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The Flyers–Red Army game was a famous international
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
game played on January 11, 1976, between the
Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...
of the
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...
-based
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...
(NHL), and
HC CSKA Moscow HC CSKA Moscow (1946–present, russian: ЦСКА Москва, Центральный Спортивный Клуб Армии, ''Central Sports Club of the Army, Moscow'') is a Russian professional ice hockey club based in Moscow. The club ...
(Central Sports Club of the Army Moscow, Russian: ХК ЦСКА Москва, also known as the "Red Army Team", as all players were superficially members of the
Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...
) of the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
. The game was notable for an incident where, after a body check delivered by the Flyers'
Ed Van Impe Edward Charles Van Impe (born May 27, 1940) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Chicago Black Hawks, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. Playing career After pla ...
, CSKA's top player,
Valeri Kharlamov The French name Valery () is a male given name or surname of Germanic origin ''Walaric'' (see Walric of Leuconay), that has often been confused in modern times with the Latin name '' Valerius''—that explains the variant spelling Valéry (). The ...
, was prone on the ice for a minute. Van Impe had skated directly from the penalty box to the CSKA player and the replay suggests he elbowed Kharlamov in the head. When officials did not call a penalty, the Red Army coach, Konstantin Loktev, pulled his team off the ice in protest. It is believed by some that Flyers' Chairman
Ed Snider Edward Malcolm Snider (January 6, 1933 – April 11, 2016) was an American business executive. He was the chairman of Comcast Spectacor, a Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment company that owns the Philadelphia Flyers of the National H ...
told CSKA to return to the ice and finish the game, which was being broadcast to an international audience, or the Soviet Hockey Federation would not get paid the fee to which they were entitled. However, according to NHL President Clarence Campbell, he denied he ever told Koloskov or Loktev about the money. Campbell said “Somebody on the periphery mentioned it, that's all." Ed Snider admitted he was on the periphery yelling to Campbell "tell them they won't get paid." Campbell and Alan Eagleson were first to arrive outside the dressing room to speak to Loktev and Koloskov. Snider joined them later. Eagleson commended the way Koloskov was able to convince Loktev to return the team to the ice. Matt Pavelich who was the linesman at that game approached the Soviet bench and saw Clarence Campbell and Alan Eagleson heading to the Soviet dressing room and did not see Ed Snider going with them. They eventually complied and lost 4–1. The Flyers were the only NHL team that managed to defeat the Red Army that year.


Background

HC CSKA Moscow was one of the most dominant sports teams in history, winning the Soviet championship for 13 consecutive years between 1977 and 1989. CSKA played many games against NHL clubs, including a North American tour in 1975 and 1976. In total, the Red Army Club played 36 games against NHL teams from 1975 to 1991 and finished with a record of 26 wins, 8 losses, and 2 ties. The 1975–76 series between various NHL teams and two touring Soviet teams, the powerhouse Red Army team and the somewhat lesser Soviet Wings squad, was another pivotal moment in the tenuous relations between the NHL and the Soviet hockey program. The games, like the subsequent
Canada Cup The Canada Cup (french: Coupe Canada) was an invitational international ice hockey tournament held on five occasions between 1976 and 1991. The brainchild of Toronto lawyer Alan Eagleson, the tournament was created to meet demand for a true worl ...
Tournaments which also began in 1976, were not treated like exhibitions. Coming into the final match of their NHL series, the Red Army was still undefeated, having tied the
Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
and beaten the other NHL teams they faced. Their final game was to be played in the
Spectrum A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...
in
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
against the two-time defending
Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...
champion Flyers. Both Soviet teams were supplemented by other All Stars from their league. Before CSKA had arrived in Philadelphia, the Soviet players and hockey leaders were aware of the rough reputation of the " Broad Street Bullies." A
Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, "Truth") is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most influential papers in the ...
cartoon had portrayed the Flyers as
Neanderthal Neanderthals (, also ''Homo neanderthalensis'' and erroneously ''Homo sapiens neanderthalensis''), also written as Neandertals, are an Extinction, extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ag ...
thugs wielding clubs instead of sticks. Flyers captain
Bobby Clarke Robert Earle Clarke (born August 13, 1949) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played his entire 15-year National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Philadelphia Flyers and is currently an executive with the team. Popul ...
's reputation was already cemented due partly to his actions in the 1972
Summit Series The Summit Series, Super Series 72, Canada–USSR Series (russian: Суперсерия СССР — Канада, Superseriya SSSR — Kanada), or Series of the Century (french: Série du siècle, Séries of the Century), was an eight-game i ...
, where he delivered an infamous slash to the ankle of
Valeri Kharlamov The French name Valery () is a male given name or surname of Germanic origin ''Walaric'' (see Walric of Leuconay), that has often been confused in modern times with the Latin name '' Valerius''—that explains the variant spelling Valéry (). The ...
in Game Six. Flyers owner
Ed Snider Edward Malcolm Snider (January 6, 1933 – April 11, 2016) was an American business executive. He was the chairman of Comcast Spectacor, a Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment company that owns the Philadelphia Flyers of the National H ...
had several reasons to dislike the Soviets, in addition to Soviet-Western political tensions. Tough, often contentious, negotiations took place with Soviet officials before the series became a reality, in which Snider was actively involved. The Flyers' owner found his patience tried by the difficult negotiating process with the Soviet officials. (Snider was criticized by some as being hypocritical for allowing his hockey team to participate in a series that would pump money into Soviet coffers.) Finally, there were strictly hockey-related reasons for Snider to dislike the Soviets so strongly. The diametrically opposite styles of hockey practiced by the Flyers and Red Army Team created an instant source of conflict. Although the Flyers of the mid-1970s were actually a very skilled team (with the likes of future Hall of Famers
Bobby Clarke Robert Earle Clarke (born August 13, 1949) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played his entire 15-year National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Philadelphia Flyers and is currently an executive with the team. Popul ...
,
Bill Barber William Charles Barber (born July 11, 1952) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played twelve seasons for the Philadelphia Flyers in the National Hockey League (NHL). As part of the famed LCB (Leach, Clarke, Barber) line, B ...
, and Bernie Parent plus all-star caliber talents such as
Reggie Leach Reginald Joseph Leach (born April 23, 1950) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger who played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins, California Golden Seals, Philadelphia Flyers, and Detroit Re ...
, Rick MacLeish, and defensive defenseman Jimmy Watson), they were best known for their aggressive brand of physical play. Snider's competitive fires were stoked by the realization that the chance to play the Soviets represented a chance to prove that his squad was one of the best teams in the world and much more than a "goon squad."


