Jump to content

1973–74 Atlanta Flames season

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1973–74 Atlanta Flames
Division4th West
1973–74 record30–34–14
Goals for214
Goals against238
Team information
General managerCliff Fletcher
CoachBernie Geoffrion
CaptainKeith McCreary
ArenaOmni Coliseum
Team leaders
GoalsJacques Richard (27)
AssistsTom Lysiak (45)
PointsTom Lysiak (64)
Penalty minutesPat Quinn (94)
WinsDan Bouchard (19)
Goals against averageDan Bouchard (2.77)

The 1973–74 Atlanta Flames season was the second season for the franchise.

Regular season

[edit]

Season standings

[edit]
West Division[1]
GP W L T GF GA DIFF Pts
1 Philadelphia Flyers 78 50 16 12 273 164 +109 112
2 Chicago Black Hawks 78 41 14 23 272 164 +108 105
3 Los Angeles Kings 78 33 33 12 233 231 +2 78
4 Atlanta Flames 78 30 34 14 214 238 −24 74
5 Pittsburgh Penguins 78 28 41 9 242 273 −31 65
6 St. Louis Blues 78 26 40 12 206 248 −42 64
7 Minnesota North Stars 78 23 38 17 235 275 −40 63
8 California Golden Seals 78 13 55 10 195 342 −147 36

Record vs. opponents

[edit]


