1986–87 Philadelphia Flyers season

The 1986–87 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Philadelphia Flyers' 20th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Flyers reached the Stanley Cup Finals but lost to the Edmonton Oilers in seven games.

1986–87 Philadelphia Flyers
Wales Conference champions
Patrick Division champions
Division	1st Patrick
Conference	1st Wales
1986–87 record	46–26–8
Home record	29–9–2
Road record	17–17–6
Goals for	310 (4th)
Goals against	245 (2nd)
Team information
General manager	Bob Clarke
Coach	Mike Keenan
Captain	Dave Poulin
Alternate captains	Mark Howe Brad Marsh
Arena	Spectrum
Average attendance	17,212[1]
Minor league affiliate(s)	Hershey Bears Kalamazoo Wings
Team leaders
Goals	Tim Kerr (58)
Assists	Dave Poulin (45)
Points	Tim Kerr (95)
Penalty minutes	Rick Tocchet (288)
Plus/minus	Mark Howe (+57)
Wins	Ron Hextall (37)
Goals against average	Bob Froese (2.67)
← 1985–86 1987–88 →

Regular season

With the previous Spring's upset loss to the Rangers fresh on their minds, the Flyers got off to a 6–0–0 start to the season, and only lost road games to the Islanders and Penguins in an 8–2–0 October.

Goaltender Ron Hextall made his professional debut on opening night, October 9, and held Edmonton to one goal in a 2–1 victory, and only improved from there, being named NHL Rookie of the Month for October and November.

Things began to click for the club as a whole in November as Brad McCrimmon returned from his suspension over a contract dispute and the emergence of Hextall forced Bob Froese into a back-up role. In the first two months of the season, only the Penguins challenged the Flyers' grip on the top spot in the division, actually starting the year 7–0–0 and topping Philly on October 25 but fading by the end of November.

Brian Propp scored four goals in a 7–1 win over St. Louis on December 2, but three games later he was lost for two months after suffering a serious knee injury against the Oilers. Froese was dealt to the New York Rangers for Kjell Samuelsson on December 18 and later that same night routing the Islanders 9–4 which saw Poulin and Kerr record three-goal games. The record reached 25–7–2 on December 21 after a 7–6 comeback win over the Blues, but during the next game in Buffalo, Ilkka Sinisalo went down with a knee injury and the team lost four in a row on a holiday road trip (Sabres, Canucks, Oilers, Kings).

A seven-game unbeaten streak in January put the Flyers at 31–11–3, three points ahead of the Oilers for best record in the NHL, but injuries began putting a strain on the ranks. With Propp, Sinisalo, Mark Howe, and Ron Sutter all suffering through long-term problems, plus minor injuries cropping up, the team sputtered late, going 15–15–5 over the remainder of the schedule.

February 1 saw the Flyers routed 8–4 in Toronto, part of another four-game losing string before the break for Rendez-vous '87. Home defeats to the Rangers (6–1 on March 12), Kings (5–2 on March 19) and Detroit (5–1 on March 28) followed. A 9–5 home loss on the season's final day to the New York Islanders was no indication of the memorable playoff run to come.

Twice within a span of one week in late January, the Flyers engaged in bench-clearing brawls. The first came in a 3–1 loss to the Islanders at home on January 18 which cost head coach Keenan a one-game suspension. Oddly enough, the second occurred during the game Keenan was suspended for, a 4–3 setback to the Devils at the Meadowlands January 24. That fracas, which came after the final buzzer, saw Hextall pummel Devils goaltender Alain Chevrier among several other battles.

The Flyers captured a third-straight Patrick Division title and Hextall became the third Flyers goaltender to win the Vezina, joining Bernie Parent and Pelle Lindbergh.

Season standings

Patrick Division^[2]

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Philadelphia Flyers	80	46	26	8	310	245	100
Washington Capitals	80	38	32	10	285	278	86
New York Islanders	80	35	33	12	279	281	82
New York Rangers	80	34	38	8	307	323	76
Pittsburgh Penguins	80	30	38	12	297	290	72
New Jersey Devils	80	29	45	6	293	368	64

