The Philadelphia Flyers are entering the 2016-17 season which will also be the 50th Anniversary season for the four remaining franchises from the original 1967 expansion class along with the Flyers including the Los Angeles Kings, Pittsburgh Penguins, and St. Louis Blues. Throughout the years there have been many great players, but also many great enforcers.
Philadelphia Flyers Top 5 Enforcers of All Time
- Jack “The Wolfman” McIlhargey – Jack McIlhargey had a career total of 497 penalty minutes, and when he started his career with the Philadelphia Flyers, it was a successful one. He was a part of the 1975 Stanley Cup winning team against the Buffalo Sabres. However, after two-plus years with the Flyers, McIlhargey was traded to the Vancouver Canucks. McIlhargey fought 31 times in 167 appearances with the Canucks and was very successful in most of those fights. After four years in Vancouver, he was shipped off to Philadelphia in 1980 to rejoin his beloved Flyers where he would play for them for two more years. He is currently a scout for Philadelphia.
- Glen Cochrane – Glen Cochrane played a total of 10 seasons in the NHL starting with the Philadelphia Flyers who drafted him in the 3rd round 50th overall. After playing in just one game in the NHL, Cochrane was sent down to the Maine Mariners where he played 77 games scoring 12 points but racking up 269 penalty minutes his first year. Throughout his career, Cochrane managed to receive 1556 penalty minutes. He is currently a scout for the Anaheim Ducks.
- Craig “Chief” Berube – Craig Berube spent 17 years in the NHL and in total received 3,149 penalty minutes in his career, which spots him for seventh on the All-time list. He not only has the record for fighting majors but for Gordie Howe hat tricks for Philadelphia and in the Stanley Cup playoffs. He didn’t just play with a chip on his shoulder, it was a giant boulder. Berube did a great job irritating the other team and most likely end up fighting one of the opposing players. Berube ended up having the position as the Philadelphia Flyers assistant coach
- Dave “The Hammer” Schultz – The Hammer put the bully in Broad Street Bullies. The Flyers lost a playoff series to the St. Louis Blues and got beat so bad figuratively and literally that Mr. Snider said that “one thing the Philadelphia Flyers were going to be known for is that no one is going to outmuscle us, beat us up, or be tougher than us.” Sure enough, he was right. They went out and drafted Dave Schultz and he pummeled his opponents. The enforcer during the 1970’s was part of the Stanley Cup-winning teams in 1974 and 1975 and was able to protect his teammates. He had a record for penalty minutes in a season with 472 back in 1974-75 which is still standing today. Below is one of the most iconic fights that “The Hammer” has had.
- Dave Brown – Standing at 6’5’’ and 220 lbs, Dave Brown was an intimidating player on the ice that helped keep the Broad Street Bullies legacy alive throughout the 80’s which was created by the Flyers in the 1970s. Brown got himself into 148 fights during his career with the Flyers, Edmonton Oilers, and San Jose Sharks and even managed to win a Stanley Cup during his short tenure in Edmonton. Brown played for Philadelphia from 1983-89, and then rejoined the team in 1991, playing for the Flyers before going to the Sharks in 1995.
Honorable mentions: Ron Hextall (1986-92, 1994-99) , Tim Kerr (1980-91), John Paddock, (1976-77, 1979-80, 1982-83) Frank Bathe, Behn Wilson (1978-83), and Donald Brashear, (2001-06)
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