The Flyers, despite an unusually messy expansion birth 50 years ago, have matured into a model of NHL success.
Valued by Forbes at $730 million, the franchise has consistently filled its arena, reached eight Stanley Cup Finals, and added a bright orange hue to an already colorful Philadelphia sports scene.
"Everybody told me I was crazy to leave a job [covering City Hall] at the Daily News for something that was going to be a total failure," said Lou Scheinfeld, a longtime Flyers executive who was there at conception. "But I really believed in Jerry Wolman and Ed Snider.