The Philadelphia Flyers have high hopes entering this upcoming season, due in part to their run to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Even with the high expectations heading into this season, all of the attention is on third-year winger Matvei Michkov.
It's well-known that Michkov didn't take a leap forward in his second year that every Flyers fans expected him to. There were the questions about his conditioning, and the facet that he was a healthy scratch in the playoffs. This offseason, Michkov took things seriously, training in Russia and looks to be in incredible shape now that he's reported back to Philadelphia before training camp.
But how much more can Michkov grow his game?
Former Flyers defenseman and captain Chris Pronger spoke about Michkov during an appearance on NBC Sports Philadelphia's Flyers Talk podcast. Pronger mentioned the winger mentioned that he believes there is room for Michkov to become a better player than he's shown.
Matvei Michkov still has another level to reach
"He had his struggles early. ... I think there's a lot left on the bone with respect to his development and getting him to that next level."
The Flyers were hoping that Michkov would take that next step after putting up 26 goals and 37 assists through 80 games as a rookie. But, as we all know, the Flyers didn't see much of the rookie version of Michkov. There were struggles early on in the season, and it appeared that he was in head coach Rick Tocchet's doghouse. But there were signs of optimism.
After the Olympic break, the Flyers were eight points outside of a playoff spot, but when on an incredible run to clinch third place in the Metropolitan Division. Michkov played a pivotal role in that, as he was productive in that final stretch of the season. Through 26 games, Michkov scored seven goals and recorded 15 assists. In fact, one of those goals arrived in their playoff-clinching, 3-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Apr. 13.
But then, Michkov disappeared in the playoffs, recording just one assist and a minus-3 plus/minus rating in eight games. Michkov was also benched for two games.
If Michkov can play at the pace he had when the Flyers returned from the Olympic break and fought for their playoff lives, for the entire upcoming season, it'd be a huge step forward for him.
Michkov’s offseason work is fueling optimism for Year 3
After the Flyers' playoff run ended, Michkov let it be known that he was going to be getting a head start to his offseason training program to ensure he shows up to training camp at his best shape. Through the training videos and clips surfacing online, it looks as though Michkov kept his promise.
Pronger also noticed the social media posts, and said that Flyers fans can expect the best version of Michkov this upcoming season.
"I think you can tell, just by the pictures that I've seen this summer and some of the training videos and some of the things that he has posted," Pronger said. "I think everybody can expect a much improved, very well-prepared Matvei Michkov for his third season and last of his entry-level deal."
Also, as Flyers fans panicked that he had yet to return from Russia in the past week, the Flyers sent out a photo of Michkov participating in workouts at the team facility.
As for the team's plans for Michkov, it sounds as though they are going to put him in a position to succeed. The Athletic's Kevin Kurz mentioned that the Flyers are considering pairing Michkov with center Trevor Zegras, which could be on even strength or on the power play. Putting Michkov alongside one of the Flyers top scorers, both in the regular season and the playoffs, is only going to help him further. Plus, if the two build chemistry, Tocchet could have one of his top lines set for the entirety of the season.
While Michkov has shown he is taking the upcoming season seriously, there simply needs to be results on the ice. Given that the Flyers have expectations to compete for the Stanley Cup this season, Michkov could have a short leash if he's not producing, especially if they need to stack wins.
So far, there appears to be promise surrounding Michkov. Fans could get their first look at the new and improved Michkov during their preseason opener against the Washington Capitals on Sep. 21.
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