Brian Propp remains more than just a hockey player to the Philadelphia Flyers’ community. A stroke survivor in 2015, he has helped raise awareness for the cause and has had a wonderful impact off the ice in the years following his retirement from the sport of hockey. When he was playing in the NHL, he was one of the best players the Flyers have ever iced, even though he was never able to win a Stanley Cup.
Propp’s Career in the Western Hockey League
Propp is recognized as one of the greatest athletes in the history of the Western Hockey League (WHL). In three seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings, he accumulated 588 total points in just 259 WHL games. His 94-goal season in 1978-79 is tied for the highest in WHL history, next to only Ray Ferraro.
His accomplishments were good enough to get him selected 14th overall in the 1979 NHL Draft, in which Philadelphia took a flyer on the 5-foot-9 winger. He was projected to go even higher by some scouts at the time, so the Flyers were lucky to land him.
Propp’s Early Career
Propp instantly made the Flyers’ roster in 1979-80 and appeared in every single contest for the team during that season. In his 80-game rookie season, he was a key contributor for the Flyers, notching 75 points en route to the team’s league-best record of 48-12-20.
Propp continued to shine for the Flyers in his playoff debut, where he was just as productive point-wise. The Flyers coasted through the postseason until they met the New York Islanders in the Stanley Cup Final; they eventually fell in six games in controversial fashion. Although his first season with the club ended in heartbreak, it was only the beginning for the budding star.
It was Propp’s third season when he began to truly break out. With 91 points, he had become the team’s most showcased player. Despite losing in the first round of the playoffs, he was a continued bright spot for the Flyers. After another solid season in 1982-83 that saw him lead the NHL in game-winning goals, the star was only getting started.
The Prime of Propp
In 1983-84, Propp reached the 90-point mark for the second time in his then five-year NHL career. He, along with Tim Kerr, were the team’s two most prolific scorers, each tallying 90 or more points. Just 24 years old, the winger was already a franchise star.
In 1984-85, Propp once again dominated, setting a new career-high in points at 97. After a few years of some disappointing postseasons for the team, he and the Flyers reached the Final against Wayne Gretzky’s Edmonton Oilers, who were looking to hoist their second consecutive Stanley Cup.
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Unfortunately, the incredible talent of Gretzky and his team was too much for the Flyers to overcome, as they soundly lost in five games.
By 1985-86, when he was still producing, Propp was now one of the older star players on the Flyers despite only being 26 years of age. He quickly became a reliable veteran for the team.
He had a shortened 1986-87 campaign, but it was arguably at his best. Over a full season, Propp was on pace for over 100 points but settled with 67. Following that, he and the Flyers had an incredible run to the Stanley Cup Final, guided in part by his immaculate postseason.
Propp finished second fiddle to Gretzky for playoff points, with 28 in 26 games. The Flyers gave it all they had, forcing a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Final against one of the league’s most unstoppable dynasties. In Game 7, the Flyers came up just short, falling to the Oilers in the final game of the series. In case you were keeping count, this marks our star’s third loss in the Stanley Cup Final in his young career. This one might have stung the worst.
Propp continued to evolve his game during the next few years, but the Flyers were not as dominant as they had been in years past.
Propp’s Last Years as a Flyer
In the 1988-89 Conference Final against the Montreal Canadiens, defenseman Chris Chelios threw a big hit on an unsuspecting Propp, leading to him getting stretchered off the ice. Despite this, he only missed one game as a result of the incident and still led the team with 14 playoff goals by the end of the series.
Alas, Philadelphia fell to Montreal in six games, and Propp’s injury made it that much more difficult for him to remain a star player in the NHL.
In the season following this injury, the Flyers began their half-decade-long rebuild, which led to Propp getting dealt to the Boston Bruins. Even though he had suffered an accumulation of injuries at this point, he was still a key player for the Bruins in their playoff run.
He and the Bruins advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, where he faced a familiar foe in the Oilers. But the Bruins were swept aside in four games, marking Propp’s latest Stanley Cup defeat.
In his 1990-91 season, Propp signed with the Minnesota North Stars. Incredibly, the 13-year veteran returned to his old form. He was scoring at the level of his first seasons in Philadelphia, was a point-per-game scorer in the postseason, and helped lead his team to the Stanley Cup Final once again. Running into Mario Lemieux’s legendary Pittsburgh Penguins, the North Stars were defeated in a hard-fought, six-game series.
Unfortunately, Propp’s fifth shot at a Stanley Cup was his last. After his miraculous run in 1991, his career began to wind down before he ultimately retired after the 1993-94 NHL season.
Propp’s Overall Legacy
All in all, Propp was a member of the elite 1000-point club, doing so in just 1016 regular season NHL games. He accumulated 148 playoff points in 160 games, which ranks 32nd in NHL history. For the Flyers, he amassed 369 goals and 480 assists for 849 points in 790 NHL games, good enough for fourth on the Flyers’ all-time points list. His playoff point total of 112 in 116 games with the team places him second in the history of the franchise.
Propp finished his career as one of the most accomplished players in Flyers’ history, even if he was never able to capture a Stanley Cup to cap off his legacy. Inducted to the Flyers’ Hall of Fame in 1999, his legendary career will continue to live on.