The game

A goodwill get-together before the game was fraught with tension. Flyers announcer Gene Hart, who spoke Russian, taught Flyers owner Ed Snider to say a phrase in Russian wishing the best for both teams in the upcoming game. When the time came, there was no mingling whatsoever between the Soviet contingent and Flyers staff and players. When Snider took to the podium, he spoke tersely and omitted the phrase Hart had taught him. Snider later said, "when I looked at all those cold faces, I just couldn't do it." Clarke later said that he, too, "really hated those bastards" on the Soviet side and could not wait to take to the ice against them once again. The Flyers employed their trademark thuggery to offset the superior skills of the Red Army team, similar to the strategy the Flyers used to neutralize the more skilled Boston Bruins teams of the era, with the attitude that "the refs can't call every penalty we commit". In the first period, with the game still scoreless, Flyers defenseman
Ed Van Impe Edward Charles Van Impe (born May 27, 1940) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Chicago Black Hawks, Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins. Playing career After pla ...
, who had just finished serving a penalty for hooking, left the box and immediately placed a dirty hit that knocked out CSKA player
Valeri Kharlamov The French name Valery () is a male given name or surname of Germanic origin ''Walaric'' (see Walric of Leuconay), that has often been confused in modern times with the Latin name '' Valerius''—that explains the variant spelling Valéry (). The ...
. Kharlamov lay prone on the ice for a minute. The replay suggests Van Impe elbowed Kharlamov in the head. Van Impe later joked "He basically ran into my elbow with his head". When Lloyd Gilmour, the referee, refused to call a penalty, maintaining that Van Impe's check was clean, Red Army coach Loktev protested by pulling the team from the ice. This led to commentator Bob Cole saying, "They're going home!" repeatedly. In a 2016 interview with the CBC, Bob Cole said "he got caught up in the moment" and started saying those words even though he had no idea what was going on at ice level. After the game he thought he might be fired for making those comments on the air. Many believe Snider got into a shouting match with the president of the Soviet Hockey Federation, threatening to not pay for the series if they did not return to the ice. However, NHL President Campbell denied he had ever told Koloskov about the money. Campbell and Eagleson were the first to arrive to speak to the Soviets. Snider was never the main negotiator and never spoke directly to either Koloskov or Loktev. The Soviets prolonged the game stoppage by arguing to make their return to the ice conditional on the referee canceling their impending delay of game bench penalty. Eventually, they accepted the penalty and came back to the ice. The Flyers scored quickly after play resumed. Flyer head coach
Fred Shero Frederick Alexander Shero, nicknamed The Fog (October 23, 1925November 24, 1990) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player, coach, and general manager. He played for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). However, he spen ...
decided to stand up the Red Army attack at the Flyers defensive blue line rather than just back off the line, which caught the Red Army off guard since no other NHL team had tried this tactic. The Flyers outshot the Red Army 49–13 and achieved a 4–1 victory. Soviet referee
Yury Karandin Yury Pavlovich Karandin (russian: Карандин, Юрий Павлович; born 22 March 1937) is a Russian retired ice hockey referee, and an active ice hockey administrator as of 2018. Karandin officiated for 26 seasons in the Soviet Uni ...
officiated the game as a linesman.