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Record vs. opponents

Patrick Division record vs. opponents

Vs. Wales Conference Vs. Patrick Division 1986–87 NHL records[3] Team NJD NYI NYR PHI PIT WSH Total New Jersey — 2–5 4–3 2–4–1 4–3 1–6 13–21–1 N.Y. Islanders 5–2 — 3–3–1 3–4 5–0–2 2–3–2 18–12–2 N.Y. Rangers 3–4 3–3–1 — 4–3 3–2–2 4–3 17–15–3 Philadelphia 4–2–1 4–3 3–4 — 4–1–2 5–1–1 20–11–4 Pittsburgh 3–4 0–5–2 2–3–2 1–4–2 — 4–3 10–19–6 Washington 6–1 3–2–2 3–4 1–5–1 3–4 — 16–16–3 Vs. Adams Division 1986–87 NHL records Team BOS BUF HFD MTL QUE Total New Jersey 1–1–1 1–2 1–1–1 1–2 0–1–2 4–7–4 N.Y. Islanders 0–2–1 1–1–1 1–2 1–1–1 2–1 5–7–3 N.Y. Rangers 2–1 2–1 0–3 0–2–1 2–1 6–8–1 Philadelphia 2–1 2–1 1–2 2–0–1 2–0–1 9–4–2 Pittsburgh 1–2 2–0–1 0–3 1–1–1 3–0 7–6–2 Washington 1–1–1 1–2 1–2 3–0 0–2–1 6–7–2 Vs. Campbell Conference Vs. Norris Division 1986–87 NHL records Team CHI DET MIN STL TOR Total New Jersey 1–2 2–1 1–2 2–1 1–2 7–8–0 N.Y. Islanders 1–2 2–1 3–0 1–1–1 2–1 9–5–1 N.Y. Rangers 1–1–1 1–2 1–1–1 1–2 1–1–1 5–7–3 Philadelphia 2–0–1 2–1 1–2 3–0 1–1–1 9–4–2 Pittsburgh 2–1 1–2 3–0 1–0–2 1–2 8–5–2 Washington 1–1–1 2–0–1 2–0–1 2–0–1 2–1 9–2–4 Vs. Smythe Division 1986–87 NHL records Team CGY EDM LAK VAN WIN Total New Jersey 1–2 1–2 1–2 2–0–1 0–3 5–9–1 N.Y. Islanders 0–2–1 0–2–1 1–2 1–2 1–1–1 3–9–2 N.Y. Rangers 1–2 0–3 2–0–1 2–1 1–2 6–8–1 Philadelphia 1–2 2–1 1–2 2–1 2–1 8–7–0 Pittsburgh 1–2 1–2 1–2 1–0–2 1–2 5–8–2 Washington 1–2 2–1 0–3 3–0 1–1–1 7–7–1

Playoffs

The Flyers gained revenge on the New York Rangers by beating them in six games, as well as surviving a tough seven-game test from a gritty New York Islanders' club. By the time the Flyers defeated the defending Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens in six to win the Wales Conference and return to the Stanley Cup Finals, the Flyers had again been decimated by injuries, including losing Tim Kerr for the remainder of the playoffs. As a result, the Flyers lost in heartbreaking fashion to the Edmonton Oilers in seven tough, hard-fought games. Hextall was voted playoff MVP, the second such time a Flyer won the Conn Smythe Trophy despite being on the losing team, the other being Reggie Leach in 1976.

