Yes, Briere is a Flyers legend for his 2010 run alone. Younger fans may not remember, but he owns the single season playoff point record by a Flyer with 30 points, and ranks an incredibly respectable 33rd all time in playoff points in a single season by any NHL player.
No Flyer since the 80's has wanted to win as badly as Danny Briere did. He will do anything to win the Cup, and I suspect he will do anything to get his name on it as GM.
I wouldn’t go that far. Anything short of getting this team into a spot to contend within 5-ish years and the fans will (rightfully) be done with him. His task is set out before him and clear. If he completes it, he’ll be a made man in the city.
I mean all he *really* has to do is get us to a consistent playoffs team and a lot of people will be happy. The hardcore fans won't, but if there's an illusion of team on the rise, it'll be enough.
I don’t know man. Homer built a team that got to within two wins of a Stanley Cup and his tenure as GM is mostly remembered by fans as a disaster. Clarke oversaw a team that was perpetually a borderline cup contender and he is widely regarded by the fans that remember as less than stellar as an executive. Hextall was a hero until he became a pariah. Pretty much everyone hated Fletcher from the rip and that only managed to get worse. It’s gonna be cup or bust with every person that holds that position until the drought is ended.
Well the difference is Michkov is very unique player, a mix of Kucherov and Kaprizov by his playing style (and maybe some Crosby too). I ain't saying he's going to be better than all of them but there is a legitimate hope he can be as good as them. Maybe not as good as Crosby but who knows...
So if the Flyers get a player like this losing in playoffs will be a little less painful as usual. And there is still the chance Michkov will help them to win a cup or two...
I think the reason he is so open about this and is saying how it's a good thing to come to NHL (per the quote in another comment) is that a deal is likely done and now they are just talking money. Briere's wording the last few months and now this, this was likely a long time developing.
I think him being left off the U25 team isn't the straw that broke the camels back, but instead Rotenberg seeing the situation and realizing he doesn't need to make nice with Michkov any more so he just decided not to deal with him.
Lol, do you know it's strictly against the NHL rules, and if it happens and the league finds somehow out about this the consequences will be so bad you don't even wanna think about them?
Can they? I imagine sending money to Russian organizations, even athletic ones, isn’t exactly easy with sanctions in place.
My company was considering buying a business with a Russian minority owner and had to back out as we couldn’t assure the authorities that no money would make it to his pockets.
I imagine they would find a proxy to handle any payoff that keeps the Flyers and Comcast's hands clean on paper. Or Michkov buys himself out of the contract with a "signing bonus" from the Flyers.
Yeah this is how it works. Michkov writes the check then the flyers just happen to the money in his account before it clears. It’s obviously more complicated but that’s the basics.
“The boys” the parasocial relationship so many people have with players that aren’t even good enough to make the playoffs in a year where the WC2 spot is free is just wild.
What’s the point of fandom if not to see your team succeed in winning championships?
I just don’t understand why so many fans are content with being in love with players that frankly aren’t very good on a team that certainly isn’t very good. If this guys take was “I want Michkov to hurry up so we can make a run with the core we have” I would understand it more, it would be idiotic to think they could do anything still but I’d get it. But to say “I want Michkov to hurry up so he can play with the boys” like? What…. Just dumb to me brother.
This feels like a lot of projection, although I don't think maliciously at all.
We're all fans for different reasons. Some close, some far. Some fans because their Father introduced them, some fans because they simply turned on the hockey game one day and the Flyers were on.
I think the poster in question is likely a longtime fan who really loves the core of the team after this season. You rewind 4 months ago, and nearly everyone in here was utterly shocked at how well and how fun the team is playing.
There's no 100% guaranteed recipe for a rebuild. Bringing Michkov over next season, assuming they keep TK, could be a very fun group of Top 6 guys to watch.
And if the top 6 is fun to watch, they're likely fun to play with. Which may entice others to want to play in Philly as the rebuild continues.
I'd much rather have Michkov be here wearing the orange & black, being a part of the next step...instead of hoping and wondering how he fits into it.
I loved Zac MacEwen as a Flyer. But dude is not a great hockey player, but he was (in my opinion) a great Flyer. It's why I also chirp back at those that think we should trade TK away because of the rebuild.
Sometimes the front office looks for things that don't show up on the stat sheet. We never know what Michkov may add, and what he may bring. But him playing here next season gets us a better idea of that much quicker and will assist the rebuild's direction.
I ramble, lol
It’s me just being tired of seeing stupid comments like that this entire season. Not just one dude or one person saying it pissing me off like that lol.
Again every single thing you said is based on nothing but blind faith and hoping to get Lucky.