After the game

Flyers head coach
Fred Shero Frederick Alexander Shero, nicknamed The Fog (October 23, 1925November 24, 1990) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player, coach, and general manager. He played for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). However, he spen ...
jokingly told low-scoring defenseman Joe Watson that he had set the Soviet hockey program back 25 years by scoring a
shorthanded goal Short-handed is a term used in ice hockey and several related sports, including water polo, and refers to having fewer skaters (players) on the ice during play, as a result of a penalty. The player removed from play serves the penalty in the p ...
on the great
Vladislav Tretiak Vladislav Aleksandrovich Tretiak, MSM ( rus, links=no, Владислав Александрович Третьяк, p=trʲɪˈtʲjak; born 25 April 1952) is a Russian former goaltender for the Soviet Union national ice hockey team. Considere ...
. Amidst the Flyers' pride in their convincing victory against an outstanding team, the seeds of contentiousness had grown even further. To this day, Tretiak, who views the tie game in the
Montreal Forum Montreal Forum (french: Le Forum de Montréal) is a historic building located facing Cabot Square in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by '' Sporting News'', it was an indoor arena which served as t ...
as the highpoint of the series, says that the Flyers won by playing "rude hockey." Coach Loktev called the Flyers "a bunch of animals." The Flyers, meanwhile, left with the belief that the Soviet team had confirmed their feelings that Russian players were skilled but soft.
Milt Dunnell Milton William Ryan Dunnell (December 24, 1905 – January 3, 2008) was a Canadian sportswriter, known chiefly for his work at the ''Toronto Star''. Early life Dunnell was born in St. Marys, Ontario, Canada on December 24, 1905 and attended ...
of the ''
Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and par ...
'' had written this comment after the close of the series: "The Moscow Musketeers had to put a big fat zero on their aptitude test by pulling one fthe dumbest tricks in sports. They hauled their team off the ice. Loktev knew the conditions before he came. Nobody loves playing in Philadelphia. Once he accepted a game with the Flyers, under NHL rules, with an NHL referee, he was in the same boat as the
Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...
or
Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce ...
when they come to town. Loktev wanted his team to know what's it's like to play the Flyers in Philly under NHL conditions. Well...that's what it's like."


Legacy

A little more than a decade after the showdown in the Spectrum, the Soviet Union was crumbling politically. In order to raise funds, the Soviet hockey program started to negotiate to auction off selected prominent national team veterans to be dispersed to NHL teams. The Sniders refused to get the Flyers involved in seeking to acquire any Soviet players, citing the fact that the Soviet officials were demanding a large portion of the players' NHL salaries be diverted into their hands rather than being given to the players. Later, of course, the Flyers began to scout and draft Soviet players on the same basis as they would players from any hockey country.


See also

*
Super Series The Super Series were exhibition games between Soviet teams and NHL teams that took place on the NHL opponents' home ice in North America from 1976 to 1991. The Soviet teams were usually club teams from the Soviet hockey league. The exception ...
* Super Series '76 * Super Series '76-77 *
CSKA Moscow CSKA Moscow (russian: ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet era, it was a central piece of the big So ...
*
Summit Series The Summit Series, Super Series 72, Canada–USSR Series (russian: Суперсерия СССР — Канада, Superseriya SSSR — Kanada), or Series of the Century (french: Série du siècle, Séries of the Century), was an eight-game i ...
*
Canada Cup The Canada Cup (french: Coupe Canada) was an invitational international ice hockey tournament held on five occasions between 1976 and 1991. The brainchild of Toronto lawyer Alan Eagleson, the tournament was created to meet demand for a true worl ...


References


External links


Broad Street Bullies vs. The Red Army - CBC Digital ArchivesFlyers History writeup on the gameVideo clip of the game
* {{DEFAULTSORT:1976 Flyers-Red Army game Flyers-red Army Game, 1976 HC CSKA Moscow Flyer
1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...
Politics and sports Soviet Union–United States relations Super Series Philadelphia Flyers Red Army Ice hockey games Philadelphia Flyers–Red Army game Nicknamed sporting events