Schedule and results

Regular season

1986–87 regular season[4]
October: 8–2–0, 16 points (home: 6–0–0; road: 2–2–0) Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Points Recap 1 October 9 2–1 Edmonton Oilers Hextall 1–0–0 2 W 2 October 11 6–1 @ Washington Capitals Hextall 2–0–0 4 W 3 October 16 6–2 Vancouver Canucks Froese 3–0–0 6 W 4 October 18 6–3 @ Hartford Whalers Hextall 4–0–0 8 W 5 October 19 3–1 Winnipeg Jets Hextall 5–0–0 10 W 6 October 23 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Froese 6–0–0 12 W 7 October 25 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins Hextall 6–1–0 12 L 8 October 26 4–1 Minnesota North Stars Hextall 7–1–0 14 W 9 October 28 1–2 @ New York Islanders Hextall 7–2–0 14 L 10 October 30 6–3 Quebec Nordiques Hextall 8–2–0 16 W
November: 9–2–2, 20 points (home: 7–1–0; road: 2–1–2) Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Points Recap 11 November 1 4–2 Boston Bruins Hextall 9–2–0 18 W 12 November 4 7–1 New Jersey Devils Hextall 10–2–0 20 W 13 November 6 5–5 OT @ New Jersey Devils Hextall 10–2–1 21 T 14 November 8 2–3 New York Rangers Hextall 10–3–1 21 L 15 November 13 7–5 Detroit Red Wings Hextall 11–3–1 23 W 16 November 14 1–2 @ New York Rangers Resch 11–4–1 23 L 17 November 16 6–2 Washington Capitals Hextall 12–4–1 25 W 18 November 19 2–2 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs Hextall 12–4–2 26 T 19 November 20 5–1 Chicago Blackhawks Hextall 13–4–2 28 W 20 November 22 6–1 Toronto Maple Leafs Hextall 14–4–2 30 W 21 November 26 4–2 Montreal Canadiens Hextall 15–4–2 32 W 22 November 28 4–2 @ Washington Capitals Hextall 16–4–2 34 W 23 November 29 6–5 @ New York Islanders Hextall 17–4–2 36 W
December: 8–7–0, 16 points (home: 6–1–0; road: 2–6–0) Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Points Recap 24 December 2 7–1 St. Louis Blues Resch 18–4–2 38 W 25 December 4 1–2 Hartford Whalers Hextall 18–5–2 38 L 26 December 6 0–5 @ Boston Bruins Hextall 18–6–2 38 L 27 December 7 5–2 Edmonton Oilers Hextall 19–6–2 40 W 28 December 9 6–3 Vancouver Canucks Froese 20–6–2 42 W 29 December 11 5–3 Calgary Flames Hextall 21–6–2 44 W 30 December 13 4–5 @ Minnesota North Stars Hextall 21–7–2 44 L 31 December 14 4–1 @ Winnipeg Jets Hextall 22–7–2 46 W 32 December 18 9–4 New York Islanders Hextall 23–7–2 48 W 33 December 20 6–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins Hextall 24–7–2 50 W 34 December 21 7–6 St. Louis Blues Resch 25–7–2 52 W 35 December 23 1–2 @ Buffalo Sabres Hextall 25–8–2 52 L 36 December 27 2–4 @ Vancouver Canucks Hextall 25–9–2 52 L 37 December 28 4–6 @ Edmonton Oilers Hextall 25–10–2 52 L 38 December 30 1–4 @ Los Angeles Kings Resch 25–11–2 52 L
January: 9–3–2, 20 points (home: 4–2–1; road: 5–1–1) Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Points Recap 39 January 3 4–1 @ Washington Capitals Hextall 26–11–2 54 W 40 January 6 4–0 New Jersey Devils Hextall 27–11–2 56 W 41 January 7 6–3 @ New York Rangers Hextall 28–11–2 58 W 42 January 10 5–4 @ Boston Bruins Resch 29–11–2 60 W 43 January 11 2–2 OT Washington Capitals Hextall 29–11–3 61 T 44 January 15 6–3 Montreal Canadiens Hextall 30–11–3 63 W 45 January 17 4–2 @ New York Islanders Resch 31–11–3 65 W 46 January 18 1–3 New York Islanders Hextall 31–12–3 65 L 47 January 21 5–5 OT @ Chicago Blackhawks Hextall 31–12–4 66 T 48 January 23 4–3 Chicago Blackhawks Hextall 32–12–4 68 W 49 January 24 3–4 @ New Jersey Devils Resch 32–13–4 68 L 50 January 28 7–4 @ Buffalo Sabres Hextall 33–13–4 70 W 51 January 29 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Hextall 34–13–4 72 W 52 January 31 1–3 New York Rangers Hextall 34–14–4 72 L
