1976-77 O-Pee-Chee 164 Tom Bladon Hockey Card (Front)
1976-77 O-Pee-Chee 164 Tom Bladon Hockey Card (Back)
1976-77 O-Pee-Chee NHL Checklist
Card Notes
Tom is one of the leading offensive threats among the Flyers’ defensive brigade. He has been a regular member of the Philadelphia power play unit ever since joining the team.
En Français
Tom est redoutable à l’offensive pour les Flyers. Il participe régulièrement aux jeux de puissance de Philadelphie depuis qu’il s’est joint à cette équipe.
Details
Tom Bladon didn’t disappoint offensively in the 1976-77 NHL season for the Philadelphia Flyers. He had a career best 43 assists and 53 points. He led the team’s defensemen in scoring and was ninth overall in the NHL, 32 points behind leader Larry Robinson of the Montreal Canadiens.
The offensive outburst that cemented Bladon’s name in the NHL record books came the following season. On December 11, 1977, the Flyers blew out the Cleveland Barons 11-1. Tom set NHL records for defensemen with four goals and eight points. Those records still stand today, although Paul Coffey tied the points mark in 1986.
In that game, he scored his 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th goals of the 1977-78 season. He would total just eleven goals on the campaign. Three of the goals were scored on Gary Edwards while the third was on Gilles Meloche. Bladon was an amazing +10 on the night, a number that also remains an NHL record. He added assists on goals by Don Seleski, Mel Bridgman, Rick MacLeish and Bill Barber. It should be noted that Bridgman achieved the Gordie Howe Hat Trick in the game with a goal, two assists and a fight with Randy Holt.
That 1977-78 season was the end of the line for Tom as a Flyer. On June 14, 1978, he was shipped to the Pittsburgh Penguins along with Orest Kindrachuk and Ross Lonsberry. From there, his NHL career dwindled quite quickly and he was out of the league after the 1980-81 campaign.
Between 1972-73 and 1980-81, Tom Bladon appeared in 610 regular season and 86 playoff games in the National Hockey League with the Flyers, Penguins, Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets and Detroit Red Wings. He helped the Flyers to consecutive Stanley Cup championships in 1973-74 and 1974-75.