This Guy Gets It: Flyers Prospect Matvei Michkov Arrives In Town Wearing Phillies Hat

Matvei Michkov was widely considered to be the steal of the 2023 NHL Draft, with the Philadelphia Flyers snagging the highly-prized prospect with the No. 7 pick.

One of the reasons Michkov slipped as far as he did was that, at the time, he had a multi-year deal with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL, and it was thought that any team that selected him would have to wait at least three years before he was done with his KHL commitments and would be available to an NHL team.

Yeah, tell that to Danny Briere.

The Flyers GM made MIchkov his first selection as the Broad Street Bullies GM, and much like he did with another player stuck in a sticky Russian situation — netminder Ivan Fedotov — and worked another deal by getting St. Petersburg to terminate its deal with the 19-year-old, freeing him up to come to the US and begin his NHL career.

Michkov arrived in Philadelphia on Tuesday, and already I think this dude is going to become an instant fan-favorite in Philly.

Sure, a big part of that will be finding his game quickly and slotting in nicely to the system that head coach John Tortorella is putting in place (which is sometimes easier said than done even for high-end talents; ask the Sedin twins or Patrick Laine about that), but he already knows his audience.

Michkov made his grand entrance in the City of Brotherly Love rocking a Phillies hat while getting an escort from President of Hockey Operations Keith Jones and Briere, who even carried a batch of twigs for the new guy.

What an entrance, and years ahead of schedule.

Hopefully, Philly fans don't put too much pressure on Michkov from the jump, because there could be growing pains, but the skill is absolutely there. He appeared in one game with SKA last season before they loaned him to HC Sochi, and it was there that he absolutely popped off with 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 47 games, even earning him an All-Star nod.

Daniel Briere has been honest about the team potentially taking a step back this season after over-performing in 2023-24, but Michkov is a massive piece of the team's rebuild for the years ahead.