Philadelphia Flyers finally get some good news about their top prospects development

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Josh Tupper
September 11, 2023 (9:05 PM)

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Matvei Michkov, who was one of the top prospects selected in last year's NHL draft is finally changing teams. As if today, Michkov is no longer a member of SKA St. Petersburg, the team that holds his current KHL right.

His coach Roman Rotenberg announced Michkov's move earlier today.

"Matvei Michkov will continue the season in Sochi on loan. I think this is the right decision - Matvei has his whole career ahead of him, he now needs to play a lot with men, to toughen up. In Sochi he will have such an opportunity. We talked a lot with Matvei and came to a mutual decision that this is the best option for his career. Michkov is a player of the first or second line, first or second powerplay. We do not want to keep Matvei in the reserves, we wish him maximum progress, we will closely monitor his play and at the first opportunity we will be glad to see him in St. Petersburg. Roman Rotenberg, Sport24.ru"

Michkov was selected with the 6th overall pick by the Philadelphia Flyers earlier this summer. He likely would have been selected higher, but there was a lot of uncertainty surrounding his development. That uncertainty was confirmed when Michkov was made a healthy scratch for several of the opening games of the season for SKA.

Unlike the AHL, the KHL is not considered a development league, and young players are often scratched if there are better options on the team. SKA has a roster built to compete for the Gagarin Cup. At this moment, Sochi does not.

Michkov was also loaned to Sochi last season, where he played 27 games, putting up 9 goals and 20 points as a 17-year-old.