# 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.

## 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 :
| | 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
Team
NJD
NYI
NYR
PHI
PIT
WSH
Total
New Jersey
—2–54–32–4–14–31–613–21–1
N.Y. Islanders
5–2—3–3–13–45–0–22–3–218–12–2
N.Y. Rangers
3–43–3–1—4–33–2–24–317–15–3
Philadelphia
4–2–14–33–4—4–1–25–1–120–11–4
Pittsburgh
3–40–5–22–3–21–4–2—4–310–19–6
Washington
6–13–2–23–41–5–13–4—16–16–3
Vs. Adams Division
1986–87 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
HFD
MTL
QUE
Total
New Jersey
1–1–11–21–1–11–20–1–24–7–4
N.Y. Islanders
0–2–11–1–11–21–1–12–15–7–3
N.Y. Rangers
2–12–10–30–2–12–16–8–1
Philadelphia
2–12–11–22–0–12–0–19–4–2
Pittsburgh
1–22–0–10–31–1–13–07–6–2
Washington
1–1–11–21–23–00–2–16–7–2
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Norris Division
1986–87 NHL records
Team
CHI
DET
MIN
STL
TOR
Total
New Jersey
1–22–11–22–11–27–8–0
N.Y. Islanders
1–22–13–01–1–12–19–5–1
N.Y. Rangers
1–1–11–21–1–11–21–1–15–7–3
Philadelphia
2–0–12–11–23–01–1–19–4–2
Pittsburgh
2–11–23–01–0–21–28–5–2
Washington
1–1–12–0–12–0–12–0–12–19–2–4
Vs. Smythe Division
1986–87 NHL records
Team
CGY
EDM
LAK
VAN
WIN
Total
New Jersey
1–21–21–22–0–10–35–9–1
N.Y. Islanders
0–2–10–2–11–21–21–1–13–9–2
N.Y. Rangers
1–20–32–0–12–11–26–8–1
Philadelphia
1–22–11–22–12–18–7–0
Pittsburgh
1–21–21–21–0–21–25–8–2
Washington
1–22–10–33–01–1–17–7–1 :