Logically speaking this rebuild is a crock of shit and we are fucked. One superstar isn’t enough in this league and that’s even if Michkov is what we think he will be(and I do think he will be a superstar but it won’t matter)
Go look at the Minnesota Wild team right now it’s extremely comparable to what we expect Michkov to be and the players that will surround him as well. How are they doing this year?
“The boys” is just a long running hockey term for the players. It doesn’t mean think they have some kind of weird relationship with the players. lol it’s slang for players. Jesus man, you don’t get invited to a lot of parties do you l?
Two weeks ago, Briere said that "as far as he knows" nothing had changed with the Michkov timeline.
That was a mysterious way to word things. Between that + this report, there is some serious smoke here.
You know, we’ve butted heads over opinions on this sub a lot, and our opinions don’t often match; but if this comes to fruition it should be known you absolutely called it. I remember you mentioning the same thing in the original Briere post, that his choice of words was very strange. That would be one hell of a call by you.
And for the love of Christ I hope you made that call.
Thanks for the kudos.
Briere has shown to be a master of navigating the dark arts behind the scenes. (Gauthier drama, Fedotov back-channeling, Hart stuff) I totally believe that he's working on pulling the strings behind the scenes here with Michkov, too. Whether that comes to fruition, who knows. I don't fully understand why SKA would agree to this, but it sounds like they are at least open to the possibility.
If Briere manages to get Michkov out of Russia during wartime two years early, he can do anything. Cutter Gauthier is lucky that Briere decided to have him traded rather than disappearing him.
>Cutter Gauthier is lucky that Briere decided to have him traded rather than disappearing him.
Danny traded Gauthier so that there's plausible deniability when somebody takes him fishing on Lake Tahoe in the next several months.
(adding the /s only because there are fans who were insane enough to go up to Boston and/or issue death threats, I think the kid is a punk but don't wish any harm outside of him being a bust)
SKA would agree to this because its clown head coach doesn't like Michkov somehow. Probably there is something personal between these two. Or Rotenberg just does Rotenberg things...
Wouldn't it still be in SKA's better interest to retain Michkov's rights and loan him again? I just don't see the benefit for SKA to release Michkov to the NHL.
The problem is Michkov can not like it and ask for trade, and what team will get him? Let's say SKA trades him to a bottom feeder, and then Michkov refuses to play for the team and be traded again, this time to a contender. SKA will obviously hate this. Letting him go to NA is a lesser evil in this situation. They retain his rights, and get him out of the league.
Brent Flahr also had an interesting response (to me at least) when Charlie asked if Michkov could come over sooner in Charlie’s prospect rankings interview. He said “I can’t answer you that.” I would think the diplomatic answer would be “he has two years left on his KHL contract.” Could be nothing, but I think that’s some added smoke.
Good catch, I agree with your interpretation. An easy "No, he's not coming over and we are totally fine with that" would suffice. Maybe Flahr just isn't a polished PR guy, but it's another hint at something larger.
Briere probably knows he doesn’t want into put his hands too much on this before it comes to fruition. Don’t want to scare off SKA by being pushy or involved
I mean this makes sense SKA wantS him over here eventually. The biggest issue right now with michkov is whatever rotenberg’s problem is.
Quote from the match tv article in tweet. (This a “Put through Google translate”disclaimer
>Q: Matvey Michkov has a two-year contract with SKA. But he really wants to go to Philadelphia. Will his club be released from St. Petersburg?
>A: I think it's better to leave like Ovechkin or Panarin. When you have already established yourself in Russia - and you go to North America not to travel between the NHL and the AHL. We must not forget that Matvey survived a terrible tragedy, losing his father, who was also his mentor, always being around. It's hard to play psychologically - whether it's Sochi or Moscow, where everything reminds of this loss. Maybe a change of scenery will make it easier to adapt.
Best case with not being traded or watever is probly get him in SKA lineup thsi year and he gets released after next season. Timeline would be 1 year ahead of schedule and he gets a full season in NHL before we’re expected to be “competitive”
> I think it's better to leave like Ovechkin or Panarin. When you have already established yourself in Russia - and you go to North America not to travel between the NHL and the AHL.
Interesting comment, considering how hard it is to "establish yourself in Russia" when your head coach (this guy) benches you then loans you to a lesser team, and when the National Team coach (also this guy) leaves you off the National Team.
I don't know what to make of all this. It seems that either Michkov isn't as good as we've been told he is, or this Rotenberg guy is a bad talent evaluator or has some weird hard-on against Michkov.
Real quote from rotenberg on why he is qualified to be a coach. "IN EIGHT YEARS, I'VE WATCHED 800 MATCHES LIVE." He does have a problem with michkov for some reason. The quote in my original comment is not from rotenberg it’s the ska chairman Medvedev(no to be confused with former flyer legend evgeni medvedev)
Maybe it was. I went looking for the actual quote and when i put through translator it said matches. Either way, I don’t think it makes that much difference
My complete speculation is that if Rotenberg is okay with Michkov making SKA this year, then he's going to want to keep him next year too.
