While the Flyers continue to spiral down the standings of the Metropolitan Division and the Eastern Conference, tension continues to brew within the organization. A point of contention all season long has been Matvei Michkov reportedly showing up to camp out of shape and Rick Tocchet continuously cutting his ice time, citing the former
Five months into the season, and this is still being brought up. Michkov is averaging 14:32 of ice time this season, which is only two minutes below his average from last season. Not a big deal, right? But you have to look deeper to see the problem. In the Flyers' most recent game, Michkov skated a season-low 10:21, his lowest in over a year. Only two forwards skated less: Garnet Hathaway and Nicolas Deslauriers.
Same thing in the game against Boston, though Hathaway skated one more second than Michkov. His ice time has fluctuated in recent weeks, ranging from 17 minutes to as low as 10 the other day. What is happening game-to-game that is affecting his time so much?
Michkov, Tocchet drama may need a Briere-sized solution
It's not just Philadelphia that is hearing about this situation, either. It's gotten bigger than that, and that isn't a good thing. Elliotte Friedman addressed it on the most recent episode of 32 Thoughts and offered his own solution.
"If I was running the Philadelphia Flyers, what I would do, because Briere is the calmest, he’s not going to let his emotions get control of him. I would just say that he’s calling a press conference and he's clearing the air.
“It says, ‘We’re putting this all out here. This is what happened.’ You know, there’s talk about Michkov not showing up in shape, and now there’s also talk about Rick Tocchet discussed the possibility of Michkov being late for treatment. If I was Briere, I go out and say, “Okay, these were the issues. It’s over. Today is day one of a new day."
Looking at it as an outsider, that may not be the best thing to do. It's hard to say that this should be kept in-house when things have already been made so public. But why would anyone in the organization, let alone Danny Briere, want to come out and speak publicly about all of this? It not only puts validity to things, but it also undermines your coach and says that he is not able to handle things on his own.
And even if that may be the case, that's when you should handle things quietly. You keep things within the organization because speaking aloud only fuels the fire. Now, maybe the Flyers are past the point where things can be kept quiet. That scenario holds more weight after Tocchet spoke with PHLY at the Flyers carnival.
When asked by Bill Matz about Michkov's ice time, Tocchet rolled out the same reasons that he had about Michkov showing up out of shape and that you can't just play your way into it. He also mentioned the ways they are trying to develop him and threw out an interesting nugget about not being late for treatments and eating right. Was it intended as a shot at Michkov? It's hard to say for sure, though many believe it was.
Keith Jones was also interviewed by PHLY and was asked by Kelly Hinkle about his thoughts on how the organization is balancing development versus winning games. Jones noted that it's important for them to remind the coaching staff to play their young players so they can improve and get better. An interesting point to bring up.
So is that where Briere has to draw the line and stop this? Tocchet and Jones' comments may not have been directly related to each other, but it sparks conversation about a potential disconnect between the two sides. If you have to keep reminding your coach to play some of your most important players, something isn't sticking.
“[Michkov] is too important, and you have to finish this season on an upswing. I can imagine the Flyers as an organization aren't happy with some of the commentary on the weekend. I think generally you like to keep that stuff in-house. That’s why I think Briere is the best option to come out and say, “Okay, sometimes a relationship has to hit rock bottom before it can get better...So this is rock bottom."
With two games remaining before the Olympic break, a solution may not become readily available. But one may need to come sooner rather than later.