Michkov posts three points, Oliver Bonk scores in his NHL debut, and the Flyers close the regular season with three straight wins. April 14, 2026.
Montreal Canadiens 2, Philadelphia Flyers 4 Xfinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, PA
The Philadelphia Flyers had already clinched third in the Metropolitan Division and their first-round matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins. They were resting Trevor Zegras, Owen Tippett, Travis Konecny, Travis Sanheim, and Rasmus Ristolainen. And they still won 4-2. Two AHL callups — Oliver Bonk and Hunter McDonald, recalled from Lehigh Valley that morning — supplied the spark, Matvei Michkov delivered a three-point night, and a crowd waving orange rally towels sent their team off in style. The Flyers closed the regular season on an 18-6-1 run — one of the hottest stretches in the NHL — and head to Pittsburgh ready.
How It Happened
First Period: Martone opened the scoring at 8:08, tipping Michkov’s point shot between Dobes’ pads for his fourth of the season. Then came the highlight of the night — Bonk’s first NHL goal at 14:42, in his NHL debut. McDonald started the play with a hit on Evans that forced a turnover in the Montreal zone; Michkov was first on the loose puck and sent it across to Bonk, who scored from above the right faceoff circle. Bonk became the first Flyers defenseman to score a goal in his NHL debut, and the third Flyer ever to have a multipoint game in his debut — joining Gord Murphy (1988-89) and Behn Wilson (1978-79).
Second Period: Montreal answered at 6:50 when Gallagher — back in the lineup after being scratched the previous four games, his first goal since February 4 — skated to the net and tipped a Kaiden Guhle centering pass between Ersson’s pads to make it 2-1. Michkov pushed the lead back to two at 13:52, locating a loose puck in front with Dobes out of position and whipping in a wrist shot. Evans pulled Montreal within one again at 19:49, diving into the crease to tap the puck home on the backhand after Ersson lost the rebound of Xhekaj’s shot.
Third Period: Bump put it away at 12:00 when Juraj Slafkovsky mishandled the puck in front of his own net, Martone got a stick on it and slid a pass to Bump for a quick snap shot from the hash marks past Dobes — 4-2, and that was the ballgame.
Goaltending
Samuel Ersson was solid in the win for Philadelphia, stopping 27 of 29 Montreal shots (.931 SV%) in 59:48 of work. Jakub Dobes took the loss for Montreal, stopping just 21 of 25 Flyers shots (.840 SV%) in 56:12.
Special Teams
Montreal: 0-for-3 PP | Philadelphia: 0-for-0 PP | Penalties: Montreal 4 min (2 infractions), Philadelphia 10 min (5 infractions)
Three Stars
⭐ Matvei Michkov (PHI) — 1G, 2A ⭐⭐ Oliver Bonk (PHI) — 1G, 1A ⭐⭐⭐ Hunter McDonald (PHI) — 0G, 1A
Team Statistics
| Category | Montreal Canadiens | Philadelphia Flyers |
|---|---|---|
| Goals | 2 | 4 |
| Shots | 29 | 25 |
| Power Play | 0/3 (0%) | 0/0 (—) |
| Penalty Minutes | 4 min (2 infractions) | 10 min (5 infractions) |
| Faceoff % | 56.9% (29-of-51) | 43.1% (22-of-51) |
| Hits | 26 | 21 |
| Blocked Shots | 7 | 14 |
| Takeaways | 3 | 4 |
| Giveaways | 12 | 21 |
Shots by Period
| Period | Montreal | Philadelphia |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 12 | 8 |
| 2nd | 12 | 12 |
| 3rd | 5 | 5 |
| Total | 29 | 25 |
Scoring Summary
First Period
- 8:08 PHI — Porter Martone (4) — Assists: Matvei Michkov (30), Oliver Bonk (1)
- 14:42 PHI — Oliver Bonk (1) — Assists: Matvei Michkov (31), Hunter McDonald (1)
Second Period
- 6:50 MTL — Brendan Gallagher (7) — Assists: Kaiden Guhle (9), Alexandre Texier (13)
- 13:52 PHI — Matvei Michkov (20) — Unassisted
- 19:49 MTL — Jake Evans (12) — Assists: Arber Xhekaj (3), Joe Veleno (3)
Third Period
- 12:00 PHI — Alex Bump (5) — Assists: Porter Martone (6)
Key Notes
- Oliver Bonk became the first Flyers defenseman to score in his NHL debut and the third Flyer ever to record a multipoint debut, joining Gord Murphy (1988-89) and Behn Wilson (1978-79)
- Michkov’s 20th goal makes him the first Flyer to open his NHL career with back-to-back 20-goal seasons since Simon Gagne did it in three straight from 1999-2002; he posted 22 points in 26 games since the Winter Olympics break
- Porter Martone’s six-game point streak to close the season (nine points) ties Sean Couturier, Mike Ricci, and Peter Zezel for the second-longest by a Flyers teenager — only Eric Lindros’ seven-game streak in 1992-93 is longer
- Montreal needed a regulation win to pass Tampa Bay for second in the Atlantic and home-ice advantage against the Lightning — the loss locks them into third and opens the playoffs on the road
- Cole Caufield had 10 shots on goal, matching his single-game NHL best; Oliver Kapanen played in his 100th career NHL game
- Attendance: 20,041 at Xfinity Mobile Arena
Up Next
Montreal Canadiens: Eastern Conference First Round vs. Tampa Bay Lightning — Games 1 and 2 in Tampa (dates TBD) Philadelphia Flyers: Eastern Conference First Round at Pittsburgh Penguins — Games 1 and 2 in Pittsburgh (dates TBD)
