We have finally reached the top ten of the 25 more important Flyers over the last 25 years. We have made it to the top of the charts. Let's see who rounds out the bottom half of the top ten today.
#10: Chris Pronger
This is another name and jersey that should be hanging in the rafters. Again, I don't care if he played just three years on the Flyers. Yes, you could make a case for Dale Hawerchuk and Paul Coffey too, as they also played the end of their careers here in Philly. However, those Hall of Famers didn't have the type of influence that Chris Pronger had in such a short time here.
Case in point, if it wasn't for Pronger, the Flyers wouldn't have made it to the 2010 Stanley Cup. Yes, Daniel Briere had an insane playoff run that year. I'm not denying that. However, Pronger played an average of 29 minutes a game during that Cup run. He almost willed it to be.
The tragedy of it is that it didn't last. He took a huge hit that ended in a concussion. He was, in effect, the last dominant defender that the Flyers had. Had it not been for the injury, the Flyers' history could've been different. And when you consider what the team gave up to get him it was a bargain.
#9: Sean Couturier
He is the only current Flyer to crack the top 10. There is a reason that Couturier is this high up. It isn't his stat line, however. He does have over 500 career points and currently sits at 13th overall. But to be fair, after 13 years, he should be there. He scored 30 goals twice and 20 goals one other time. He hasn't had more than 11 in the last four years, and that is counting the year he missed.
So why is the former Selke Trophy winner this high up? It's more about what he means to this club than the numbers he has put up. He has been one of the great defensive forwards of the last 10 years (not named Patrice Bergeron). He has been solid in faceoffs and does all the little fundamental stuff you need.
More importantly, he is a clubhouse leader. He leads by example. Couturier is the kind of player everyone in the locker room looks up to. It's why he is the current team captain. Even if he has lost a step due to age and injuries, his hockey IQ is off the charts. Travis Konecny may lead this team in points and big plays, but Couturier is undeniably the heart and soul of the team.
#8: Mark Recchi
He is in the Hockey Hall of Fame. He is still 15th all-time in points scored (1,533), 16th in assists (956), and 22nd in goals scored (577). If you take his Flyers' stats, he is ninth all-time with 627 points and owns the team record for most points in a season with 123 points. And yet, Mark Recchi's number is still not retired.
Recchi played for 22 years in the NHL with ten of them being here in Philly. His years as a Flyer were some of his most productive, including putting up 75 points as a 35-year-old in the pre-lockout year of 2004. And much like with Jeremy Roenick, the team cut ties with the aging vet after the lockout year. Recchi wasn't done yet, however, and played another six seasons for five teams, winning a cup with Boston.
While Recchi wasn't the scoring monster he was earlier in his career with the Flyers, from 1999-2000 to 2002-2003, he racked up 359 points including 123 goals; never scoring less than 20 goals in a season. That offensive output was crucial for a team in the transition from the Eric Lindros to Roenick eras. And had it not been for the lockout, maybe the team could've made another deep playoff run.
#7: John LeClair
Much like with Recchi, John LeClair's best years were in the 90s. However, LeClair still had some punch left in him between 2000 and 2004. Just like Recchi, the club parted ways with him after the 2004 lockout season.
LeClair last scored 40 goals in the 99-00 season. An injury-filled 2000-01 season limited him to just 16 games. However, he would score 66 goals throughout the next three seasons. He would also serve as a great mentor to some of the young and up-and-coming players like Simon Gagne and future star (although, sadly, not for the Flyers) Justin Williams.
Yes, his best days were behind him, post-2000, but he still was a crucial member of the Flyers organization. It also makes you wonder what could've been had there been no lockout to break up that 2004 team.
#6: Keith Primeau
Before there was Couturier, there was Keith Primeau. Primeau came over in a trade that is still divisive to this day. He never became the scoring phenom he was billed as when he was a top prospect with Detroit, but he did score 34 in the 2000-01 season as well as having 73 points; both career highs.
He never came close to those numbers again. He also was expected, as a 6'5", 200 lb man, to be another big bruiser at center behind Lindros. You could almost tell that with the Bobby Clarke-Lindros drama building up, the team was looking for a new leader. While Roenick would become the scoring leader of the franchise, Primeau became the clubhouse leader.
Primeau could win faceoffs, battle in the corners, and make big plays when needed, especially in the playoffs. His most famous moment was his goal in the fifth overtime against Pittsburgh.
Watching that clip never gets old. However, he did. More importantly, much like Lindros, the big guy took and gave a lot of hits, which led to concussion problems. In the post-lockout year, he lasted just nine games.
Primeau should be defined by the time he was playing. He picked up the mantle of team leader from Lindros and would carry that successfully over the next few years after the team tried to recover from the bitter divorce from Lindros. He would help inspire a group of young guys that would include Mike Knuble, Jeff Carter, Mike Richards, and Gagne (as well as Patrick Sharp). He was the stability that that team needed and would lead to future success.
We're almost done with our trip down memory lane. Next, we'll see who made it to the top five most important Flyers over the last 25 years.