It's been a slow start for Matvei Michkov. After a rookie season that saw him challenge Flyers' rookie records, it was assumed that he would take another step forward in his sophomore campaign. And while it's only been two games, Michkov has had a noticeably slow start.
He has no points and has only recorded two shots on net, both coming in the season-opening game against Florida. And the biggest point of contention amongst the fan base has been Michkov's ice time. He skated just under 15 minutes (14:54) against the Panthers. That time dipped to 13:27 against the Hurricanes. He also didn't take a shift in overtime against Carolina.
But a point to note is that the Flyers have taken 10 penalties in their first two games. And with a near 90% kill rate, that's nearly 20 minutes of ice time. Considering Michkov doesn't play on the PK, he's losing a lot of ice time already. He has spent 23 seconds on the kill, and that's likely coming as the penalty is ending.
The Flyers have also had five power plays. Michkov is third on the team in total ice time on the power play. So he's getting his time there. Spending that much time using special units is going to affect everyone's ice time. But it's been more glaring with Michkov.
"We've had five power plays, so the game's 50 minutes now. Against Carolina, four or five penalties again, which we've gotta clean up. So all of a sudden, he's getting 15 minutes. If we don't have penalties, he's probably getting 17. So I think everyone is making an issue of it." Rick Tocchet said ahead of the Flyers' home opener.
Putting that aside, it's still evident that Michkov is not playing to his full capacity. He looks a step slower and just hasn't been playing at the level most expect him to be. It hasn't been unusual for Michkov to start slowly, though. It happened at the start of last season.
It's something that happened to him in the KHL as well. So there's a chance that it's just shaking the rust off at the start of a new season. But there could also be another explanation, one that would make everything make more sense.
"He dealt with something this summer, something with an ankle I didn't even know about. It limited some of his training, so he's a little bit behind the eight ball when it comes to that. But it's something we're gonna correct. But I think he got a little bit behind the eight ball this summer coming into camp."
An ankle injury of any kind can certainly hamper a player's skating and make it harder to get up to speed. According to NHL Edge data, Michkov has a maximum skating burst of 20.69 miles thus far, not far off from his maximum speed from last season (21.91). The majority of his higher speeds came at least a month or two into the season, backing up the claim that he simply starts slow at the beginning of the season.
Michkov hasn't been a player who shows off a high burst of speed, either. He has typically been in that 18-20 miles per hour range. So while his slower speed may be more noticeable, he hasn't been one of the faster skaters in the NHL early in his career.
"He's healthy, it wasn't a major thing. It was just something, I think, that affected some of his training. We know we've gotta work with him. That's the best way to explain it."
It's too early to make definitive statements about ice time and whatnot. But it also isn't something that is out of the ordinary, either. If things continue through a month or so of the season, then there's time to worry about it.
Time will show if Michkov's slow start is more of the usual and if his ankle injury had something to do with it. Regardless, the Flyers need him as a vital part of their offense.