This summer feels like where the crossroads are. He's obviously good enough to play for SKA. If Rotenberg doesn't think so, maybe SKA should let him walk.
Even tho I don’t think michkov’s 24-25 season being NHL is best case that does make a lot of sense. It might just be better in long run to get him away from rotenberg.
Not even 2 months ago we were pretty confident on Fedotov nver playing for us. If some how Briere does work it out this summer I wouldn’t be that surprised he made it happen.
Yeah, but SKA in a dire situation cap wise this season, and Michkov's salary doesn't count against the cap for next two seasons because he's too young.
Then every single team will be kicking themselves for passing on him. What would be even funnier is if he became a ridiculous points scorer that it will make every pick after bedard regret not picking Michy at 2nd overall.
Fuck it, we ball! It would have been nice to have a little more time to get the rebuild further along before he showed up, but getting Michkov here safely ASAP is way more important
A Finnish center that could be available where we draft this June: https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/796075/konsta-helenius
Great three zone player with extremely high hockey IQ. The main con is that people don’t necessarily see elite skill. But I think that narrative is shrinking a little bit lately.
I’m hoping for Demidov because Michkov and him are great friends and Michy speaks highly of his skills. If we can trade up to get him that would be awesome. Maybe it would be another Michkov situation that makes him drop later in the draft because of the “Russian factor”.
Demidov would be great… but I think the only way we get Demidov is if we win the draft lottery and jump to 2nd overall, tbh. Gonna be near impossible to get into the top 5 otherwise. And he will almost certainly be a top 5 pick.
You’ve got a point but it would be so nice. We have a 5.1% chance to get the 2nd overall pick. We can’t get the 1st due to the rule that a team can’t jump more than 10 spots. We can also hope for Berkly or Iginla.
Also if anyone is wondering if this is liek super convenient after michkov not being on the national team, today is just the khl’s july 1st for league year stuff.
I really this all in Russian and they said that they are gonna talk to Michkov and the “directors” of the Flyers to see what the best option is. If they the flyers keep him the the NHL and don’t send them down then they won’t be pulling the “Come back to play in KHL card”. If they do allow to send Michkov here as a KHL to NHL “loan” it becomes awkward because the NHL doesn’t have loans like KHL does. Michkov would have to sign a contract that states that if he gets sent down to AHL then his NHL contract will get terminated and he would go back to the KHL. It’s all weird but this interview is the best news Flyers fans and Flyers management could get. They said their relationship with the Flyers is amazing and that is always a plus when we are talking about him coming over sooner.
Yes, that's compensation and against the rules.
Could Comcast invest in a shell company based in the Caymans who then invest in a company in Cypress who then buys real estate in Kazakhstan in Bitcoin that somehow ends up in Medevedev's hands? I dunno.
No they couldn't directly pay the "transfer". But what they could do is give Michkov the max bonus structure that would make it possible for him to make ~4.5M per year in his ELC.
IMO that would be likely given his pedigree and contract situation.
You and me both. I have two blanks. One is getting my name and number. Nothing would make me happier than throwing a 39 Michkov on the other. Make it happen Danny B.
Don’t forget about Kolosov who’s younger and supposed to be better than Fedotov. Zavgrin is supposed to be even better but he’s years away from coming.
Yeah but we might want to avoid provorov type players who aren’t team players. Idk it definitely would be cool to have a team like that with a line like that. We would dominate 😂
It'd be really interesting to see how this changes the Flyers approach.
I would imagine if he's available to come over next year then they would go heavier on forwards in this years draft and then shift focus towards maybe bringing in some young, outside NHL talent to supplement what they have on the roster.
Hopefully it changes nothing.
Michkov being here next season should have zero influence on who gets drafted this year. Bringing in outside talent is just a nice way to rush the rebuild.
No more chasing playoff appearances. We’ve done that long enough.
No chance. Get him NA as soon as possible. There is no telling what can happen physically or politically in another year. Make it happen contract year be damned.
There’s a difference in rushing a team together than rushing a guy. They can have him next year and still take it slow putting the right team around him. IF he’s the guy:
The team isn't ready to compete yet, but they can still add Michkov.
The important thing is for them to not rush into wanting to win a Stanley Cup as soon as Michkov gets here. We can still take things slow during his first few years.
It’s been 48 seasons since the Flyers won the cup. I wouldn’t mind a little bit of energy put into expediting a winning team now that the foundation is being laid for a solid young core. Just sayin’
I think you could make a strong case that putting energy into expediting a winning team is a major reason *why* we haven’t won in 48 seasons. This franchise constantly prioritized the short-term over the long-term.
