It was June 9th, 2010. It’s been 13 years now since that puck slipped by Michael Leighton, and Chicago celebrated on Philly’s home ice.
Patrick Kane scored to send the Stanley Cup to Chicago for the first time in 49 years, 4 minutes and 6 seconds into overtime. It was a heartbreaker, and it was the last time the Flyers played in a Stanley Cup Final.
In the first period, Dustin Byfuglien got it going for the Hawks with a power play goal to take a 1-0 lead, only for it to answered by a Flyers power play goal of their own thanks to Scott Hartnell.
At 1-1 going into the second period, current GM but 2010 playoff machine, Daniel Brière, gave the Flyers the lead with a 2-on-1 goal, assisted by Ville Leino. The stadium was rocking and the Flyers had some hope.
That was until former Flyer Patrick Sharp buried a goal passed Leighton during 4-on-4 play to tie Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final at 2. Then in the dying minutes of the 2nd period, an unlikely goal scorer in Andrew Ladd gave Chicago the lead with a deflection that found its way home.
The 3rd period came along and it was time for someone to step up for Philly. Who other than Scott Hartnell? It was a flunky goal that seemed to come off Hartnell’s stick after bouncing off a couple Blackhawks, but nonetheless, the Flyers tied the game at 3 with 4 minutes remaining.
It begs the question – did the hockey gods want this game to end the way it did? All it took was a loose puck and the game was sent to OT. And we all know what happened.
Fast forward to now, and both teams have reached a turning point. After a successful tank, the Blackhawks landed the number 1 overall pick and will almost certainly select Connor Bedard in this year’s draft, kickstarting a new era in Chicago. Meanwhile in Philly, an early offseason trade of Ivan Provorov was the beginning of the “New Era of Orange” that the Flyers have been spouting and years of incompetent front office executives seem to be over as Daniel Brière and Keith Jones take the wheel.
With more trades on the horizon, the Flyers seemingly are finally focused on building a new culture and new club with young promising talent. As fans, we can only hope Danny and Keith make the correct decisions and we eventually see it all come together on the ice.
With young talent in the pipeline for the Hawks and Flyers, both organizations are at pivotal moments in their franchise’s histories.
Both with eyes set on another future playoff run.
And specifically for the Flyers, another shot at bringing the Cup home.
2024 Stadium Series Trip
Flyers Nation and Philly Sports Trips have teamed up to bring you on an amazing bus trip to the 2024 NHL Stadium Series between the Flyers and Devils. Place an early deposit to reserve your spot at the ultimate tailgate experience at MetLife Stadium before the game. The package includes a game ticket, round-trip charter bus, an all-inclusive tailgate party with unlimited cold beverages, “Philly Style” catered food, live entertainment, and more.
