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| Courtesy of SportsTalkPhilly |
Phanatic Hockey Editor
So, fifth-round draft pick Alex Bump and first-round selection Porter Martone are receiving their baptisms of fire as the Philadelphia Flyers are fighting for the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.
With 5 games remaining in a tense stretch run, one collegiate prospect looks like a thoroughbred and the other a Clydesdale. Guess which is which.
Bump was taken five rounds deep in 2022 and proceeded to have three unspectacular seasons in American juniors before two surprising years (37 goals, 83 points over 80 games) at Western Michigan that included an NCHC tournament best player honor ahead of a national title.
Martone was drafted No. 6 overall last June after two dominant campaigns in Canadian juniors, then proceeded to have a stellar season at Michigan State (25 goals, 50 points in 35 games) although Sparty bowed out early in the NCAA playoffs for a second straight season.
At 22 years old, with 45 games of total professional experience, Bump has established himself as both a shot taker and a shot maker. With 4 goals (on 20 shots, 20% shooting) and 4 assists in 14 starts, including a marker in his very first National Hockey League appearance, the dark horse has proven he can run.
That doesn’t mean he hasn’t had hiccups – head coach Rick Tocchet picking him as a healthy scratch for last Tuesday’s regulation home loss to the Red Wings after back-to-back shotless performances in two key Flyers victories was an obvious choice – but he responded on Saturday with an early goal.
And since his successful debut on March 7 at Pittsburgh, Bump has outscored the following name brands usually slotted in the top 6: Christian Dvorak (3), Trevor Zegras (2); Matvei Michkov (1). Only Owen Tippett (9) has more.
“Going down there and playing down there, I really saw a different player,” Tocchet said after Bump’s NHL debut in Pittsburgh on March 7. “It’s good that he (was) taking the information down there (in Allentown) and coming up here. Hell of a shot. Holding onto pucks, not scared of shooting pucks, that’s what we need.”
Martone, thrown into the thick of things at age 19 with 4 games at the NHL level, hadn’t done much except garner the laser focus of barely-functional referees and linesmen until his first NHL goal doubled as a hero overtime moment to beat the Bruins, 2-1, more than 24 hours ago. Just as he praised Bump’s slow-cook mantra to make the Show, Tocchet kept citing preparedness as a key factor for Martone.
“You can just tell he’s a hockey player. He loves the game. He’s a very engaged kid,” Tocchet said. “He’s not afraid to say something, on the bench talking about the power play to some guys (and said) ‘hey, I’ll be here, you be here,’ I like that – a young kid doing that?”
Just so we’re clear, you win games by scoring goals, not by running up shot totals, individually or collectively. The only way to ensure you score is to shoot the puck past the goaltender, not by throwing as many shots on net and hoping that the volume *eventually* wears down the guy with all the pads. That’s true inside and outside the high-danger areas.
More than that, it was the way Bump scores. On Long Island Friday night, he gathered the puck along the left-wing boards near the circle and fired high when no clear opening was visible on Islanders netminder Ilya Sorokin. However, Sorokin, not thinking a shot would come from that direction and angle, failed to seal off anything high and the Flyers’ second goal in an eventual 4-1 victory beat him under the crossbar and to the short side.
Martone set an NHL record for rookies with 14 shots on goal in his first two NHL appearances. He’s up to 19 over four games. With one goal. That’s a shooting percentage of 5.26% folks.
Even considering the brilliant timing of his first red light, Martone needs to strike more often to contribute anything meaningful as a high first-round one-and-done. Of his registered SOGs, all but one (a nifty glove save in a 1-on-1 situation by Detroit goalie John Gibson in Thursday’s loss) were of the “shoot at the net and see what happens” variety, where the goaltender didn’t have to move in any direction on the x or y axes, guess or cover open territory.
Multiple times at Michigan State, Martone proved he can score from distance and he needs to embrace those chances instead of being satisfied as the down-low presence. And with Tocchet’s offensive plan focusing on less shot generation and more quality shots in prime scoring areas, there’s enough opportunity.
Here’s the thing: I recognize both players are asked to run the same course, but with staggered starting points. Bump was given more track to start and worked his way through, while Martone was slotted closer to the finish line and just needs to sprint to the tape. Both players, blessed with similar skill sets we *hope* the organization can’t foul up, are being asked to do the same thing – score goals.
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| From MSN.com |
Unfortunately, Martone who was expected to do so right away, took 4 games to do it. Bump did it in his first.
After all the huffing and puffing of the last 6 weeks, the Flyers still need to vault over three teams – Ottawa, Detroit and Columbus and stay there – regardless of exterior outcomes to ensure a playoff berth and every player needs to do what he was put on the club to do.
Bump, the fifth rounder, is holding up his end of the bargain. Martone, the first-round flash, finally has something to build on but needs immediate and repeat performances.
We’ve also been assured by one legacy media outlet that everything he did in East Lansing this year led up to this moment.
“An overtime winner as a first NHL goal, it’s pretty special,” Martone said when asked if it was a weight off his shoulders to finally produce after the work he put in so far. “Just to continue to keep playing my game, that’s who I am. I’m gonna get a lot of chances. For me, every shift (I need to) come back to the bench and reset.”
The instant glazing of Martone was such that shortages might be reported at several Krispy Kremes and Dunkin Donuts in the Delaware Valley upon start of business this morning. Worse, the MSU admin thought it was being clever but created a wicked self-own on Sunday evening, touting Martone as “built for big moments.”
Take off the orange-tinted glasses and come down from the Easter candy sugar rush for a second. If Martone *really* was made for big moments, the Spartans (armed with two other Hobey Baker Award finalists in forward Charlie Stramel and goaltender Trey Augustine – also a finalist for the Mike Richter Award) wouldn’t have been eliminated in the NCAA regionals last week. Instead, Sparty would be set for Las Vegas next weekend and Martone would be pressing for a championship.
As I close out this column, I’m reminded of some wise words from a fictional mastermind. Never get involved in a land war in Asia. Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line. Never let a good social post get in the way of reality. Never question the irrational optimism of Flyers opinion leaders.
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