February: 3–5–1, 7 points (home: 0–1–1; road: 3–4–0) Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Points Recap 53 February 2 4–8 @ Toronto Maple Leafs Resch 34–15–4 72 L 54 February 4 3–5 @ Winnipeg Jets Hextall 34–16–4 72 L 55 February 7 2–3 @ New Jersey Devils Hextall 34–17–4 72 L 56 February 14 4–2 @ St. Louis Blues Hextall 35–17–4 74 W 57 February 16 0–5 Calgary Flames Hextall 35–18–4 74 L 58 February 17 3–2 @ New York Islanders Hextall 36–18–4 76 W 59 February 19 4–4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Hextall 36–18–5 77 T 60 February 21 4–2 @ Los Angeles Kings Hextall 37–18–5 79 W 61 February 26 3–4 @ Calgary Flames Hextall 37–19–5 79 L
March: 8–5–3, 19 points (home: 6–3–0; road: 2–2–3) Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Points Recap 62 March 1 4–5 @ Minnesota North Stars Hextall 37–20–5 79 L 63 March 3 4–2 Buffalo Sabres Hextall 38–20–5 81 W 64 March 5 4–2 Washington Capitals Hextall 39–20–5 83 W 65 March 7 3–5 @ Hartford Whalers Hextall 39–21–5 83 L 66 March 8 7–3 New Jersey Devils Resch 40–21–5 85 W 67 March 11 6–4 @ New Jersey Devils Hextall 41–21–5 87 W 68 March 12 1–6 New York Rangers Hextall 41–22–5 87 L 69 March 14 3–3 OT @ Montreal Canadiens Hextall 41–22–6 88 T 70 March 15 5–2 @ New York Rangers Resch 42–22–6 90 W 71 March 17 4–1 New York Rangers Hextall 43–22–6 92 W 72 March 19 2–5 Los Angeles Kings Hextall 43–23–6 92 L 73 March 21 2–2 OT @ Quebec Nordiques Resch 43–23–7 93 T 74 March 22 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Hextall 44–23–7 95 W 75 March 24 3–3 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins Resch 44–23–8 96 T 76 March 26 3–2 OT Quebec Nordiques Hextall 45–23–8 98 W 77 March 28 1–5 Detroit Red Wings Hextall 45–24–8 98 L
April: 1–2–0, 2 points (home: 0–1–0; road: 1–1–0) Game Date Score Opponent Decision Record Points Recap 78 April 1 2–1 @ Detroit Red Wings Hextall 46–24–8 100 W 79 April 4 2–3 OT @ Washington Capitals Resch 46–25–8 100 L 80 April 5 5–9 New York Islanders Hextall 46–26–8 100 L
Legend: W Win (2 points) L Loss (0 points) T Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1987 Stanley Cup playoffs[4]
Patrick Division Semifinals vs. New York Rangers – Flyers win 4–2 Game Date Score Opponent Decision Series Recap 1 April 8 0–3 New York Rangers Hextall Rangers lead 1–0 L 2 April 9 8–3 New York Rangers Hextall Series tied 1–1 W 3 April 11 3–0 @ New York Rangers Hextall Flyers lead 2–1 W 4 April 12 3–6 @ New York Rangers Hextall Series tied 2–2 L 5 April 14 3–1 New York Rangers Hextall Flyers lead 3–2 W 6 April 16 5–0 @ New York Rangers Hextall Flyers win 4–2 W
Patrick Division Finals vs. New York Islanders – Flyers win 4–3 Game Date Score Opponent Decision Series Recap 1 April 20 4–2 New York Islanders Hextall Flyers lead 1–0 W 2 April 22 1–2 New York Islanders Hextall Series tied 1–1 L 3 April 24 4–1 @ New York Islanders Hextall Flyers lead 2–1 W 4 April 26 6–4 @ New York Islanders Hextall Flyers lead 3–1 W 5 April 28 1–2 New York Islanders Hextall Flyers lead 3–2 L 6 April 30 2–4 @ New York Islanders Hextall Series tied 3–3 L 7 May 2 5–1 New York Islanders Hextall Flyers win 4–3 W
Wales Conference Finals vs. Montreal Canadiens – Flyers win 4–2 Game Date Score Opponent Decision Series Recap 1 May 4 4–3 OT Montreal Canadiens Hextall Flyers lead 1–0 W 2 May 6 2–5 Montreal Canadiens Hextall Series tied 1–1 L 3 May 8 4–3 @ Montreal Canadiens Hextall Flyers lead 2–1 W 4 May 10 6–3 @ Montreal Canadiens Hextall Flyers lead 3–1 W 5 May 12 2–5 Montreal Canadiens Hextall Flyers lead 3–2 L 6 May 14 4–3 @ Montreal Canadiens Hextall Flyers win 4–2 W
Stanley Cup Finals vs. Edmonton Oilers – Oilers win 4–3 Game Date Score Opponent Decision Series Recap 1 May 17 2–4 @ Edmonton Oilers Hextall Oilers lead 1–0 L 2 May 20 2–3 OT @ Edmonton Oilers Hextall Oilers lead 2–0 L 3 May 22 5–3 Edmonton Oilers Hextall Oilers lead 2–1 W 4 May 24 1–4 Edmonton Oilers Hextall Oilers lead 3–1 L 5 May 26 4–3 @ Edmonton Oilers Hextall Oilers lead 3–2 W 6 May 28 3–2 Edmonton Oilers Hextall Series tied 3–3 W 7 May 31 1–3 @ Edmonton Oilers Hextall Oilers win 4–3 L
Legend: W Win L Loss