Schedule and results

[edit]
No. R Date Score Opponent Record Attendance [3]
1 T October 10, 1973 1–1 New York Islanders (1973–74) 0–0–1 12,144
2 L October 12, 1973 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins (1973–74) 0–1–1 13,287
3 W October 13, 1973 1–0 @ St. Louis Blues (1973–74) 1–1–1 18,836
4 W October 17, 1973 4–3 Boston Bruins (1973–74) 2–1–1 14,498
5 W October 20, 1973 4–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1973–74) 3–1–1 16,616
6 L October 23, 1973 0–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1973–74) 3–2–1 15,570
7 L October 24, 1973 4–6 @ Los Angeles Kings (1973–74) 3–3–1 8,367
8 W October 26, 1973 3–1 @ California Golden Seals (1973–74) 4–3–1 N/A
9 W November 1, 1973 7–2 California Golden Seals (1973–74) 5–3–1 13,480
10 W November 3, 1973 2–1 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1973–74) 6–3–1 17,007
11 W November 4, 1973 2–0 Detroit Red Wings (1973–74) 7–3–1 13,659
12 T November 7, 1973 2–2 St. Louis Blues (1973–74) 7–3–2 14,217
13 T November 9, 1973 3–3 New York Rangers (1973–74) 7–3–3 15,141
14 T November 10, 1973 4–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1973–74) 7–3–4 11,342
15 L November 14, 1973 1–3 Buffalo Sabres (1973–74) 7–4–4 13,123
16 L November 16, 1973 1–6 Chicago Black Hawks (1973–74) 7–5–4 15,141
17 L November 18, 1973 2–5 @ Boston Bruins (1973–74) 7–6–4 15,003
18 W November 21, 1973 3–2 Buffalo Sabres (1973–74) 8–6–4 12,889
19 W November 23, 1973 4–1 Vancouver Canucks (1973–74) 9–6–4 15,141
20 W November 25, 1973 4–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (1973–74) 10–6–4 15,858
21 L November 27, 1973 2–4 @ New York Islanders (1973–74) 10–7–4 12,016
22 W November 29, 1973 4–3 Detroit Red Wings (1973–74) 11–7–4 13,128
23 T December 1, 1973 2–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1973–74) 11–7–5 10,413
24 L December 2, 1973 1–3 Montreal Canadiens (1973–74) 11–8–5 13,892
25 T December 5, 1973 3–3 @ California Golden Seals (1973–74) 11–8–6 3,137
26 W December 7, 1973 2–0 @ Vancouver Canucks (1973–74) 12–8–6 15,570
27 L December 8, 1973 0–3 @ Los Angeles Kings (1973–74) 12–9–6 10,535
28 L December 13, 1973 1–6 Toronto Maple Leafs (1973–74) 12–10–6 13,220
29 W December 15, 1973 3–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1973–74) 13–10–6 17,007
30 L December 16, 1973 1–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1973–74) 13–11–6 12,510
31 L December 19, 1973 2–4 @ Minnesota North Stars (1973–74) 13–12–6 14,756
32 L December 21, 1973 1–2 St. Louis Blues (1973–74) 13–13–6 13,454
33 W December 23, 1973 3–1 New York Rangers (1973–74) 14–13–6 13,627
34 W December 27, 1973 6–4 Los Angeles Kings (1973–74) 15–13–6 15,141
35 T December 29, 1973 3–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1973–74) 15–13–7 16,485
36 L December 30, 1973 2–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1973–74) 15–14–7 14,518
37 W January 3, 1974 3–2 Chicago Black Hawks (1973–74) 16–14–7 14,002
38 L January 6, 1974 2–5 @ New York Rangers (1973–74) 16–15–7 17,500
39 L January 7, 1974 2–6 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1973–74) 16–16–7 16,485
40 W January 9, 1974 3–0 Buffalo Sabres (1973–74) 17–16–7 12,522
41 L January 11, 1974 6–7 Philadelphia Flyers (1973–74) 17–17–7 15,141
42 L January 13, 1974 0–1 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1973–74) 17–18–7 17,007
43 L January 15, 1974 3–4 @ New York Islanders (1973–74) 17–19–7 12,524
44 W January 18, 1974 6–2 California Golden Seals (1973–74) 18–19–7 14,118
45 L January 20, 1974 1–3 St. Louis Blues (1973–74) 18–20–7 14,247
46 L January 23, 1974 1–4 @ New York Rangers (1973–74) 18–21–7 17,500
47 T January 25, 1974 2–2 Detroit Red Wings (1973–74) 18–21–8 14,568
48 L January 27, 1974 2–5 Toronto Maple Leafs (1973–74) 18–22–8 13,192
49 L January 31, 1974 2–4 @ Boston Bruins (1973–74) 18–23–8 15,003
50 W February 1, 1974 5–3 Montreal Canadiens (1973–74) 19–23–8 15,141
51 T February 3, 1974 2–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1973–74) 19–23–9 14,123
52 T February 6, 1974 1–1 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1973–74) 19–23–10 N/A
53 L February 8, 1974 0–3 Chicago Black Hawks (1973–74) 19–24–10 15,141
54 L February 10, 1974 3–6 Los Angeles Kings (1973–74) 19–25–10 13,652
55 W February 12, 1974 4–1 @ New York Islanders (1973–74) 20–25–10 13,376
56 W February 13, 1974 3–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1973–74) 21–25–10 16,581
57 L February 16, 1974 2–7 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1973–74) 21–26–10 16,485
58 L February 19, 1974 1–7 @ St. Louis Blues (1973–74) 21–27–10 18,249
59 T February 21, 1974 4–4 @ Buffalo Sabres (1973–74) 21–27–11 15,858
60 W February 23, 1974 5–3 @ Minnesota North Stars (1973–74) 22–27–11 15,570
61 L February 26, 1974 5–6 Montreal Canadiens (1973–74) 22–28–11 14,598
62 L February 28, 1974 1–3 Los Angeles Kings (1973–74) 22–29–11 14,064
63 W March 3, 1974 5–3 Vancouver Canucks (1973–74) 23–29–11 13,126
64 W March 5, 1974 4–1 Boston Bruins (1973–74) 24–29–11 15,141
65 W March 8, 1974 3–1 Minnesota North Stars (1973–74) 25–29–11 15,141
66 W March 10, 1974 4–0 @ Detroit Red Wings (1973–74) 26–29–11 12,193
67 L March 13, 1974 1–5 @ Minnesota North Stars (1973–74) 26–30–11 14,886
68 L March 15, 1974 0–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1973–74) 26–31–11 15,570
69 T March 17, 1974 3–3 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1973–74) 26–31–12 N/A
70 T March 21, 1974 5–5 New York Rangers (1973–74) 26–31–13 15,141
71 W March 23, 1974 4–3 @ Boston Bruins (1973–74) 27–31–13 15,003
72 L March 24, 1974 4–6 New York Islanders (1973–74) 27–32–13 15,141
73 T March 28, 1974 3–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1973–74) 27–32–14 15,141
74 W March 30, 1974 4–1 Minnesota North Stars (1973–74) 28–32–14 15,141
75 L March 31, 1974 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1973–74) 28–33–14 10,518
76 L April 3, 1974 2–4 @ Los Angeles Kings (1973–74) 28–34–14 11,519
77 W April 5, 1974 4–2 @ California Golden Seals (1973–74) 29–34–14 4,867
78 W April 7, 1974 6–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1973–74) 30–34–14 15,141

