The Philadelphia Flyers had their first bad game of the series and the Pittsburgh Penguins had their best game of the series in Game 4. The Penguins avoided a sweep and gave themselves a dollop of hope they can get back in the series with a striking 4-2 win Sunday at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Sunday was a travel day for the Penguins. Parker Wotherspoon, Noel Acciari, and coach Dan Muse spoke to the media from the team hotel before heading home Sunday morning.
Before making the trek to Pittsburgh, the Flyers had a full practice at which coach Rick Tocchet made one significant change to his lineup. According to Will James of Philly Hockey Now, Tocchet appears ready to bench talented but inconsistent Russian winger Matvei Michkov in favor of high-energy rookie Alex Bump.
Bump, 22, had nine points (5-4-9) in 17 NHL games this season. He spent most of the season with the Lehigh-Valley Phantoms before his March recall but has been the odd-man out in the playoffs. The 6-foot, 194-pound winger is in his first professional season and was the Flyers’ 2022 fifth-round pick.
Bump will take a spot on the third line with Noah Cates and Tyson Foerster.
Tocchet is also reinserting physical defenseman Emil Andrae, who was solid in Game 1 but suffered an injury, missing the next few games in favor of Noah Juulsen.
Michkov took a step backward in his second NHL season, dropping from 26 goals in his rookie year to 20 this season. Michkov had no points in four playoff games.
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Categorized:2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Pittsburgh Penguins