- Forbes Kennedy, the senior member of the Flyers Alumni and one of the toughest pound-for-pound players in NHL history, has died at 90
- The Charlottetown forward played 603 NHL games across five teams from 1956 to 1969 and led the league in penalty minutes in 1968-69
- Read below for the Flyers’ tribute, video of Forbie’s final visit with old teammates, and the playoff record that ended his NHL career
Forbes Kennedy, the original Philadelphia Flyers tough guy and a Prince Edward Island hockey hero, has died at the age of 90.
The Flyers announced Kennedy’s passing Tuesday:
Kennedy, known to everyone on the Island as “Forbie,” was the senior member of the Flyers Alumni at the time of his death and a Charlottetown lifer who became virtual royalty on PEI.
Standing just 5-foot-8, Kennedy was nevertheless considered one of the toughest pound-for-pound players ever to lace them up. He broke in with the Chicago Blackhawks in 1956 and bounced through Detroit, Boston, Philadelphia and Toronto before his career ended in 1969, posting 70 goals, 108 assists and 888 penalty minutes across 603 regular-season games.
In a longer statement on the team site, the Flyers credited Kennedy with helping shape the franchise’s identity in its first two seasons:
“Although he was never the biggest player on the team, Kennedy brought toughness, energy and a fearless style that would become synonymous with the Flyers. Above all else, he was a loyal teammate and was crucial to establish what became a close-knit group from an expansion team.”
Take a look at the Alumni House Calls visit Joe Watson and Al MacAdam paid Forbie back home in Charlottetown last December:
Kennedy led the entire NHL in penalty minutes during the 1968-69 season and set a Stanley Cup playoff record that still stands today. In a 10-0 Maple Leafs loss at Boston on April 2, 1969, he was whistled for eight penalties in one game: four minors, two majors, a 10-minute misconduct and a game misconduct.
The league suspended him for the rest of the postseason. He never played another NHL game.
After hanging up the skates in 1970, Forbie coached at the minor pro and junior levels for the better part of three decades, with much of that work back home on PEI. Summerside’s Gerard “Turk” Gallant, who made it to the NHL years after Kennedy retired, told CBC News that Forbie checked in on every Island kid chasing the dream and probably had a hand in a lot of them getting their shot.
Charlottetown MP Sean Casey wished him a happy 90th birthday last August with a note that captured exactly what Forbie meant on the Island:
We at Gino Hard send our condolences to Kennedy’s family, friends and former teammates.
