I’ll give you the World Series, The Super Bowl, Villanova winning it. As my friend and colleague Michael Gatti wrote Sunday in his great piece about the last game at the Vet, “It isn't at all the greatest game in Philadelphia sports. It was just one of those moments that's always stuck with me.”
17,222. In 1987, that was the capacity for a hockey game at the Spectrum (Wells Fargo Center today: 19,537). I would suggest that on May 28, 1987 that number was elevated like a Brian Propp slap shot — because the Flyers hosted the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. It would be the last Flyers home game of season. It was THE ticket of the spring season that year in Philadelphia. Why? The Orange and Black were supposed to get swept by a legendary Oilers team that featured seven future NHL Hall of Famers starting with Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and Grant Fuhr.
But the Flyers had some great ones of their own- Mark Howe, Brian Propp, Rick Tocchet, Ron Hextall.
Early in the series a sweep seemed likely as the the Oilers took a 2-0 lead going back to Philadelphia. It looked like it would soon be 3-0 early in game three. BUT ... The Flyers fought back from a 3-0 deficit to win, 5-3. The teams traded wins in games 4 and 5. Trailing 3-2, the Flyers returned to the Spectrum hoping to force a game 7.
NHL
I was covering the game for channel 3 and I had close to an ice side seat. No, I didn’t sit in the press box. The press box was overflowing because of the clamor surrounding the game and the series. The Spectrum press box was not that big. So, Lou Tilley (channel 3), Joe Pellegrino (channel 10) and I were about 10 rows from the glass, slightly left of the Flyers bench. The view was, in a word, awesome. That is, until the Oilers scored the first two goals and the Flyers were staring at elimination.
Let’s go right to the third period, Flyers trailing 2-1. With 6:56 left in the game, Flyers on the power play and ... Brian Propp! Number 26! PPG! The goal capped off an awesome rush that saw the puck go to Pelle Eklund in the corner who snapped it cross ice to Propp in the slot who put it past Grant Fuhr. Tied at 2!
The reason this game was so special to me, the reason I recall it here, was not just because of the excitement on the ice. I have been blessed to attend many sporting events across the world. World Series, Super Bowls, NBA Finals, Olympics, major tennis championships, track meets. I’ve never heard fans as loud as I did that Thursday night in South Philadelphia. They made the building tremble- like aftershocks from an earthquake.
If the volume was dialed to 10 for the Propp goal it was at a 15 1:24 later. That’s when J.J. Daigneault (Dane-YO!) scooped up a weak Oilers clear attempt. The puck waffled to him lightly just inside the blue line. And he hammered it. One timer. With Scott Mellanby standing at the crease, screening Fuhr. The Flyers had the lead 3-2! You couldn’t hear yourself think, let alone speak. I’m telling you, Tilley and I were right up to each other’s ears trying to hear each other. Not a word. The fans were screaming and stomping and shouting and laughing! Eventually we gave up and just took it in. The roof blew off the Spectrum in it’s first season in 1967. It almost came off again on this night. Pow! The sheer, unchecked ecstasy of the 17,222 (plus a few more) in attendance that night is something I will always remember. The win represented the joy of possibility because the Flyers had evened up the series, 3 games a piece against the Oilers legends.
Really, that’s all you can ask for is possibility. Hope. They had that going to Edmonton for game 7. And when Murray Craven scored the game’s first goal, I thought “we’re having a parade down Broad Street!” But... Edmonton, on it’s home ice, scored the next two goals and battle as the Flyers might, they couldn’t get the equalizer. The Oilers added one more inside two minutes to play and that was that. Oilers were champs. Again. But, I’ll always hear the echo of those two Flyers goals at the Spectrum the night they took game 6. Yes indeed Gatts — best game I ever saw LIVE.