Fife Flyers star lives up to Hollywood nickname with highlight reel goal

And it is a nickname the Fife Flyers fans may soon be adopting after the ex-NHLer struck a highlight reel goal in the 4-2 win away to Belfast Giants on Saturday.

Bulmer was on a partial breakaway when his legs were clipped by the stick of a back-tracking defenceman, sending him sliding down the ice towards the Giants on his front.

But rather than simply settle for the penalty, the forward, belly-down and moving at speed, kept his eye on the puck, swiped his stick, and sent it crashing past a stunned Stephen Murphy in the Belfast net.

The clip has created something of a stir on social media, with major Canadian sports network TSN even featuring it on one of their websites.

“When it went in I was happy, and we got the win so that made it even better,” Bulmer told the Press.

“After the game I started getting a few messages coming in, then TSN, one of the biggest sports centres in Canada, got a hold of it, that’s when I started getting it from my buddies back home.

“It’s pretty cool to be laying flat out like that, and get a bounce like that to go in. It’s a good feeling.

“I felt my legs get taken out with the stick. I could still see the puck so I just thought, why not try to put it in?

“It meant I didn’t have to take the penalty shot!”

The goal was Bulmer’s fourth of the weekend having broken his duck in the EIHL the night before.

After nine games without a goal, albeit including pre-season, the back-to-back doubles against Belfast have lifted a weight from his shoulders.

“The big part is we won both games – that’s our main goal,” he said.

“For myself it was nice to get a couple of bounces and just be rewarded.

“I feel like our line played well both nights, which really helped me get over that hump.

“To be fair, it was only a couple of games I didn’t score, and I’m not going to make a big deal out of it.

“Throughout a season you might have a stretch where you might feel okay about your game, but you’re just not getting the bounces.

“For me I was just trying to stick with it, play the right way, and get rewarded after that, so it was a nice relief to get the goals.”

Having iced a handful of times for Minnesota Wild in the NHL, Bulmer was hailed as a marquee summer signing for Flyers, and his weekend performances, after returning from a two-game suspension, show he is starting to live up to the billing.

And it is a tag he is more than comfortable to carry.

“I don’t really feel pressure too much,” he said. “I like to get pressure on me, I can take it.

“I’ve fed off pressure my whole career so it’s no problem for me. It’s just motivation.

“If I can lessen the load for my team mates I’m willing to do that and just try to be the leader.”

Bulmer revealed that his NHL ambitions remain unfulfilled and that he hopes to be able to return to the world’s top league.

“I feel like the doors are always open, it’s just a matter of how I manage my game, stay ready and just keep building,” he said.

“It’s on me to play my game at a high level, but it’s also a matter of what teams are looking for.

“Last year I went back to North America to try to open up the door again, and I thought I had a really good year in Florida, with a long play-off run.

“But for me, coming to Fife, getting lots of playing time, and being with this group of guys, just feels like the right fit for me at this point in my career.

“I feel like I’m at a place where I could really blossom my game, be a leader, and just try to get better.”