Philadelphia Flyers winger Alex Bump played in his first National Hockey League game on Saturday. He took the traditional rookie lap in the pregame warm-up, then in the second scored his first NHL goal in a 4-3 shootout win over Pittsburgh. It was almost a fairytale beginning. But after the game, Bump revealed the happy ending initially could’ve turned into a nightmare of sorts.
The Flyers made the news of Bump’s call-up official on their social media sites at 1 p.m. Eastern Saturday. However, it seems that Bump took some time getting the message that he’d be in a Flyers jersey on Saturday. After the game, the player stated that the Flyers Director of Player Personnel, Alyn McCauley, attempted to call Bump to notify him of the big news. It was unclear exactly when the call was made, but it didn’t go according to plan. The first attempt to Bump went unanswered. McCauley left a message. After not receiving a reply or message from Bump, McCauley decided to call again. That went unanswered. The same scenario repeated itself a few more times. We’ll let Bump explain what transpired.
How did #Flyers forward Alex Bump find out he was making his NHL debut?
— Jackie Spiegel (@jackiespiegel93) March 8, 2026
"I was actually sleeping. Woke up to probably six missed phone calls from Alyn [McCauley] and, obviously, it was just give me a call back ASAP — & actually [Hunter] McDonald had to come wake me up, too."
So while McCauley was wondering what exactly was going on with Bump, the rookie winger was fast asleep. Only when Lehigh Valley Phantom defenseman Hunter McDonald woke Bump up did he realize what he’d missed. And perhaps more importantly, who it was from. And what it was concerning.
Needless to say, Bump got the, er, wake-up call or shake in time, making his way to the Flyers who were set to play at Pittsburgh’s PPG Paints Arena at the rather odd 5:30 p.m. Eastern start time. He finished the night with one goal, one shot on goal, two giveaways, one takeaway, one hit, and a blocked shot in 23 shifts and 16:07 of ice time. After the game, Bump was given the team award but, in keeping with Bump’s strange day, the Flyers didn’t have their white mask for him to wear. So they improvised. See below.
When the mask misses the road trip, the equipment guys have to improvise.
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) March 8, 2026
The Arts & Crafts Mask goes to the crafty young kid. pic.twitter.com/d41tzH4ueH
After the game Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet lauded Bump’s first game. “He had a lot of confidence,” Tocchet said. “I think being down there, going down there, and developing, I really saw that he was a different player. I talked to Snowy today (Lehigh Valley coach John Snowden) about him. He had a lot of confidence. He played 16 minutes and we had to kill six power plays, so he did a really nice job.” Tocchet also praised Bump for taking the information he needed to hone his game, adding he had a “hell of a shot” on the goal and wasn’t afraid to shoot the puck.
With the clocks going ahead one hour for Daylight Savings Time early Sunday morning, we’re hoping that Bump — who will likely be strongly considered to suit up again Monday night against the Rangers — won’t miss an important wake-up call. Had he completely missed this one, there’s a good chance we’re probably not talking about him now. And definitely not his first goal.
