St. Louis Blues–Philadelphia Flyers brawl
[12] Following this second goal, St. Louis Blues Head Coach Al Arbour complained to the referee, John Ashley, regarding his officiating.
[8][2] Players from both teams were heading to their respective locker rooms for the intermission, but Blues defenseman Bob Plager decided to follow Arbour.
[15] In total, about ten Blues players were involved in the incident,[13] including Garry Unger, who swung his hockey stick while in the stands.
[15] As part of a giveaway promotion that night at the Spectrum, many fans received free miniature replica hockey sticks, which some used as weapons during the scuffle.
[16] Ed Snider, the founder and owner of the Flyers, was in the arena at the time and made his way to the area to intervene, later saying about the incident, "I saw the glazed eyes of their players and got scared for myself".
[15] No Flyers players were involved in the fray, in part because the entire team had returned to their locker room by the time the fighting had started.
[2] The incident lasted about 25 minutes before order was restored,[7] with police officers directing Blues players to their locker room area.
[16] However, the brawl caused a delay to the start of the third period,[note 2] due in part to the fact that the Blues' athletic trainer had to spend time resharpening ice skates that had been dulled by players walking on the concrete in the stands.
[16][18] In the third period, the Blues rallied and scored three unanswered goals from players Roberto, Unger, and Gary Sabourin,[14] to beat the Flyers 3–2.
[1][14] John's injury, a gash on the back of his head that had been caused by a police officer striking him with a hockey stick,[14] required 40 stitches.
[13][16] During the game, Philadelphia Mayor Frank Rizzo ordered a police van to the Spectrum to arrest some of the Blues team members who had been involved in the brawl.
[13] Immediately following the incident, NHL President Clarence Campbell declined to comment on the matter, saying that he needed more time to assess the facts on the case.
[13] In the middle of 1972, the arrested individuals met with Campbell to discuss the matter, but it became a moot issue, as the criminal charges against them were all eventually dropped.
[3] In 2022, a news report on the event from KSDK called the game a "rallying point" for the Blues, as the team made it to the playoffs that year, advancing as far as the semifinals before losing to the Boston Bruins, the eventual Stanley Cup champions.
[2] According to former Blues player and color commentator Bernie Federko, the Blues success against the Flyers, including in this game, may have played a part in the Flyers' shift to a more aggressive style of play in the following seasons, referred to as the "Broad Street Bullies" period, during which time Philadelphia became a more competitive team and won several Stanley Cup championships.
