Hockey icon Bernie Parent, 80, dies one day after sparking health concern

NHL Hall of Famer Bernie Parent has died at the age of 80, his former team the Philadelphia Flyers announced on Sunday.

Parent, who is considered one of the great goalies of all time, anchored the net for the Flyers' only two Stanley Cup championships during their Broad Street Bullies heyday.

Philadelphia made the announcement Sunday but provided no immediate details. Parent died overnight in his sleep, said Joe Watson, a star defenseman on their Stanley Cup teams.

Watson said by phone that he saw Parent and other former Flyers players at a function on Friday night in Delaware, describing him as being in 'terrible pain'.

'Bernie was in such pain, he could hardly walk,' Watson said, citing Parent's bad back. 'We had a great time, but I felt bad because he was in such terrible pain. To see this happen, it's very sad.'

Parent's steel-eyed stare through his old-school hockey mask landed him on the cover of Time magazine in 1975 when the Flyers reigned as one of the marquee teams in sports. He won Stanley Cup, Conn Smythe and Vezina trophies in back-to-back seasons when the Flyers captured the Stanley Cup in 1974 and 1975, the first NHL expansion team to win the championship.

'The legend of Bernie Parent reached far beyond the ice and his accolades,' the Flyers said in a statement. 'Bernie had a deep love for Philadelphia and fans of the Flyers. He was passionate about his role as an ambassador for Ed Snider Youth Hockey & Education and inspired an entire generation of hockey fans. He dedicated his time, energy and enthusiasm to not only grow the game, but also to spread joy to anyone he encountered.'

After he made his NHL debut with Boston in 1965, Parent was left unprotected by the Bruins in the 1967 expansion draft and was selected by the Flyers. After three-and-a-half seasons, he was traded to Toronto but ended up back in Philadelphia ahead of the 1973-74 season. He won a league-high 47 games that season and led the NHL in wins again the next season with 44.

He retired with the Flyers in 1979 after 271 wins - 231 of them with the Flyers - over a 13-year career. Parent was accidentally struck in the right eye with a stick in 1979 and was temporarily blinded. He never played again.

The Flyers beat the Bruins in six games to win the Stanley Cup in 1974 and beat Buffalo in 1975. Parent had shutouts in the clinchers each season.

On the flight home from Buffalo, the Flyers plopped the Stanley Cup in the middle of the aisle. For close to 90 minutes, they couldn´t take their eyes off hockey's ultimate prize.

'We were able to just sit back, look at the Stanley Cup and just savor it,' Parent said in 2010. 'It was just a special time.'

With Parent the unstoppable force in net, 'Only the Lord saves more than Bernie Parent,' became a popular slogan in Philadelphia that stuck with him through the decades.

Parent, team captain Bobby Clarke and Dave 'The Hammer' Schultz all became stars for the Flyers under owner Ed Snider in an era when the team was known for its rugged style of play that earned the Bullies nickname. They embraced their moniker as the most despised team in the NHL and pounded their way into the hearts of Flyers fans. More than 2 million fans packed Philadelphia streets for each of their championship parades.

Parent´s No. 1 jersey was retired by the Flyers and still hangs in the rafters of their arena and in 1984 he became the first Flyers player inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. He is still the Flyers´ career leader in shutouts with 50.

Parent remained connected with the team over the years as an ambassador.

'He was so good with people,' said Watson, who first met Parent in 1963. 'A lot of athletes don't get it or don´t give fans the time of day. Bernie gave everyone the time of day. He´d always have his rings on. He'd show them to the people and people loved to see them. This past Friday in Delaware, people were coming up, they wanted to see the rings. People were so excited to see him. He had a great sense of humor. Bernie was a funny guy.'

The final career highlight came in 2011 when Parent was in the net for an alumni game outdoors at the baseball stadium Citizens Bank Park ahead of the NHL Classic. 'Bernie! Bernie! Bernie!' echoed throughout the park for the affable goalie, who played 5 minutes, 32 seconds and stopped all six shots. Each save made the 'Bernie!' chants return.