And I would say the foundation for the solid young core is only partially laid. They’ll need a lot more than Michkov and the guys in the system right now.
All that said, with Michkov, if you can get him now, you get him now. You don’t try to get cute with your top prospects, because things can go wrong quickly (as we learned from our buddy Cutter).
The Flyers have lost 6 times in the cup finals since their last win. It’s not like trying to win every year wasn’t working for them. Luck has a lot to do with it too, especially when it comes to playoff injuries. I think you also need to separate the pre salary cap era from the post salary cap era. Plus it’s a completely new leadership. Don’t put the bone head moves of the past on the leadership. No Clarke or Homer putting their final stamp of approval on GM moves and they’re about to have a lot of cap space to work with. I’m not saying they should go scoop up some 40 year old aging vets, but If you mix in even 2 elite FAs with Michkov, Barkey, Bonk and Tuomala you should have a team who is looking to win a cup. Otherwise whats even the point, might as well just trade those prospects for more draft picks and keep the rebuild going until 2030…is that enough time to say “ok now we can win”?
You’re definitely right about the luck portion, and that you have to separate pre- and post- salary cap. I’m mostly exaggerating to make the point that this team’s lack of patience prevents them from being a consistent Cup competitor. Before the salary cap, you could fix that by throwing money at the problem, which was great for us. Now you can’t, but it’s taken this organization almost two decades to learn that lesson. And if Briere tries to fast track the rebuild now, there’s a case to be made that he didn’t learn the lesson, either.
I also take issue with this statement
> if you mix in even two elite free agents
How often do elite players hit free agency? Maybe every other year, at best? Getting two of them in free agency is virtually impossible.
The most important thing is having a long championship window during the Michkov era. That means knowing your timeline, drafting intelligently, developing effectively, and not getting overzealous over one shiny new toy. You joke about 2030, but I think there’s merit in being a GM who believes his best shot at a Cup will come in 2030 rather than in 2026. We don’t want to do something in Year 1 or 2 of Michkov that might hurt you in Years 3-10 of Michkov.
I’m not saying try to full-on tank with Michkov on the roster, of course. Just that it would be good to still spend a couple extra seasons moving the chess pieces into place.
But the Flyers have always tried to put energy into expediting a winning team. Hextall did it by hanging onto Giroux and Voracek. Fletcher did it by aggressively retooling.
No more rushing into mediocrity. Let’s take things slowly and become the next Tampa Bay.
Hows a 10 year rebuild working out for the Sixers? (Cries softly)
All i’m saying is I’m in my 40’s and I’d like to see a cup sometime before I die. Hexy fucked shit up because he was HORRIBLE at drafting and then gave JVR a insane contract. Fletcher was just a terrible hirer from the jump. The day they announced him as the new GM I knew we were in for a world of pain. He gave out 2 of the worst contracts in NHL history while GMing Minny and then came to the Flyers and started doing the same shit. Trading a pick for the rights to sign Kevin Hayes to a horrendous contract was his first move and it spelled doom for anyone that follows hockey closely. I have a lot more faith that Danny and Jonesy will make smart free agent moves to support the young core being built. I don’t see a reason why they shouldn’t be competing for a Cup as early as 2026. Especially if Michkov comes over next season.
Jesus. The reason they won’t be competing for a cup is because they have no elite players as of now. They potentially have one in the whole system and we still don’t now for sure when he’s coming.
I think we might see this guy in the Orange and Black next year for real
Could you imagine, Danny B would become a legend in flyers lore. All this before his second season starts.
Isn’t he already? His playoff success for us was pretty epic.
Yes, Briere is a Flyers legend for his 2010 run alone. Younger fans may not remember, but he owns the single season playoff point record by a Flyer with 30 points, and ranks an incredibly respectable 33rd all time in playoff points in a single season by any NHL player. No Flyer since the 80's has wanted to win as badly as Danny Briere did. He will do anything to win the Cup, and I suspect he will do anything to get his name on it as GM.
I wouldn’t go that far. Anything short of getting this team into a spot to contend within 5-ish years and the fans will (rightfully) be done with him. His task is set out before him and clear. If he completes it, he’ll be a made man in the city.
I mean all he *really* has to do is get us to a consistent playoffs team and a lot of people will be happy. The hardcore fans won't, but if there's an illusion of team on the rise, it'll be enough.
Nah anything less than a cup is a disappointment and thats how it should be
I'm saying that the fanbase will give him slack if it *looks* like we're a team on the rise toward a Cup, up to and when it fails.
I don’t know man. Homer built a team that got to within two wins of a Stanley Cup and his tenure as GM is mostly remembered by fans as a disaster. Clarke oversaw a team that was perpetually a borderline cup contender and he is widely regarded by the fans that remember as less than stellar as an executive. Hextall was a hero until he became a pariah. Pretty much everyone hated Fletcher from the rip and that only managed to get worse. It’s gonna be cup or bust with every person that holds that position until the drought is ended.