Player statistics

Scoring

• Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
• † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.

No.	Player	Pos	Regular season						Playoffs
			GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
12	Tim Kerr	RW	75	58	37	95	38	57	12	8	5	13	3	2
25	Peter Zezel	C	71	33	39	72	21	71	25	3	10	13	6	10
20	Dave Poulin	C	75	25	45	70	47	53	15	3	3	6	1	14
26	Brian Propp	LW	53	31	36	67	39	45	26	12	16	28	11	10
2	Mark Howe	D	69	15	43	58	57	37	26	2	10	12	14	4
9	Pelle Eklund	C	72	14	41	55	−2	2	26	7	20	27	11	2
22	Rick Tocchet	RW	69	21	28	49	16	288	26	11	10	21	7	72
32	Murray Craven	LW	77	19	30	49	1	38	12	3	1	4	−4	9
3	Doug Crossman	D	78	9	31	40	18	29	26	4	14	18	0	31
10	Brad McCrimmon	D	71	10	29	39	45	52	26	3	5	8	9	30
19	Scott Mellanby	RW	71	11	21	32	8	94	24	5	5	10	7	46
24	Derrick Smith	LW	71	11	21	32	−4	34	26	6	4	10	3	26
23	Ilkka Sinisalo	LW	42	10	21	31	14	8	18	5	1	6	−6	4
14	Ron Sutter	C	39	10	17	27	10	69	16	1	7	8	−3	12
18	Lindsay Carson	LW	71	11	15	26	−2	141	24	3	5	8	3	22
15	J. J. Daigneault	D	77	6	16	22	12	56	9	1	0	1	−1	0
8	Brad Marsh	D	77	2	9	11	9	124	26	3	4	7	2	16
21	Dave Brown	RW	62	7	3	10	−7	274	26	1	2	3	1	59
28	Kjell Samuelsson†	D	46	1	6	7	−9	86	26	0	4	4	4	25
27	Ron Hextall	G	66	0	6	6		104	26	0	1	1		43
11	Glen Seabrooke	C	10	1	4	5	2	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
17	Ed Hospodar	D	45	2	2	4	−8	136	5	0	0	0	0	2
7	Brian Dobbin	RW	12	2	1	3	2	14	—	—	—	—	—	—
29	Daryl Stanley	D	33	1	2	3	6	76	13	0	0	0	−3	9
36[a]	Al Hill	LW	7	0	2	2	1	4	9	2	1	3	2	0
42	Don Nachbaur	C	23	0	2	2	1	87	7	1	1	2	2	15
41	John Stevens	D	6	0	2	2	0	14	—	—	—	—	—	—
37	Mark Freer	C	1	0	1	1	1	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
36	Ray Allison	RW	2	0	0	0	−2	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
34	Craig Berube	LW	7	0	0	0	2	57	5	0	0	0	0	17
6	Jeff Chychrun	D	1	0	0	0	0	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
35	Bob Froese‡	G	3	0	0	0		0	—	—	—	—	—	—
34	Jere Gillis	LW	1	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
5	Kerry Huffman	D	9	0	0	0	5	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
36	Kevin McCarthy	D	2	0	0	0	−1	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
33	Glenn Resch	G	17	0	0	0		0	2	0	0	0		0
5	Steve Smith	D	2	0	0	0	−2	6	—	—	—	—	—	—
40	Greg Smyth	D	1	0	0	0	−2	0	1	0	0	0	0	2
44	Mike Stothers	D	2	0	0	0	0	4	2	0	0	0	1	7
37	Tim Tookey	C	2	0	0	0	0	0	10	1	3	4	1	2

Goaltending

• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.