Playoffs

[edit]

The Flames made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history in 1973–74, as they finished in fourth place in the West Division, setting up a first round playoff matchup against the first place Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers finished the season with a 50–16–12 record, earning 112 points, which was 38 more points than Atlanta.

The best of seven series opened up at the Spectrum in Philadelphia in front of a sellout crowd of 17,007, and the Flyers opened the scoring with four seconds remaining in the first period, when Gary Dornhoefer scored a shorthanded goal. The Flyers extended their lead to 2–0 in the second period after Tom Bladon scored on the powerplay. In the third period, Orest Kindrachuk gave Philadelphia a 3–0 lead, however, thirty seconds later, Bob Murray scored the first ever playoff goal for Atlanta, cutting the lead to 3–1. Orest Kindrachuk added a second goal later in the third to give the Flyers a 4–1 opening game victory. Bernie Parent made 31 saves for the victory, while Phil Myre took the loss for Atlanta.

In the second game of the series, the Flyers took an early 1–0 lead on a goal by Terry Crisp. In the second period, Rick MacLeish scored a natural hat-trick, scoring three goals in a row, to give the Flyers a 4–0 lead. Rey Comeau broke the Flyers shutout bid in the third period, however, Jimmy Watson scored for Philadelphia, as the Flyers won the second game 5–1, taking a 2–0 series lead.

The series shifted to the Omni Coliseum for the third game, as the arena was sold out with 15,141 fans for the first ever playoff game in Atlanta. The Flyers opened the scoring with two quick goals in the first period, as Don Saleski and Bobby Clarke scored in the first 5:02 of the game to give Philadelphia a 2–0 lead. In the second period, Larry Romanchych responded for the Flames, cutting the lead to 2–1, however, the Flyers regained their two-goal lead when Rick MacLeish scored his fourth goal of the series. In the third period, Bill Barber scored for the Flyers, as they took the third game 4–1, and now had a 3–0 series lead.

In the fourth game, facing elimination, and in front of another sold out crowd, the Flames opened the scoring 3:28 into the game, when Larry Romanchych beat Bernie Parent to give Atlanta a 1–0 lead, their first lead of the series. In the second period, the Flames took a 3–0 lead, after goals by Jean Lemieux and Rey Comeau, however, the Flyers Andre Dupont scored a late period goal to cut the Flames lead to 3–1. Early in the third period, the Flyers Gary Dornhoefer scored on the powerplay to make the score 3–2. On another powerplay, Tom Bladon scored for Philadelphia, tying the game at 3–3. The game went into overtime, and the Flyers completed the comeback, when Dave Schultz beat Phil Myre, as the Flyers won the game 4–3, and eliminated the Flames from the post-season

Philadelphia Flyers 4, Atlanta Flames 0
# Date Visitor Score Home Record Attendance
1 April 9 Atlanta Flames 1–4 Philadelphia Flyers 0–1 17,007
2 April 11 Atlanta Flames 1–5 Philadelphia Flyers 0–2 17,007
3 April 12 Philadelphia Flyers 4–1 Atlanta Flames 0–3 15,141
4 April 14 Philadelphia Flyers 4–3 Atlanta Flames 0–4 15,141

Player statistics

[edit]

Skaters

[edit]