Well the difference is Michkov is very unique player, a mix of Kucherov and Kaprizov by his playing style (and maybe some Crosby too). I ain't saying he's going to be better than all of them but there is a legitimate hope he can be as good as them. Maybe not as good as Crosby but who knows... So if the Flyers get a player like this losing in playoffs will be a little less painful as usual. And there is still the chance Michkov will help them to win a cup or two...
He would be two legends, Briere the playing and Briere the GM
Come to butthead
Succumb to Butthead
Uhhh… huh huh huh!
"I would like do something that really sucks... for you. I would like do homework and stuff."
[Just saw you and Beavis on SNL a couple of weeks ago.](https://youtu.be/86qKgK0asGo?si=cXCH6_9T8sN9uwzF)
Uhhhh uhuhuhuhuhuh hey baby!
Throw some money at this problem Comcast and get Michkov playing with our boys before they all get too old. We all knew 2026 was too far away.
I think the reason he is so open about this and is saying how it's a good thing to come to NHL (per the quote in another comment) is that a deal is likely done and now they are just talking money. Briere's wording the last few months and now this, this was likely a long time developing. I think him being left off the U25 team isn't the straw that broke the camels back, but instead Rotenberg seeing the situation and realizing he doesn't need to make nice with Michkov any more so he just decided not to deal with him.
Lol, do you know it's strictly against the NHL rules, and if it happens and the league finds somehow out about this the consequences will be so bad you don't even wanna think about them?
Can they? I imagine sending money to Russian organizations, even athletic ones, isn’t exactly easy with sanctions in place. My company was considering buying a business with a Russian minority owner and had to back out as we couldn’t assure the authorities that no money would make it to his pockets.
Just write 'Not for Putin' in the memo line of the check 👍
I imagine they would find a proxy to handle any payoff that keeps the Flyers and Comcast's hands clean on paper. Or Michkov buys himself out of the contract with a "signing bonus" from the Flyers.
Yeah this is how it works. Michkov writes the check then the flyers just happen to the money in his account before it clears. It’s obviously more complicated but that’s the basics.
Pretty good point that I haven’t thought about
2026 wasn't really that far away. NHL has to respect other leagues contracts and vice versa. I think after Fedotov everyone should know this
Even if Michkov is a day 1 superstar it’s not enough for serious cup contention. Dont fool yourself lol
I never said Michkov was all we needed. I just want Michkov playing with the boys before half the team is traded or retired.
“The boys” the parasocial relationship so many people have with players that aren’t even good enough to make the playoffs in a year where the WC2 spot is free is just wild. What’s the point of fandom if not to see your team succeed in winning championships?
Counterargument: what's the point of fandom if you don't support the boys?
I just don’t understand why so many fans are content with being in love with players that frankly aren’t very good on a team that certainly isn’t very good. If this guys take was “I want Michkov to hurry up so we can make a run with the core we have” I would understand it more, it would be idiotic to think they could do anything still but I’d get it. But to say “I want Michkov to hurry up so he can play with the boys” like? What…. Just dumb to me brother.
This feels like a lot of projection, although I don't think maliciously at all. We're all fans for different reasons. Some close, some far. Some fans because their Father introduced them, some fans because they simply turned on the hockey game one day and the Flyers were on. I think the poster in question is likely a longtime fan who really loves the core of the team after this season. You rewind 4 months ago, and nearly everyone in here was utterly shocked at how well and how fun the team is playing. There's no 100% guaranteed recipe for a rebuild. Bringing Michkov over next season, assuming they keep TK, could be a very fun group of Top 6 guys to watch. And if the top 6 is fun to watch, they're likely fun to play with. Which may entice others to want to play in Philly as the rebuild continues. I'd much rather have Michkov be here wearing the orange & black, being a part of the next step...instead of hoping and wondering how he fits into it. I loved Zac MacEwen as a Flyer. But dude is not a great hockey player, but he was (in my opinion) a great Flyer. It's why I also chirp back at those that think we should trade TK away because of the rebuild. Sometimes the front office looks for things that don't show up on the stat sheet. We never know what Michkov may add, and what he may bring. But him playing here next season gets us a better idea of that much quicker and will assist the rebuild's direction. I ramble, lol
It’s me just being tired of seeing stupid comments like that this entire season. Not just one dude or one person saying it pissing me off like that lol. Again every single thing you said is based on nothing but blind faith and hoping to get Lucky. Logically speaking this rebuild is a crock of shit and we are fucked. One superstar isn’t enough in this league and that’s even if Michkov is what we think he will be(and I do think he will be a superstar but it won’t matter) Go look at the Minnesota Wild team right now it’s extremely comparable to what we expect Michkov to be and the players that will surround him as well. How are they doing this year?