No.	Player	Regular season											Playoffs
		GP	GS	W	L	T	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI	GP	GS	W	L	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
27	Ron Hextall	66	66	37	21	6	1929	190	3.01	.902	1	3,792	26	26	15	11	769	71	2.76	.908	2	1,542
33	Glenn Resch	17	11	6	5	2	435	42	2.92	.903	0	864	2	0	0	0	11	1	1.96	.909	0	31
35	Bob Froese‡	3	3	3	0	0	88	8	2.67	.909	0	180	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (annual)	Conn Smythe Trophy	Ron Hextall	[5]
	Frank J. Selke Trophy	Dave Poulin	[6]
	NHL All-Rookie Team	Ron Hextall (Goaltender)	[7]
	NHL first All-Star team	Ron Hextall (Goaltender)	[8]
		Mark Howe (Defense)
	NHL second All-Star team	Tim Kerr (Right wing)	[8]
	Vezina Trophy	Ron Hextall	[9]
League (in-season)	NHL Player of the Month	Ron Hextall (October)	[10]
	NHL Player of the Week	Peter Zezel (January 12)	[11]
	NHL Rookie of the Month	Ron Hextall (October)	[12]
		Ron Hextall (November)	[13]
	Rendez-vous '87 selection	Ron Hextall[b]	[14]
		Mark Howe[c]
		Tim Kerr[b]
		Dave Poulin
Team	Barry Ashbee Trophy	Mark Howe	[16]
	Bobby Clarke Trophy	Ron Hextall	[16]
	Class Guy Award	Glenn Resch	[16]

Records

See also: List of Philadelphia Flyers records

Among the team records set during the 1986–87 season was the 26 seconds it took to score the fastest two shorthanded goals in team history on November 6.^[17] On November 13, Murray Craven tied the team record for most goals in a single period (3).^[18] On November 20, Tim Kerr tied team records for most goals (4) and powerplay goals (3) in a single game.^[19][20] About two weeks later Brian Propp also tied the single game goals record on December 2.^[19] Kerr's .77 goals per game average is a franchise single season high while the team's 22 shorthanded goals on the season is a team record.^[21][22]

During game two of their division semifinal series against the New York Rangers, the Flyers tied the team record for most goals in a single period (5).^[23] During game seven of their division final series against the New York Islanders, the Flyers tied a team record for shorthanded goals in a game (2) and set a team record for shorthanded goals during a single period (2, later tied).^[24][25] During game five of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Edmonton Oilers, Propp tied a team record for most assists (4) during a playoff game.^[26]

A number of single playoff season team records were set during the 1987 Stanley Cup playoffs. The Flyers set playoff highs for games played (26), wins (15), road wins (8), losses (11), home losses (6), goals scored (85), and goals against (73).^[27] Among the skaters setting single season marks were Pelle Eklund for assists (20), Doug Crossman for points by a defenseman (18, later tied), and Propp for shots on goal (104).^[28][29][30] Rookie Ron Hextall set the goaltending marks for games played (26, tied for the NHL record), wins (15), losses (11), minutes played (1,542), and goals against (71).^{[31][32][33][34][35]} Hextall’s 43 penalty minutes is a single playoff season NHL record for goaltenders.^[36]

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
First game	Ron Hextall	October 9, 1986	[37]
	Kerry Huffman
	Jeff Chychrun	December 2, 1986
	Brian Dobbin	January 10, 1987
	Glen Seabrooke	January 17, 1987
	Mark Freer	January 28, 1987
	John Stevens
	Greg Smyth	February 2, 1987
	Craig Berube	March 22, 1987

Transactions

The Flyers were involved in the following transactions from May 25, 1986, the day after the deciding game of the 1986 Stanley Cup Finals, through May 31, 1987, the day of the deciding game of the 1987 Stanley Cup Finals.^[38]

Trades

Date	Details		Ref
June 6, 1986 (1986-06-06)	To Philadelphia Flyers J. J. Daigneault 2nd-round pick in 1986 5th-round pick in 1987	To Vancouver Canucks Dave Richter Rich Sutter Vancouver's 3rd-round pick in 1986	[39]
June 21, 1986 (1986-06-21)	To Philadelphia Flyers 2nd-round pick in 1987	To Quebec Nordiques 2nd-round pick in 1986	[40]
	To Philadelphia Flyers Mike Murray	To New York Islanders 5th-round pick in 1986	[40]
October 30, 1986 (1986-10-30)	To Philadelphia Flyers Dominic Campedelli	To Montreal Canadiens Andre Villeneuve	[41]
December 18, 1986 (1986-12-18)	To Philadelphia Flyers Kjell Samuelsson 2nd-round pick in 1989	To New York Rangers Bob Froese	[42]
March 9, 1987 (1987-03-09)	To Philadelphia Flyers Jeff Brubaker	To Edmonton Oilers Dominic Campedelli	[43]

