VOORHEES, N.J. – It’s a pretty safe bet no one in the Flyers organization will be able to fully replace the injured Tyson Foerster if the right wing isn’t ready for the season opener.
Yet if you hear general manager Daniel Briere tell it, there is one prospect who could come close to filling the bill.
That would be Alex Bump, the Flyers’ fifth-round (133rd overall) pick in the 2022 NHL Draft.
He was just signed to a three-year entry contract on April 15 and the future, to say the least, looks quite bright for the Minnesota native.
Briere said he wasn’t all that concerned about Foerster’s elbow, which has an infection and might require surgery, because he has talent such as Bump waiting in the wings.
“We have guys who can step up,” Briere said on Tuesday. “Maybe it’s an Alex Bump.”
On the opening day of the team’s annual development camp on Wednesday at the Flyers Training Center, Bump was asked about his reaction to Briere’s comment.
“I’m just going to try to stay in my lane,” Bump said after a morning workout session. “I’ll let him (Briere) decide whether he wants me or not.
“I’ll try to put my best foot forward to make him choose me.”
This past season, Bump completed his college career at Western Michigan University with a storybook ending.
In the NCAA Frozen Four semifinals against Denver University, Bump scored the game-winner in double-overtime. Then he performed well in the championship final as WMU defeated Boston University for its first national championship.
That had to bring a smile to the face of Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones, who just happens to be a Western Michigan University alumnus himself. He fondly refers to his alma mater as the “Harvard of the Midwest.”
After graduation, Bump joined the Flyers’ AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He produced three points in two games at the end of the regular season and played in all seven games in the first round against Hershey, netting a pair of goals.
Bump could have come up for a one-game tryout with the Flyers but chose to stay with his team in Allentown and stick to the Calder Cup action.
“Just playing more meaningful games in playoffs,” Bump explained, mindful that the Flyers had been eliminated from Stanley Cup play. “Definitely higher intensity. Guys care, I think, a little bit more.”
That line of thinking might pay off in the long run.
“I got to play eight more games,” Bump said with a smile. “I didn’t think it was worth it to waste one year on my contract for one game. Just tried to go down there (Lehigh Valley) and learn as much as I could.”
Bump might sound humble when it comes to answering questions about trying to fill in for Foerster but he does have his eye set high for the upcoming season. He wants to make the team if everything breaks the right way.
“Absolutely,” said the 6-foot-0, 195-pound left wing. “That’s my goal since I signed. . .try to make the opening night roster. I think I’m totally capable of doing that. I just have to put my best foot forward at camp.”
Former Flyer player Wayne Simmonds, now retired and a consultant with the team, was on the ice Wednesday and exchanged some thoughts with Bump.
“He chimed in here and there,” Bump said. “He played in the league for a while. A good guy to take some information from. Talked about wall work, he played a lot on the wall (sideboards). Just tried to take it all in.”
Yet if you hear general manager Daniel Briere tell it, there is one prospect who could come close to filling the bill.
That would be Alex Bump, the Flyers’ fifth-round (133rd overall) pick in the 2022 NHL Draft.
He was just signed to a three-year entry contract on April 15 and the future, to say the least, looks quite bright for the Minnesota native.
Briere said he wasn’t all that concerned about Foerster’s elbow, which has an infection and might require surgery, because he has talent such as Bump waiting in the wings.
“We have guys who can step up,” Briere said on Tuesday. “Maybe it’s an Alex Bump.”
On the opening day of the team’s annual development camp on Wednesday at the Flyers Training Center, Bump was asked about his reaction to Briere’s comment.
“I’m just going to try to stay in my lane,” Bump said after a morning workout session. “I’ll let him (Briere) decide whether he wants me or not.
“I’ll try to put my best foot forward to make him choose me.”
This past season, Bump completed his college career at Western Michigan University with a storybook ending.
In the NCAA Frozen Four semifinals against Denver University, Bump scored the game-winner in double-overtime. Then he performed well in the championship final as WMU defeated Boston University for its first national championship.
That had to bring a smile to the face of Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones, who just happens to be a Western Michigan University alumnus himself. He fondly refers to his alma mater as the “Harvard of the Midwest.”
After graduation, Bump joined the Flyers’ AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He produced three points in two games at the end of the regular season and played in all seven games in the first round against Hershey, netting a pair of goals.
Bump could have come up for a one-game tryout with the Flyers but chose to stay with his team in Allentown and stick to the Calder Cup action.
“Just playing more meaningful games in playoffs,” Bump explained, mindful that the Flyers had been eliminated from Stanley Cup play. “Definitely higher intensity. Guys care, I think, a little bit more.”
That line of thinking might pay off in the long run.
“I got to play eight more games,” Bump said with a smile. “I didn’t think it was worth it to waste one year on my contract for one game. Just tried to go down there (Lehigh Valley) and learn as much as I could.”
Bump might sound humble when it comes to answering questions about trying to fill in for Foerster but he does have his eye set high for the upcoming season. He wants to make the team if everything breaks the right way.
“Absolutely,” said the 6-foot-0, 195-pound left wing. “That’s my goal since I signed. . .try to make the opening night roster. I think I’m totally capable of doing that. I just have to put my best foot forward at camp.”
Former Flyer player Wayne Simmonds, now retired and a consultant with the team, was on the ice Wednesday and exchanged some thoughts with Bump.
“He chimed in here and there,” Bump said. “He played in the league for a while. A good guy to take some information from. Talked about wall work, he played a lot on the wall (sideboards). Just tried to take it all in.”
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