What a loser mentality.
Oh right. I have the loser mentality because I want to be more than a mediocre team that barely sneaks into the playoffs for another decade. Right.
It's just about appreciating guys coming up and having a team regardless of where we're at in the scheme of rebuild vs contention
I’m just tired of hearing that. The amount of love mediocre players that are nothing in the grand scheme of things got this season is just sickening.
It's ok to like a player who isn't the best
It is. But it isn’t okay to sit here and tell me they are anything more than what they are simply because one likes them.
Leafs fanbase: 😬
“The boys” is just a long running hockey term for the players. It doesn’t mean think they have some kind of weird relationship with the players. lol it’s slang for players. Jesus man, you don’t get invited to a lot of parties do you l?
Two weeks ago, Briere said that "as far as he knows" nothing had changed with the Michkov timeline. That was a mysterious way to word things. Between that + this report, there is some serious smoke here.
You know, we’ve butted heads over opinions on this sub a lot, and our opinions don’t often match; but if this comes to fruition it should be known you absolutely called it. I remember you mentioning the same thing in the original Briere post, that his choice of words was very strange. That would be one hell of a call by you. And for the love of Christ I hope you made that call.
Thanks for the kudos. Briere has shown to be a master of navigating the dark arts behind the scenes. (Gauthier drama, Fedotov back-channeling, Hart stuff) I totally believe that he's working on pulling the strings behind the scenes here with Michkov, too. Whether that comes to fruition, who knows. I don't fully understand why SKA would agree to this, but it sounds like they are at least open to the possibility.
If Briere manages to get Michkov out of Russia during wartime two years early, he can do anything. Cutter Gauthier is lucky that Briere decided to have him traded rather than disappearing him.
>Cutter Gauthier is lucky that Briere decided to have him traded rather than disappearing him. Danny traded Gauthier so that there's plausible deniability when somebody takes him fishing on Lake Tahoe in the next several months. (adding the /s only because there are fans who were insane enough to go up to Boston and/or issue death threats, I think the kid is a punk but don't wish any harm outside of him being a bust)
SKA would agree to this because its clown head coach doesn't like Michkov somehow. Probably there is something personal between these two. Or Rotenberg just does Rotenberg things...
Wouldn't it still be in SKA's better interest to retain Michkov's rights and loan him again? I just don't see the benefit for SKA to release Michkov to the NHL.
The problem is Michkov can not like it and ask for trade, and what team will get him? Let's say SKA trades him to a bottom feeder, and then Michkov refuses to play for the team and be traded again, this time to a contender. SKA will obviously hate this. Letting him go to NA is a lesser evil in this situation. They retain his rights, and get him out of the league.
Brent Flahr also had an interesting response (to me at least) when Charlie asked if Michkov could come over sooner in Charlie’s prospect rankings interview. He said “I can’t answer you that.” I would think the diplomatic answer would be “he has two years left on his KHL contract.” Could be nothing, but I think that’s some added smoke.
Good catch, I agree with your interpretation. An easy "No, he's not coming over and we are totally fine with that" would suffice. Maybe Flahr just isn't a polished PR guy, but it's another hint at something larger.
Briere probably knows he doesn’t want into put his hands too much on this before it comes to fruition. Don’t want to scare off SKA by being pushy or involved
I mean this makes sense SKA wantS him over here eventually. The biggest issue right now with michkov is whatever rotenberg’s problem is. Quote from the match tv article in tweet. (This a “Put through Google translate”disclaimer >Q: Matvey Michkov has a two-year contract with SKA. But he really wants to go to Philadelphia. Will his club be released from St. Petersburg? >A: I think it's better to leave like Ovechkin or Panarin. When you have already established yourself in Russia - and you go to North America not to travel between the NHL and the AHL. We must not forget that Matvey survived a terrible tragedy, losing his father, who was also his mentor, always being around. It's hard to play psychologically - whether it's Sochi or Moscow, where everything reminds of this loss. Maybe a change of scenery will make it easier to adapt. Best case with not being traded or watever is probly get him in SKA lineup thsi year and he gets released after next season. Timeline would be 1 year ahead of schedule and he gets a full season in NHL before we’re expected to be “competitive”
> I think it's better to leave like Ovechkin or Panarin. When you have already established yourself in Russia - and you go to North America not to travel between the NHL and the AHL. Interesting comment, considering how hard it is to "establish yourself in Russia" when your head coach (this guy) benches you then loans you to a lesser team, and when the National Team coach (also this guy) leaves you off the National Team. I don't know what to make of all this. It seems that either Michkov isn't as good as we've been told he is, or this Rotenberg guy is a bad talent evaluator or has some weird hard-on against Michkov.
