Bob Kelly, Simon Gagne to be Inducted into Flyers Hall of Fame
Simon Gagne #12 of the Philadelphia Flyers celebrates after scoring the game winning goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game six of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2004 Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 20, 2004 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Flyers defeated the Lightning 5-4. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
The Flyers announced Wednesday that two Flyers legends, Bob Kelly and Simon Gagne, will join the franchise Hall of Fame this season. Though both played very different styles of hockey, they were both benchmarks of their era of Flyers hockey.
Kelly was one of the skilled enforcers for the Broad Street Bullies in the 1970s, and Gagne was a finesse player who scored some of the biggest goals for the Flyers teams of the 2000s. Kelly scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal in 1975, and Gagne scored overtime goals in the 2004 and 2010 playoffs, goals that kept Flyers playoff runs alive.
They will become the 29th and 30th members of the Flyers Hall of Fame and the first inductees since Mark Recchi in 2024. They will be immortalized along with other Flyers legends in a pregame ceremony on Feb. 27, 2027, before the Flyers host the San Jose Sharks at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The team released statements from both inductees and from Dan Hilferty, the Flyers’ governor, with the announcement. Hilferty made the case for them in terms of what they gave the organization and what the fans gave back.
“They each brought tremendous passion, competitiveness, and character to the organization, earning the respect of their teammates and the admiration of Flyers fans even years after retiring,” Hilferty said.
For the older generation of Flyers fans, the name Bob Kelly brings great memories, mostly one of the most memorable goals in franchise history.
Kelly played 10 seasons for the Flyers, from 1970-80, and won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1974 and 1975. He played 741 games, which ties him for eighth in franchise history, in which time he scored 128 goals and 168 assists. His 1,285 penalty minutes rank seventh in team history, and his career high of 238 came in 1972-73. Teammate Joe Watson gave him the nickname Machine Gun Kelly for the speed of his punches.
His best-known goal came 11 seconds into the third period of Game 6 in the 1975 Stanley Cup Final against Buffalo. Kelly broke a 0-0 tie in the midst of an incredibly tense game, allowing the Flyers to play with the lead and take down the Sabres 2-0 to repeat as champions. He later spent 22 years, from 2003-25, as the team’s Ambassador of Hockey and was in charge of many programs that introduced new audiences to the game.
“This is truly something I never thought possible and to be recognized this way by the organization is one of the highest honors of my life,” Kelly said in a statement on Wednesday. “Philly is more than just my home. Over the years, my teammates, colleagues, and the fans I’ve been fortunate to meet and teach the game of hockey have become like family.”
Gagne played 11 seasons with the Flyers in two stints, from 1999 to 2010 and again in 2012-13. While in a Flyers sweater, he scored 264 goals, 10th in franchise history, and 47 of those goals won games, the sixth most in franchise history. Two times in his Flyers career he eclipsed the 40-goal plateau, with 47 in 2005-06 and 41 in 2006-07, and he won the Bobby Clarke Trophy as team MVP in both seasons. He played on the famed “Deuces Wild” line with Peter Forsberg and Mike Knuble and made the All-Star team in 2001 and 2007.
When the playoffs came, his clutch gene was on full display. In 2004, he scored in overtime of Game 6 in the Eastern Conference final to force a Game 7 against Tampa Bay. In 2010, the Flyers fell behind Boston 3-0 in the second round, and Gagne scored the overtime winner in Game 4 to extend the series. He wasn’t done with his heroics; he scored the power-play goal in Game 7 that put the Flyers ahead 4-3 after the Bruins had built a 3-0 lead. He finished with 32 playoff goals, the ninth most in team history.
Gagne now holds an executive role with the Quebec Remparts. His son Matthew, a highly ranked junior hockey prospect who was born in Philly, remains a Flyers fan and attended the game with the senior Gagne when the Flyers clinched their first-round series against Pittsburgh in April.
“To have the opportunity to join the legends who came before me is something I’m extremely proud of, and wearing the Orange and Black will always hold a special place in my heart,” Gagne said.
Steve Hamilton
Steve may have been born in California, but don’t let that fool you. After dating a local woman and clashing with her and her family over sports for decades, he has an affinity for Philly sports. Balancing love for Philly and Bay Area sports teams may seem impossible; we can all agree that the Cowboys are the true evil.
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