April 1, 1973
In the Flyers 5-4 loss in Pittsburgh, history was made for one particular Philadelphia player. The Flyers fourth goal was a historic one for both the team and for a left-handed sniper from Lindsay, Ontario.
That goal was the 50th on the season for the late Rick MacLeish, the first Flyer to ever score 50 goals in a season. The point for the goal was also his 100th of the season.
MacLeish was originally drafted fourth overall in the 1970 NHL Draft by the Boston Bruins after scoring 119 goals in three years in junior (OHL) for the Peterborough Petes. He was traded to the Flyers by Boston with Danny Schock for Mike Walton back on February 1, 1971. This trade by legendary GM Keith Allen was another steal as MacLeish broke out in 72-73 with that 50 goal season, including 21 on the power play, which led the NHL.
MacLeish wore the Orange and Black for the next decade, playing in over 700 regular season games and another 108 in the playoffs. His 328 regular season goals ranks him sixth all-time in Flyers History and he is tied for first in career playoff goals with Hall of Famer Bill Barber, each with 53. MacLeish was inducted into the Flyers Hall of Fame on March 22, 1990.
Flyer fans will always remember the most famous goal in team history, scored by MacLeish, It was the only goal of the day — May 19, 1974, Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Boston Bruins. A wrist shot from the point by Andre “Moose" DuPont was deflected by MacLeish past Boston Bruins goalie Gilles Gilbert midway through the second period. It was the only goal the Flyers needed as they shut out Bobby Orr and the Bruins 1-0 for their first of two consecutive Stanley Cups.
That clip can be seen below.
Unfortunately, MacLeish would leave us far too soon. After being hospitalized for a short time, he passed away on May 30, 2016, at just 66 years of age.