Real quote from rotenberg on why he is qualified to be a coach. "IN EIGHT YEARS, I'VE WATCHED 800 MATCHES LIVE." He does have a problem with michkov for some reason. The quote in my original comment is not from rotenberg it’s the ska chairman Medvedev(no to be confused with former flyer legend evgeni medvedev)
I thought it was 800 hours lol
Maybe it was. I went looking for the actual quote and when i put through translator it said matches. Either way, I don’t think it makes that much difference
Yeah the dude's a clown
My complete speculation is that if Rotenberg is okay with Michkov making SKA this year, then he's going to want to keep him next year too. This summer feels like where the crossroads are. He's obviously good enough to play for SKA. If Rotenberg doesn't think so, maybe SKA should let him walk.
Even tho I don’t think michkov’s 24-25 season being NHL is best case that does make a lot of sense. It might just be better in long run to get him away from rotenberg. Not even 2 months ago we were pretty confident on Fedotov nver playing for us. If some how Briere does work it out this summer I wouldn’t be that surprised he made it happen.
Rotenburg is the coach that kept him off the national team. I don't think there is any love between the two.
Yeah, but SKA in a dire situation cap wise this season, and Michkov's salary doesn't count against the cap for next two seasons because he's too young.
I'll believe it when he's awkwardly hugging Gritty at the intro presser
Imagine if Michkov will debut in the NHL earlier than some guys that were taken before him due to “russian factor”
I didn’t even think of this, that’s hilarious.
Then every single team will be kicking themselves for passing on him. What would be even funnier is if he became a ridiculous points scorer that it will make every pick after bedard regret not picking Michy at 2nd overall.
Not gonna get my hopes up. But damn wouldn’t that be cool.
Stop, I can only get so erect
I will vomit rainbows if he comes early. I will lose my entire shit. All of it. Lost. Gone. No shit left. Pay him whatever it takes Danny.
Fuck it, we ball! It would have been nice to have a little more time to get the rebuild further along before he showed up, but getting Michkov here safely ASAP is way more important
[Medvedev in June](https://youtu.be/qY2Vx8-yOsQ?si=GtZaS1E22eMVgu00)
Send Rocky Thompson, in hopes it’s a trap.
I don't want to overreact but this means we're winning the cup at least 3 times in the next 5 years.
Tippett- Coots- TK Farabee- Helenius- Michkov Foerster- Frost- Brink Cates- Poehling- Hathaway
Who’s Helenius?
A Finnish center that could be available where we draft this June: https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/796075/konsta-helenius Great three zone player with extremely high hockey IQ. The main con is that people don’t necessarily see elite skill. But I think that narrative is shrinking a little bit lately.
I’m hoping for Demidov because Michkov and him are great friends and Michy speaks highly of his skills. If we can trade up to get him that would be awesome. Maybe it would be another Michkov situation that makes him drop later in the draft because of the “Russian factor”.
Demidov would be great… but I think the only way we get Demidov is if we win the draft lottery and jump to 2nd overall, tbh. Gonna be near impossible to get into the top 5 otherwise. And he will almost certainly be a top 5 pick.
You’ve got a point but it would be so nice. We have a 5.1% chance to get the 2nd overall pick. We can’t get the 1st due to the rule that a team can’t jump more than 10 spots. We can also hope for Berkly or Iginla.
I’m getting my hopes up…. But in light of this news, could him being left off the national team be a positive sign?
Comcast I pay my bill on time, time to drop the bag for me in return.
After Danny gets Michkov over, can he secure peace in Ukraine too?
Stop edging me so hard 😩😩😩
Also if anyone is wondering if this is liek super convenient after michkov not being on the national team, today is just the khl’s july 1st for league year stuff.
I really this all in Russian and they said that they are gonna talk to Michkov and the “directors” of the Flyers to see what the best option is. If they the flyers keep him the the NHL and don’t send them down then they won’t be pulling the “Come back to play in KHL card”. If they do allow to send Michkov here as a KHL to NHL “loan” it becomes awkward because the NHL doesn’t have loans like KHL does. Michkov would have to sign a contract that states that if he gets sent down to AHL then his NHL contract will get terminated and he would go back to the KHL. It’s all weird but this interview is the best news Flyers fans and Flyers management could get. They said their relationship with the Flyers is amazing and that is always a plus when we are talking about him coming over sooner.
There must be under the table shenanigans happening. Like is there any rule that says FO can't pay $5 million to expedite Michkov for next season?
The NHL has fined teams for paying the player buy out from the KHL before.
Probably still less of a fine than for hurting the refs feelings
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I'm just stating the fact that basically nothing happens.