## 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 :
October: 8–2–0, 16 points (home: 6–0–0; road: 2–2–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordPointsRecap
1October 9Edmonton Oilers2–11–0–02Recap
2October 11@ Washington Capitals6–12–0–04Recap
3October 16Vancouver Canucks6–23–0–06Recap
4October 18@ Hartford Whalers6–34–0–08Recap
5October 19Winnipeg Jets3–15–0–010Recap
6October 23Pittsburgh Penguins5–36–0–012Recap
7October 25@ Pittsburgh Penguins2–46–1–012Recap
8October 26Minnesota North Stars4–17–1–014Recap
9October 28@ New York Islanders1–27–2–014Recap
10October 30Quebec Nordiques6–38–2–016Recap :
November: 9–2–2, 20 points (home: 7–1–0; road: 2–1–2)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordPointsRecap
11November 1Boston Bruins4–29–2–018Recap
12November 4New Jersey Devils7–110–2–020Recap
13November 6@ New Jersey Devils5–5 OT10–2–121Recap
14November 8New York Rangers2–310–3–121Recap
15November 13Detroit Red Wings7–511–3–123Recap
16November 14@ New York Rangers1–211–4–123Recap
17November 16Washington Capitals6–212–4–125Recap
18November 19@ Toronto Maple Leafs2–2 OT12–4–226Recap
19November 20Chicago Blackhawks5–113–4–228Recap
20November 22Toronto Maple Leafs6–114–4–230Recap
21November 26Montreal Canadiens4–215–4–232Recap
22November 28@ Washington Capitals4–216–4–234Recap
23November 29@ New York Islanders6–517–4–236Recap :
December: 8–7–0, 16 points (home: 6–1–0; road: 2–6–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordPointsRecap
24December 2St. Louis Blues7–118–4–238Recap
25December 4Hartford Whalers1–218–5–238Recap
26December 6@ Boston Bruins0–518–6–238Recap
27December 7Edmonton Oilers5–219–6–240Recap
28December 9Vancouver Canucks6–320–6–242Recap
29December 11Calgary Flames5–321–6–244Recap
30December 13@ Minnesota North Stars4–521–7–244Recap
31December 14@ Winnipeg Jets4–122–7–246Recap
32December 18New York Islanders9–423–7–248Recap
33December 20@ Pittsburgh Penguins6–424–7–250Recap
34December 21St. Louis Blues7–625–7–252Recap
35December 23@ Buffalo Sabres1–225–8–252Recap
36December 27@ Vancouver Canucks2–425–9–252Recap
37December 28@ Edmonton Oilers4–625–10–252Recap
38December 30@ Los Angeles Kings1–425–11–252Recap :
January: 9–3–2, 20 points (home: 4–2–1; road: 5–1–1)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordPointsRecap
39January 3@ Washington Capitals4–126–11–254Recap
40January 6New Jersey Devils4–027–11–256Recap
41January 7@ New York Rangers6–328–11–258Recap
42January 10@ Boston Bruins5–429–11–260Recap
43January 11Washington Capitals2–2 OT29–11–361Recap
44January 15Montreal Canadiens6–330–11–363Recap
45January 17@ New York Islanders4–231–11–365Recap
46January 18New York Islanders1–331–12–365Recap
47January 21@ Chicago Blackhawks5–5 OT31–12–466Recap
48January 23Chicago Blackhawks4–332–12–468Recap
49January 24@ New Jersey Devils3–432–13–468Recap
50January 28@ Buffalo Sabres7–433–13–470Recap
51January 29Pittsburgh Penguins5–334–13–472Recap
52January 31New York Rangers1–334–14–472Recap :
February: 3–5–1, 7 points (home: 0–1–1; road: 3–4–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordPointsRecap
53February 2@ Toronto Maple Leafs4–834–15–472Recap
54February 4@ Winnipeg Jets3–534–16–472Recap
55February 7@ New Jersey Devils2–334–17–472Recap
56February 14@ St. Louis Blues4–235–17–474Recap
57February 16Calgary Flames0–535–18–474Recap
58February 17@ New York Islanders3–236–18–476Recap
59February 19Pittsburgh Penguins4–4 OT36–18–577Recap
60February 21@ Los Angeles Kings4–237–18–579Recap
61February 26@ Calgary Flames3–437–19–579Recap :
March: 8–5–3, 19 points (home: 6–3–0; road: 2–2–3)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordPointsRecap
62March 1@ Minnesota North Stars4–537–20–579Recap
63March 3Buffalo Sabres4–238–20–581Recap
64March 5Washington Capitals4–239–20–583Recap
65March 7@ Hartford Whalers3–539–21–583Recap
66March 8New Jersey Devils7–340–21–585Recap
67March 11@ New Jersey Devils6–441–21–587Recap
68March 12New York Rangers1–641–22–587Recap
69March 14@ Montreal Canadiens3–3 OT41–22–688Recap
70March 15@ New York Rangers5–242–22–690Recap
71March 17New York Rangers4–143–22–692Recap
72March 19Los Angeles Kings2–543–23–692Recap
73March 21@ Quebec Nordiques2–2 OT43–23–793Recap
74March 22Pittsburgh Penguins3–144–23–795Recap
75March 24@ Pittsburgh Penguins3–3 OT44–23–896Recap
76March 26Quebec Nordiques3–2 OT45–23–898Recap
77March 28Detroit Red Wings1–545–24–898Recap :
April: 1–2–0, 2 points (home: 0–1–0; road: 1–1–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordPointsRecap
78April 1@ Detroit Red Wings2–146–24–8100Recap
79April 4@ Washington Capitals2–3 OT46–25–8100Recap
80April 5New York Islanders5–946–26–8100Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

### Playoffs

1987 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Patrick Division Semifinals vs. New York Rangers – Flyers win 4–2
GameDateOpponentScoreSeriesRecap
1April 8New York Rangers0–3Rangers lead 1–0Recap
2April 9New York Rangers8–3Series tied 1–1Recap
3April 11@ New York Rangers3–0Flyers lead 2–1Recap
4April 12@ New York Rangers3–6Series tied 2–2Recap
5April 14New York Rangers3–1Flyers lead 3–2Recap
6April 16@ New York Rangers5–0Flyers win 4–2Recap :
Patrick Division Finals vs. New York Islanders – Flyers win 4–3
GameDateOpponentScoreSeriesRecap
1April 20New York Islanders4–2Flyers lead 1–0Recap
2April 22New York Islanders1–2Series tied 1–1Recap
3April 24@ New York Islanders4–1Flyers lead 2–1Recap
4April 26@ New York Islanders6–4Flyers lead 3–1Recap
5April 28New York Islanders1–2Flyers lead 3–2Recap
6April 30@ New York Islanders2–4Series tied 3–3Recap
7May 2New York Islanders5–1Flyers win 4–3Recap :
Wales Conference Finals vs. Montreal Canadiens – Flyers win 4–2
GameDateOpponentScoreSeriesRecap
1May 4Montreal Canadiens4–3 OTFlyers lead 1–0Recap
2May 6Montreal Canadiens2–5Series tied 1–1Recap
3May 8@ Montreal Canadiens4–3Flyers lead 2–1Recap
4May 10@ Montreal Canadiens6–3Flyers lead 3–1Recap
5May 12Montreal Canadiens2–5Flyers lead 3–2Recap
6May 14@ Montreal Canadiens4–3Flyers win 4–2Recap :
Stanley Cup Finals vs. Edmonton Oilers – Oilers win 4–3
GameDateOpponentScoreSeriesRecap
1May 17@ Edmonton Oilers2–4Oilers lead 1–0Recap
2May 20@ Edmonton Oilers2–3 OTOilers lead 2–0Recap
3May 22Edmonton Oilers5–3Oilers lead 2–1Recap
4May 24Edmonton Oilers1–4Oilers lead 3–1Recap
5May 26@ Edmonton Oilers4–3Oilers lead 3–2Recap
6May 28Edmonton Oilers3–2Series tied 3–3Recap
7May 31@ Edmonton Oilers1–3Oilers win 4–3Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  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 | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | 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 | 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 | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | 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 |
| League (annual) | Conn Smythe Trophy | Ron Hextall |
| League (annual) | Frank J. Selke Trophy | Dave Poulin |
| League (annual) | NHL All-Rookie Team | Ron Hextall (Goaltender) |
| League (annual) | NHL first All-Star team | Ron Hextall (Goaltender) |
| League (annual) | NHL first All-Star team | Mark Howe (Defense) |
| League (annual) | NHL second All-Star team | Tim Kerr (Right wing) |
| League (annual) | Vezina Trophy | Ron Hextall |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Month | Ron Hextall (October) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Peter Zezel (January 12) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Rookie of the Month | Ron Hextall (October) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Rookie of the Month | Ron Hextall (November) |
| League (in-season) | Rendez-vous '87 selection | Ron Hextall |
| League (in-season) | Rendez-vous '87 selection | Mark Howe |
| League (in-season) | Rendez-vous '87 selection | Tim Kerr |
| League (in-season) | Rendez-vous '87 selection | Dave Poulin |
| Team | Barry Ashbee Trophy | Mark Howe |
| Team | Bobby Clarke Trophy | Ron Hextall |
| Team | Class Guy Award | Glenn Resch |

