By Russ Cohen
I believe the Philadelphia Flyers made the right pick when Matvei Michkov was on the draft board when it was their turn. The young Russian was taken seventh overall and he was thrilled.
I expect Michkov to be a point-per-game player in the KHL. But that doesn’t mean he’s ready for the NHL. There’s time. Time is on the Flyers’ side, and Michkov should develop in the KHL first.
This season, according to InStat, his expected goals are 85.7% around the net. That is transferrable for sure. His shots are almost even from the left dot and right dot. Looks like his wrist shot is his best weapon from the left side.
It’s an interesting mix of goalies that he’s scored on, including Alexei Kolosov, who the Flyers took with the 78th overall pick in 2021. He’s scored four points against former Vegas Golden Knights goalie, Dylan Ferguson.
Ten of his first 26 points were in the third period. He is at 0.38 goals per game down from 0.49 last season. His assists are at 0.52, up from 0.38 last season.
When he comes to the NHL, I can see him having a similar impact as Kirill Kaprizov if he continues on this path.
