In the previous 19 games against the Bruins in Boston, the Flyers had lost 17 and tied two. Boston had the best regular season record in the league finishing one point ahead of the Flyers. The Bruins also had home ice advantage in the Stanley Cup Finals, and were made heavy favorites to win the series. A key confidence-building win late in the regular season saw the Flyers defeating the Bruins 5–3 at the Spectrum in Philadelphia.
The first two games at Boston Garden were full of late game dramatics. In game one, the Flyers nearly scored late in the third period to break a 2–2 tie. Bobby Orr, having saved the Flyers' shot by blocking the open Boston net with his leg, then took the puck up the ice and scored on a slapshot past goaltender Bernie Parent with a little over a minute remaining in regulation time to propel the Bruins to a 3–2 win. Game two saw the Bruins on the verge of a 2–0 series lead when Flyers defenseman Andre Dupont scored with Parent pulled with less than a minute remaining for an extra attacker to tie the score at 2–2, and Bobby Clarke scored the 3–2 game winner in overtime. It was the first time the Flyers had beaten the Bruins in Boston Garden since the first ever meeting between the two franchises.
The Flyers, led by Parent's play in goal, won the next two games on home ice to take a 3–1 series lead. Game five in Boston was a sloppy affair marred by many fights and penalties as Boston easily won to extend the series to a game six in Philadelphia. On May 19th, before a national audience watching the game on NBC and a raucous Philadelphia crowd, Parent posted an epic 30-save shutout against the Bruins as the Flyers won the game 1–0 on a lone goal by former Bruin draft pick Rick MacLeish, the series four games to two, and the Stanley Cup. Parent made a spectacular kick save to stop a tremendous slapshot from Ken Hodge with less than three minutes left to play. The blast was the Bruins' final shot of the series. Parent was named the winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. The Flyers were the first of the 1967 expansion teams in the NHL to win the championship.
Coincidentally, the Flyers were the first team to clinch the Stanley Cup at home since the Bruins did so four years earlier on Orr's famous overtime goal vs. the St. Louis Blues in Game 4.
The Flyers Stanley Cup win triggered the largest celebration in Philadelphia sports history.[1][2] Some observers of the celebration noted that they had seen that type of event in Philadelphia only once before, upon the announcement of the surrender of Japan on 14 August 1945. The day after the Flyers won the Cup, more than two million lined Broad Street for a ticker-tape parade,[3] making it the largest championship parade in the history of Philadelphia sports.[2][4] One of the fans who attended the parade was future New York Rangers goaltender Mike Richter.[5] Richter grew up near Philadelphia in Flourtown, Pennsylvania idolizing Flyers goalie Bernie Parent.[6]
The following year, the Flyers successfully returned to the Finals and captured their second consecutive Stanley Cup; this time, over the Buffalo Sabres in Buffalo, also winning in six games.
As for the Bruins, they lost in the first round to the Chicago Black Hawks 2–1.
The Stanley Cup was not won on home ice again until the Canadiens did so in 1979.
The 1974 Stanley Cup was presented to Flyers captain Bobby Clarke by NHL PresidentClarence Campbell following the Flyers 1–0 win over the Bruins in game six.
The following Flyers players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup
Lou Scheinfield (Vice President), Mike Nykoluk (Asst. Coach),
Frank Lewis (Trainer), Jim McKenzie (Asst. Trainer)
Stanley Cup engraving
#25 Al MacAdam played five regular season games and one playoff game. Although he did receive a Stanley Cup ring, his name was not engraved on the Stanley Cup.[7]
Joe Kadlec, John Brogan (Directors of Public Relations) were included on Philadelphia's Stanley Cup winning pictures in 1974, 1975, but their names do not appear on the Stanley Cup.
Bruce Cowick didn't play any regular season games for the Flyers in 1973–74 but was an injury replacement for eight games in the Stanley Cup playoffs, thus becoming eligible to receive a Stanley Cup ring and have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup.
^Keese, Parton (21 May 1974). "Philadelphia Flies High As Its Flyers". The New York Times. p. 35.
^Lin, Jennifer; Steele, Allison; Dwight Ott (31 October 2008). "Parade for the Champs; Noon High: Million-plus expected at celebration". Philadelphia Inquirer. p. A1. Archived from the original on 9 April 2015. In the annals of Philadelphia sports parades, the biggest crowd turned out for the 1974 celebration of the Flyers' Stanley Cup. More than two million fans flocked to Broad Street.
^Price, Laura (18 June 1994). "Rangers' Parade of Glory". Newsday. p. A41. The All-Star goaltender (Richter) remembers watching a victory parade in Philadelphia as a youngster when the Flyers won the Cup in 1974.
