May 27th, 1975 - Flyers Repeat as Cup Champs

Parent Shuts Out Sabres as Flyers win Cup Again

BUFFALO - Philadelphia Flyers have repeated as Stanley Cup champions
With a player nicknamed Mad Dog or the Hound as the unlikely star, the Flyers scored twice in the third period breaking a scoreless deadlock to win the game 2-0 and the best of seven series four games to two.
Mad Dog is Bob Kelly and with the help of Bobby Clarke, he stole the puck from Jerry Korab from behind the Buffalo net and beat goalie Roger Crozier. And that was all for the Sabres.
They were held in check for most of the remaining playing time by a Flyers team which showed more poise and stamina in the third period of the game than the Sabres did in the entire series. And when the Sabres did get past the checkers, there was Bernie Parent, the awesome obstacle. The Philadelphia goaltender for the second year in a row was named the Conn Smythe winner as the most valuable player in the playoffs.

Bob Kelly scores Stanley Cup winning goal

He admitted to being lucky on some of the shots last night, a not surprising statement in light of the fact that many Buffalo shots bounced off assorted legs in front and inches past or off Parent's goal posts. The Sabres' chances were abundant. Had they had a little luck, or an average goaltender to beat , they might have scored five goals.
In retrospect maybe luck played a part but one of the most poignant moments after the game told a different story.
It cam when Buffalo coach Floyd Smith, pale and in a green suit, fought through a maze of players in the Flyers' locker room towards their mentor Fred Shero, shook hands and said, "Congratulations - you are a little bit too good for us".
Comfortable and always unemotional behind his yellow tinted glasses, Shero stared at Smith and said, "Thank you. For you people, maybe next year."
Asked by a reporter about a possible Philadelphia dynasty, Shero said, "No, they (Buffalo) might very well be more powerful than us next year."

This year though, Flyers had the poise of defending champions working for them. They had better balance, better goaltending, greater stamina and greater discipline. Their victory was narrow but quite predictable.
The bad omen came early for the Sabres last night, when Richard Martin was creamed with a wad of toilet paper hurled from the stands during the warmup sessions. It hit him close to the eye but he was able to start.
With two more power play advantages than the Flyers in the first period, Buffalo had plenty of the play and scoring chances. But said Parent later, "I knew was sharp after the first couple of shots." And said forward Bill Barber, "You can tell in our dressing room before the game began that we were going to win. You could sense how ready we all were. It was quite. Nobody was saying anything, but you could sense it."
This forth shutout of the playoffs didn't come easily for Parent who was called on to make 32 saves.
The balding Crozier, who had turned in a 17-2-1 record during the regular season, but was making only his third start in two months, did an outstanding job as a replacement for Gerry Desjardins, stopping all but two of the 31 shots sent at him.
The Sabres, during the first period, built an impressive wall around Crozier with their tenacious checking. Philadelphia was able to challenge him with more success in the second period, but on their best chances, Bill Barber hit the post and Reggie Leach lost the post while cruising in alone on Crozier.
Buffalo, after going almost five minutes into the game without a shot, had more than it's share of chances. Rene Robert had four shots on goal in the opening period alone and on one occasion had a long shot slither by Parent but hit the post.
In the second period Parent had to be alert to stop both Gil Perreault and Robert. With 7:05 to go, Martin and Perreault came in on a 2 on 1 and Parent barely smothered Martin's drive.
Late in the second period, on a Flyer powerplay, Orest Kindrachuk had a excellent opportunity directly in front of Crozier but he couldn't control the rebound on a point shot by Barber.
For Buffalo, which made it to the championship round in only its fifth year in the league, its glaring weakness once again came on the powerplay. The Sabres were foiled on all six occasions when they enjoyed a man advantage, they managed to convert on only three opportunities.
The victory was worth $15,000 for each member of the winning Flyers. The Sabres received $10,000 apiece.

Clarke poses with his proud father

Another parade for the champs

1974-75 Stanley Cup Champion Philadelphia Flyers
Bernie Parent, Wayne Stephenson, Ed Van Impe, Tom Bladon, Andre Dupont, Jim Watson, Joe Watson, Ted Harris, Larry Goodenough, Rick MacLeish, Bobby Clarke, Bill Barber, Reggie Leach, Gary Dornhoefer, Ross Lonsberry, Bob Kelly, Terry Crisp, Don Saleski, Dave Schultz, Orest Kindrachuk, Bill Clement, Fred Shero (coach), Keith Allen (General Manager), Frank Lewis, Jim McKenzie (Trainers)

Boxscore

Flyers 2 - Sabres 0

Philadelphia

Goalie - Parent, Stephenson

Defense - Jim Watson, Joe Watson, Van Impe, Bladon, Dupont, Harris

Forwards - Barber, Schultz, Kelly, Clement, Saleski, Dornhoefer, Clarke, Lonsberry, MacLeish, Kindrachuk, Leach

First Period

Scoring

None

Penalties

Korab (charging) 2:29, Clement (holding) 8:53, Dupont (holding) 11:41, Van Impe (interference) 14:19, Robert (holding) 15:24, Schultz (interference) 19:21

Second Period

Scoring

None

Penalties

Korab (holding) 5:19, Harris (cross checking) 7:39, Guevremont (holding) 13:53

Third Period

Scoring

1. Philadelphia - Kelly 3rd (Leach, Jim Waston) 0:11

1. Philadelphia - Clement 1st (Kindrachuk) 17:53

Penalties

Martin (tripping) 1:11, Carrier (slashing) 3:25, Kindrachuk (holding) 10:32

Shots On Goal

Philadelphia...	6	12	13	-	31
Buffalo...	13	13	6	-	32

Attendance - 15,863