas 2 (4), Reay (1); A- 14,547

With several of their stars out, including Tom Burlington and Bill Barilko with a tender elbow, Philadelphia takes their first loss of the season. The Canadiens led 3-1 after the first and never looked back.

Philly is still in first place for now in the NHL.