### 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. On November 13, Murray Craven tied the team record for most goals in a single period (3). On November 20, Tim Kerr tied team records for most goals (4) and powerplay goals (3) in a single game. About two weeks later Brian Propp also tied the single game goals record on December 2. 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.
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). 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). 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.
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). 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). 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). Hextall’s 43 penalty minutes is a single playoff season NHL record for goaltenders.

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Ron Hextall | October 9, 1986 |
| First game | Kerry Huffman | October 9, 1986 |
| First game | Jeff Chychrun | December 2, 1986 |
| First game | Brian Dobbin | January 10, 1987 |
| First game | Glen Seabrooke | January 17, 1987 |
| First game | Mark Freer | January 28, 1987 |
| First game | John Stevens | January 28, 1987 |
| First game | Greg Smyth | February 2, 1987 |
| First game | 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.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 6, 1986 (1986-06-06) | To Philadelphia Flyers J. J. Daigneault2nd-round pick in 19865th-round pick in 1987 | To Vancouver Canucks Dave RichterRich SutterVancouver's 3rd-round pick in 1986 |
| June 21, 1986 (1986-06-21) | To Philadelphia Flyers 2nd-round pick in 1987 | To Quebec Nordiques 2nd-round pick in 1986 |
| June 21, 1986 (1986-06-21) | To Philadelphia Flyers Mike Murray | To New York Islanders 5th-round pick in 1986 |
| October 30, 1986 (1986-10-30) | To Philadelphia Flyers Dominic Campedelli | To Montreal Canadiens Andre Villeneuve |
| December 18, 1986 (1986-12-18) | To Philadelphia Flyers Kjell Samuelsson2nd-round pick in 1989 | To New York Rangers Bob Froese |
| March 9, 1987 (1987-03-09) | To Philadelphia Flyers Jeff Brubaker | To Edmonton Oilers Dominic Campedelli |

### Players acquired

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

### Players lost

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

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term |
| June 1, 1986 (1986-06-01) | Glenn Resch | 1-year |
| August 18, 1986 (1986-08-18) | Steve Smith | |
| October 8, 1986 (1986-10-08) | Kerry Huffman | multi-year |
| October 21, 1986 (1986-10-21) | Ron Hextall | multi-year extension |
| October 29, 1986 (1986-10-29) | Brad McCrimmon | 1-year |

## Draft picks

Philadelphia's picks at the 1986 NHL entry draft, which was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, on June 21, 1986. The Flyers traded their second-round pick, 41st overall, to the Quebec Nordiques for the Nordiques' 1987 second-round pick on June 21, 1986. 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. The Flyers declined to make a selection in the inaugural NHL supplemental draft, which was held September 17, 1986.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | Team (league) |
| 1 | 20 | Kerry Huffman | Defense | Canada | Guelph Platers (OHL) |
| 2 | 23 | Jukka-Pekka Seppo | Center | Finland | Vasa Sport (Mestis) |
| 2 | 28 | Kent Hawley | Center | Canada | Ottawa 67's (OHL) |
| 4 | 83 | Mark Bar | Defense | Canada | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
| 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 and the Kalamazoo Wings of the IHL.