On May 19th 1974 , the Philadelphia Flyers won the Stanley Cup over the Boston Bruins in six games. They were the first of the  1967 Expansion Teams to hoist the Cup, and the first non-Original Six team to win the NHL championship since the 1935 Montreal Maroons 

The Philadelphia Flyers entered the  NHL in the historic 1967 expansion. Since most of the players available to them were either aging veterans or career minor leaguers they struggled, as did most of the ‘67 expansion, for the first few seasons. However one of the first Flyers draftees, left unprotected by the Boston Bruins, was goalie Bernie Parent. Parent was a lone bright spot for the early Flyers, however he was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1971. In 1969, after a poor regular season and being physically over-matched in a feeble playoff showing against the St. Louis Blues, the Flyers drafted Bobby Clarke. The Flyers would add a host of physical players like Dave Schultz and Rick MacLeish, and with young Clarke at their lead, shifted to a tougher more aggressive style of play; the Broad Street Bullies were born. Philadelphia quickly became the most intimidating team in the NHL. With a strong  emphasis on offense, the Flyers would hit, hit harder, turn around and hit even harder still, and when you were down the would hit one more time. They were among the top teams of the regular season, but for the first few years of the 70s, playoff success proved elusive. In 1973 the Flyers reacquired Bernie Parent, and he established himself as one of the best goalies in the NHL.

After a solid 73-74 regular season Philadelphia won the West Division, and were looking strong going into the playoffs. In the first round they easily defeated a  feeble overmatched  Atlanta Flames in a sweep. They then faced the New York Rangers in the Semifinals. The Rangers proved a much tougher opponent for the Flyers, as the series went the full seven games. The Flyers would win the series with a 4-3 victory in Game Seven at the Philadelphia Spectrum. It was the first time an expansion team would defeat an Original Six team in a playoff series. The scene was set for a showdown with the powerful Boston Bruins.The Boston Bruins of the mid-70s were one of, if not THE, best team in the NHL. They were also known for their toughness and physical play and would not be intimidated by the Broad Street Bullies. In the previous 19 games against Philadelphia, Boston had won 17 with 2 ties. Led by superstars and future Hall-of-Famers including Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Derek Sanderson, and Johnny Bucyk; the Bruins were expected to easily take down the upstart Flyers.

In Game One of the Stanley Cup Finals, at the Boston Garden, the teams were tied at 2 goals late in the game when Bruins’ defender Bobby Orr, after blocking a shot with his leg, skated right through the Flyers defense and scored to lead the Bruins to a 3-2 win.  In Game Two, still in Boston, the Bruins looked well on their to another victory leading 2-1 with left than a minute remaining. With Bernie Parent pulled, Flyers defender Andre Dupont scored to tie the game. In the Overtime Bobby Clarke would score the game winner. It was the first time Philadelphia beat Boston at the Boston Garden since 1967. The series shifted to the Philadelphia Spectrum and the Flyers took control of the momentum of the series with a 4-1 win in Game Three behind the superb goaltending of Bernie Parent.  Parent was still holding strong in net in Game Four, and thanks to two Flyer goals in the 3rd period, as Philadelphia won 4-2. Back at the Boston Garden, Game Five was a mostly ugly penalty filled affair marred by multiple fights, but the Bruins looked poised for a series comeback in a 5-1 Boston win. Then in Game Six at the Spectrum on May 19th 1974, Rick MacLeish beat Bruins goalie Giles Gilbert for a power play goal at 14:48 of the 1st Period for the only goal of the game. Bernie Parent was absolutely fantastic in goal in a 30-save shutout. With less than three minutes left in the game, Parent made a game-saving kick save on a thunderous slap shot from Bruins forward Ken Hodge. The Flyers would win the game 1-0 to take the series and win their first Stanley Cup! Bernie Parent was the easy winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy awarded to the playoff MVP.

The Stanley Cup victory kicked off the largest sports celebration in Philadelphia sports history. On May 20th, a day after the victory, more than 2 million people lined up around Broad Street for the ticker tape parade to cheer on the Broad Street Bullies