Players acquired

Date	Player	Former team	Term	Via	Ref
June 12, 1986 (1986-06-12)	Ed Hospodar	Minnesota North Stars	1 year[d]	Free agency	[44]
June 30, 1986 (1986-06-30)	Mitch Lamoureux	Pittsburgh Penguins		Free agency	[45]
October 1986 (1986-10)	Jere Gillis	Vancouver Canucks		Free agency	[46]
October 7, 1986 (1986-10-07)	Mark Freer	Peterborough Petes (OHL)		Free agency	[47]
	Mike MacWilliam	New Westminster Bruins (WHL)		Free agency	[48]

Players lost

Date	Player	New team	Via	Ref
June 12, 1986 (1986-06-12)	Thomas Eriksson	Djurgardens IF (SHL)	Free agency[e]	[44]
July 23, 1986 (1986-07-23)	Carl Mokosak	Pittsburgh Penguins	Free agency	[49]
N/A	Bo Berglund	AIK IF (Division 1)	Free agency	[50]

Signings

Date	Player	Term	Ref
June 1, 1986 (1986-06-01)	Glenn Resch	1-year	[51]
August 18, 1986 (1986-08-18)	Steve Smith		[52]
October 8, 1986 (1986-10-08)	Kerry Huffman	multi-year	[53]
October 21, 1986 (1986-10-21)	Ron Hextall	multi-year extension	[54]
October 29, 1986 (1986-10-29)	Brad McCrimmon	1-year	[55]

Draft picks

See also: List of Philadelphia Flyers draft picks

Philadelphia's picks at the 1986 NHL entry draft, which was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, on June 21, 1986.^[56] The Flyers traded their second-round pick, 41st overall, to the Quebec Nordiques for the Nordiques' 1987 second-round pick on June 21, 1986.^[57] They also traded their third-round pick, 62nd overall, to the New Jersey Devils for Chico Resch on March 11, 1986, and their fifth-round pick, 104th overall, to the New York Islanders for Mike Murray on June 21, 1986.^[57] The Flyers declined to make a selection in the inaugural NHL supplemental draft, which was held September 17, 1986.^[58]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	Team (league)	Notes
1	20	Kerry Huffman	Defense	Canada	Guelph Platers (OHL)
2	23	Jukka-Pekka Seppo	Center	Finland	Vasa Sport (Mestis)	[f]
	28	Kent Hawley	Center	Canada	Ottawa 67's (OHL)	[g]
4	83	Mark Bar	Defense	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)	[h]
6	125	Steve Scheifele	Right wing	United States	Stratford Cullitons (OPJHL)
7	146	Sami Wahlsten	Forward	Finland	TPS Turku (SM-liiga)
8	167	Murray Baron	Defense	Canada	Vernon Lakers (BCJHL)
9	184	Blaine Rude	Forward	United States	Fergus Falls High School (N. Dakota)
10	209	Shaun Sabol	Defense	United States	St. Paul Vulcans (USHL)
11	230	Brett Lawrence	Right wing	United States	Rochester Junior Americans
12	251	Dan Stephano	Goaltender	United States	Northwood School (N.Y.)

Farm teams

The Flyers were affiliated with the Hershey Bears of the AHL^[59][60] and the Kalamazoo Wings of the IHL.^[61]

Notes

1. Hill wore number 28 in his first two games.
2. Did not play
3. Howe was voted to the starting lineup but did not play.^[15]
4. Option for second year
5. Eriksson retired from the NHL.
6. The Flyers traded Paul Guay and their fourth-round pick, 83rd overall, to the Los Angeles Kings for Steve Seguin and the Kings' second-round pick, 23rd overall, on October 11, 1985.^[57]
7. The Flyers traded Rich Sutter, Dave Richter, and Vancouver's third-round pick, 49th overall, to the Vancouver Canucks for J. J. Daigneault, the Canucks' second-round pick, 28th overall, and the Canucks' 1987 fifth-round pick on June 6, 1986.^[57]
8. The Flyers reacquired their fourth-round pick, 83rd overall, from the Los Angeles Kings for Joe Paterson on December 18, 1985.^[57]