Fifth-round pick Alex Bump replaced healthy scratch Matvei Michkov in the Philadelphia Flyers' lineup in Game 5 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. He's already on the board.
The Philadelphia Flyers suffered their second straight loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins and, suddenly, we have a close playoff series between these hated, cross-state rivals.
The Penguins, getting a fluke goal for what turned out to be the game-winner late in the second period, outlasted the visiting Flyers 3-2 and forced a Game 6 on Wednesday in Philadelphia.
Philly leads the series 3-2.
"We've got to regroup, get ready for the next one and find that desperation," defenseman Travis Sanheim, who tied the score at 2-2, told reporters.
The Flyers lost despite getting a sensational effort from rookie left winger Alex Bump, who replaced healthy scratch Matvei Michkov.
Although Michkov has been one of the Flyers' top youngsters since being drafted seventh overall in 2023, 22-year-old Bump was arguably his team's best player in his playoff debut.
"Just trying to play my game," said Bump. "I believe in myself, and I know I can play in this league."
Bump, a fifth-round pick in 2022, had a goal, a team-high nine shot attempts (four on goal) and was responsible in the defensive zone.
"He was moving his feet, and he's a shot threat; I think he had three or four chances, and he takes it to the hole, to the goal," said Flyers coach Rick Tocchet, whose team faced 2-0 deficits in each of the last two games. "He was off for two weeks, and I'm really proud with the way he played tonight."
Michkov was the Flyers' leading scorer after the Olympic break, with 22 points in 26 games, as they went 18-7-1 and surprisingly reached the playoffs. But he struggled mightily in the first four playoff games, failing to produce any points, and was given the second-fewest minutes of any Flyers forward.
Before the game, Tocchet said he thought Bump, who had five goals and nine points in 17 regular-season games, could give the Flyers some energy, and he liked his shooting mentality.
Bump performed at a high level, but the Flyers' big guns missed the net too often. Philly finished with 58 shot attempts, but only 20 of them were on goal. Owen Tippett, Tyson Foerster, Travis Konecny and Trevor Zegras finished with a combined two shots on goal.
After the loss, Tocchet praised rookies Bump and Denver Barkey for their creativity and strong play.
"The young guys were good," Tocchet said, adding he needs some other players to "step it up. They've got to play with more pace, shorter shifts."
It will be interesting to see if Michkov returns to the lineup Wednesday and if he replaces Tyson Foerster, who has no points in the series and has no goals and one assist over his last nine games, including the regular season.
The Penguins snapped a 2-2 tie late in the second when Kris Letang's long shot caromed off the boards and bounced off goaltender Dan Vladar and into the net.
"An unfortunate bounce," Vladar said.
The Penguins used that bounce and a tight defense in the third period to produce their second straight win in the series. Now they need two more victories to become the fifth team in NHL history to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first three games.
"Throughout the season, we've been in different situations, and I think we've done a great job of handling adversity," Penguins captain Sidney Crosby said after his two-assist game. "It doesn't get any easier; we know it's a big challenge going in there (Philadelphia), but we have a lot of belief."
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.