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes

    Regular season   Playoffs
Player # GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
Tom Lysiak 12 77 19 45 64 54 4 0 2 2 0
Bob Leiter 16 78 26 26 52 10 4 0 0 0 2
Larry Romanchych 21 73 22 29 51 33 4 2 2 4 4
Jacques Richard 15 78 27 16 43 45 4 0 0 0 2
Curt Bennett 5 71 17 24 41 34 4 0 1 1 34
Keith McCreary 9 76 18 19 37 62 4 0 0 0 0
Randy Manery 7 78 8 29 37 75 4 0 2 2 4
Rey Comeau 18 78 11 23 34 16 4 2 1 3 6
John Stewart 17 74 18 15 33 41 4 0 0 0 10
Pat Quinn 3 77 5 27 32 94 4 0 0 0 6
Leon Rochefort 11 56 10 12 22 13 -
Al McDonough 14 35 10 9 19 15 4 0 0 0 2
Chuck Arnason 14 33 7 6 13 13 -
Noel Price 4 62 0 13 13 38 4 0 0 0 6
Eric Vail 25 23 2 9 11 30 1 0 0 0 2
Jean Lemieux 6 32 3 5 8 6 3 1 1 2 0
Arnie Brown 19 48 2 6 8 29 4 0 0 0 0
Butch Deadmarsh 10 42 6 1 7 89 4 0 0 0 17
Bryan Hextall Jr. 20 40 2 4 6 55 4 0 1 1 16
Lew Morrison 8 52 1 4 5 0 -
Doug Mohns 2 28 0 3 3 10 -
Bob Murray 23 62 0 3 3 34 4 1 0 1 2
Ed Kea 24 3 0 2 2 0 -
Bob Paradise 6 18 0 1 1 13 -
Don Martineau 24 4 0 0 0 2 -
Dwight Bialowas 22 11 0 0 0 4 -
Phil Myre 1 36 0 0 0 4 3
Dan Bouchard 30 46 0 0 0 10 1 10

Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Atlanta. Stats reflect time with the Flames only. Traded mid-season

Goaltending

[edit]

Note: GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average

    Regular season   Playoffs
Player # GP TOI W L T GA SO GAA GP TOI W L GA SO GAA
Dan Bouchard 30 46 2660 19 18 8 123 5 2.77 1 60 0 1 4 0 4.00
Phil Myre 1 36 2020 11 16 6 112 0 3.33 3 186 0 3 13 0 4.19

Transactions

[edit]

The Flames were involved in the following transactions during the 1973–74 season.

Trades

[edit]
May 29, 1973 To Atlanta Flames
Chuck Arnason
To Montreal Canadiens
1st round pick in 1974 amateur draft
(Rick Chartraw)
May 29, 1973 To Atlanta Flames
Bob Murray
To Montreal Canadiens
3rd round pick in 1977 amateur draft
(Pierre Lagace)
June 10, 1973 To Atlanta Flames
cash
To California Golden Seals
Ted Tucker
January 4, 1974 To Atlanta Flames
Al McDonough
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Chuck Arnason
Bob Paradise

Free agents

[edit]
Player Former team
Player New team

Claimed off waivers

[edit]
Player Former team
C Bryan Hextall Jr. Pittsburgh Penguins

Intra-league Draft

[edit]
Player Former team
D Doug Mohns Minnesota North Stars
Player New team
D Bill Plager Minnesota North Stars

NHL amateur draft

[edit]
Round Pick Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team
1 2. Tom Lysiak  Canada Medicine Hat Tigers (WCHL)
1 16. Vic Mercredi  Canada New Westminster Bruins (WCHL)
2 21. Eric Vail  Canada Sudbury Wolves (OHA)
4 53. Dean Talafous  United States Wisconsin (NCAA)
5 69. John Flesch  Canada Lake Superior (NCAA)
6 85. Ken Houston  Canada Chatham Maroons (SOJHL)
7 101. Tom Machowski  United States Wisconsin (NCAA)
8 117. Bob Law  Canada North Dakota (NCAA)
9 130. Bob Bilodeau  Canada New Westminster Bruins (WCHL)
10 148. Glen Surbey  Canada Loyola College (CIAU)
10 149. Guy Ross  Canada Sherbrooke Beavers (QMJHL)
11 162. Greg Fox  Canada University of Michigan (NCAA)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "1973-1974 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
  2. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  3. ^ "Home". flyershistory.com.