Bunnaman Hoping To Make The Most Of His Opportunities In Flyers' Round Robin Action

With the Philadelphia Flyers holding on to a 3-1 lead late in the third period in Thursday afternoon's round robin action against Washington, it was Connor Bunnaman - along with linemates Nate Thompson and Tyler Pitlick - once again tasked with the unglamorous challenge of preventing Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals' top line from making it a one-goal game.

"[We] kind of just went out there and did our job," Bunnaman said during Friday's media availability of the Flyers' 4th line matching up against the Ovechkin line. "Not much communication [from the coaches about the matchups], it was just shut them down."

Late in the shift, with about 90 seconds left to play, it was Bunnaman who got a stick on an attempted Capitals pass in the defensive zone and was able to muscle one out of harms way to seal the deal on the Flyers' 3-1 victory.

For those who have seen any of his 91 AHL games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms the past two seasons, it was another day at the office for Bunnaman Thursday - doing the little things right and keeping things simple, while also earning the coach's trust and making a good impression for more work in the bottom six when the Flyers shift from round robin action to the field of 16 and the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.

"That's basically my game. Keep it simple, get the puck deep, go to the net. Holding a guy like Ovechkin pointless is pretty good. He's a pretty good player I guess," Bunnaman said with a laugh. "It was fun out there. We did our job."

With Michael Raffl sustaining an injury earlier in the round robin tournament and James Van Riemsdyk underwhelming head coach Alain Vigneault, the Flyers' head coach said their game against the Capitals was a great fit to get Bunnaman into a game - the latter of which was something he said was really part of the plan all along.

"It was less about benching James, and more about looking at the big picture. I wanted to get Joel in, and I also wanted to get [Bunnaman] in at some point," Vigneault told media in Friday's media availability.

That Bunnaman's number was called, in which Vigneault also cited his abilities to play both on the wing and down the middle, bodes well for how highly the organization - and importantly the NHL staff - thinks of Bunnaman's game and his fit in the Flyers' bottom six group.

"I thought Bunny, when we called upon him during the season, gave us very good speed, good physicality along the wall," Vigneault said. "With Nate and Tyler, thought they would be a hard line to play against. Good speed, good physicality. For a good portion of the game last night, they ended up playing against Washington's top line. I thought they handled themselves real well. I wanted to get a look at [Bunnaman]."

"It's about that balance between winning and getting the team ready for whoever our first round opponent will be," he added.

For Bunnaman, the confidence boost in being that next man up and earning 12:14 of ice time in his NHL playoff debut validates the work he has put in off the ice, coming into training camp back in the fall much leaner and quicker while also stronger and earning a spot on the trip to Prague on the Flyers' season-opening roster.

Vigneault told media Friday that Bunnaman will remain in the Flyers' lineup Saturday against Tampa Bay - another chance for the rookie to leave a lasting impression before Philadelphia enters their first round playoff series.

"Him putting me out there in key situations, like against Ovechkin, and even with the last 5 minutes there with the lead, they put me out there. That's kind of showing me that they have a little trust in me," Bunnaman said of his usage in his first game back from the pause. "Hoping to keep doing my job."