Michael Bunting (born September 17, 1995) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a left winger for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Bunting was selected by the Arizona Coyotes, 117th overall, in the 2014 NHL entry draft. He has also played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes, Pittsburgh Penguins, Nashville Predators, and Dallas Stars.
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Playing career
Junior
Bunting played midget hockey with the Don Mills Flyers in the Greater Toronto Hockey League. Despite not playing in AAA hockey, the then general manager of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)'s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, Kyle Dubas, spotted him while scouting another overage player in the league. The Greyhounds selected him 160th overall in the 2013 OHL Priority Selection, after Bunting had been passed over in the previous two drafts. Playing as a rookie with the Greyhounds in 2013–14, Bunting produced 42 points in 48 games. During the 2014–15 season, Bunting led the Greyhounds with 37 goals in 57 games and 14 points in 14 playoff games.
Professional
The Arizona Coyotes made Bunting their fourth-round pick, 117th overall, in the 2014 NHL entry draft. He signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Coyotes on July 23, 2015. Bunting made the jump to the Coyotes' professional ranks in the 2015–16 season with the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League (AHL). The Coyotes briefly assigned him to the ECHL's Rapid City Rush early in the season where he scored his first professional goal, before returning him to Springfield. He finished the season with 11 goals and 25 points with the Falcons. The following season the Coyotes transferred their AHL affiliate to the Tucson Roadrunners. In the 2017–18 season with Tucson, Bunting scored 23 goals and 43 points, tied for first on the team in goals and third in points.
Bunting became a restricted free agent after the expiry of his entry-level contract. He signed a one-year, two-way deal to stay with the Coyotes on July 14, 2018. While playing with the Roadrunners in the 2018–19 season, Bunting made his 200th AHL appearance on October 13, 2018, in a game against the Bakersfield Condors. The Coyotes recalled Bunting to the NHL for the first time on December 7, 2018. At the time, he ranked second on the Roadrunners with 18 points in 20 games. Bunting scored his first NHL goal in his debut, beating Boston Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask in the second period of a 4–3 Coyotes loss on December 11, 2018. He was returned to Tucson on December 17 after appearing in four games. He was recalled again on January 9, 2019, February 6 and February 17, bouncing between the AHL and NHL. He only appeared in one more NHL game that season. Bunting was named to the 2019 AHL All-Star Classic in January 2019. On March 14, he became the first member of the Roadrunners to reach 100 points with the team.
Bunting spent the entire 2019–20 season with the Roadrunners. He opened the 2020–21 season again in the AHL and was named the AHL player of the week for ending on February 14, 2021. Bunting returned to the Coyotes' lineup on March 31, 2021, and spent the rest of the 2020–21 season in the NHL. He registered a goal and an assist in his season debut, a 9–3 Coyotes loss to the Colorado Avalanche, before scoring his first NHL hat-trick against the Los Angeles Kings on April 5, 2021. He played the first fourteen games of his career away from home, setting an NHL record. In his first home game in Phoenix on April 17, Bunting scored a goal. Despite playing just 21 games with the Coyotes in 2020–21, Bunting ultimately tied with Nick Schmaltz for sixth on the team with 10 goals.
As a group 6 free agent after breaking out with the Coyotes, Bunting was signed to a two-year, $1.9 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs on July 28, 2021. He left the Coyotes franchise being the Roadrunners' all-time leader in games played, goals, assists, points, and penalty minutes. Bunting spent most of the season as the left winger on the team's top line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. On January 29, 2022, Bunting became the first player to score a hat-trick the same day his hometown was featured on Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada. In his first year with the Maple Leafs, Bunting was named as a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy for the league's best rookie. Although he would not ultimately win the award, Bunting was voted to the NHL All-Rookie Team.
International play
Team Canada general manager, Roberto Luongo, invited Bunting to participate at the 2021 IIHF World Championship following the 2020–21 season, giving him his first opportunity to represent his home country on an international stage. Team Canada reached the gold medal game, defeating Finland for the title.
Following the end of the 2023–24 NHL season, with the Penguins not qualifying for the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, Bunting rejoined the senior national team for the 2024 IIHF World Championship.
Personal life
Bunting was born in Scarborough, a suburb of Toronto, to his parents Andy, a civil servant for the City of Toronto, and Lynda, a bookkeeper at Shoppers Drug Mart. Andy and Lynda divorced early and Michael was primarily raised by his mother, a breast cancer survivor. He has an older brother, Christopher.