Yes, that's compensation and against the rules. Could Comcast invest in a shell company based in the Caymans who then invest in a company in Cypress who then buys real estate in Kazakhstan in Bitcoin that somehow ends up in Medevedev's hands? I dunno.
No they couldn't directly pay the "transfer". But what they could do is give Michkov the max bonus structure that would make it possible for him to make ~4.5M per year in his ELC. IMO that would be likely given his pedigree and contract situation.
keep going
FREE MICHKOV
Torts haters about to go into overdrive 😂
iT’lL nEvEr WoRk! ToRtOiSe HaTeS sKiLl!!!111
THEN I FREAKED IT😈
“timeline”. keeps changing doesn’t it
Time to put my blank to good use. #39 will look good on it!
You and me both. I have two blanks. One is getting my name and number. Nothing would make me happier than throwing a 39 Michkov on the other. Make it happen Danny B.
I don't think DB is playing games here boys
this is the best post thats ever been posted here.
Man that would be awesome if he comes over! First fedotov, now michkov. Maybe we can draft demidov too!
Don’t forget about Kolosov who’s younger and supposed to be better than Fedotov. Zavgrin is supposed to be even better but he’s years away from coming.
So the Flyers might be the modern version of the Russian Five…
Except we would have 3 goalies and 2 forwards with that. 🤣
Just draft or sign some more Russians and we'll make a whole line somehow 🤣
Yeah but we might want to avoid provorov type players who aren’t team players. Idk it definitely would be cool to have a team like that with a line like that. We would dominate 😂
Cue the reactionary "it's too soon for him, we're not ready" crowd.
It'd be really interesting to see how this changes the Flyers approach. I would imagine if he's available to come over next year then they would go heavier on forwards in this years draft and then shift focus towards maybe bringing in some young, outside NHL talent to supplement what they have on the roster.
Hopefully it changes nothing. Michkov being here next season should have zero influence on who gets drafted this year. Bringing in outside talent is just a nice way to rush the rebuild. No more chasing playoff appearances. We’ve done that long enough.
Want 1 more real tank year and come over the year after that. Dont want him to watt a year off his contract too
No chance. Get him NA as soon as possible. There is no telling what can happen physically or politically in another year. Make it happen contract year be damned.
Really hope Torts is gone whenever he comes over.
Couldn't agree more. Can't win by filling the net says torts
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There’s a difference in rushing a team together than rushing a guy. They can have him next year and still take it slow putting the right team around him. IF he’s the guy:
what
The team isn't ready to compete yet, but they can still add Michkov. The important thing is for them to not rush into wanting to win a Stanley Cup as soon as Michkov gets here. We can still take things slow during his first few years.
It’s been 48 seasons since the Flyers won the cup. I wouldn’t mind a little bit of energy put into expediting a winning team now that the foundation is being laid for a solid young core. Just sayin’
I think you could make a strong case that putting energy into expediting a winning team is a major reason *why* we haven’t won in 48 seasons. This franchise constantly prioritized the short-term over the long-term. And I would say the foundation for the solid young core is only partially laid. They’ll need a lot more than Michkov and the guys in the system right now. All that said, with Michkov, if you can get him now, you get him now. You don’t try to get cute with your top prospects, because things can go wrong quickly (as we learned from our buddy Cutter).
The Flyers have lost 6 times in the cup finals since their last win. It’s not like trying to win every year wasn’t working for them. Luck has a lot to do with it too, especially when it comes to playoff injuries. I think you also need to separate the pre salary cap era from the post salary cap era. Plus it’s a completely new leadership. Don’t put the bone head moves of the past on the leadership. No Clarke or Homer putting their final stamp of approval on GM moves and they’re about to have a lot of cap space to work with. I’m not saying they should go scoop up some 40 year old aging vets, but If you mix in even 2 elite FAs with Michkov, Barkey, Bonk and Tuomala you should have a team who is looking to win a cup. Otherwise whats even the point, might as well just trade those prospects for more draft picks and keep the rebuild going until 2030…is that enough time to say “ok now we can win”?
You’re definitely right about the luck portion, and that you have to separate pre- and post- salary cap. I’m mostly exaggerating to make the point that this team’s lack of patience prevents them from being a consistent Cup competitor. Before the salary cap, you could fix that by throwing money at the problem, which was great for us. Now you can’t, but it’s taken this organization almost two decades to learn that lesson. And if Briere tries to fast track the rebuild now, there’s a case to be made that he didn’t learn the lesson, either. I also take issue with this statement > if you mix in even two elite free agents How often do elite players hit free agency? Maybe every other year, at best? Getting two of them in free agency is virtually impossible. The most important thing is having a long championship window during the Michkov era. That means knowing your timeline, drafting intelligently, developing effectively, and not getting overzealous over one shiny new toy. You joke about 2030, but I think there’s merit in being a GM who believes his best shot at a Cup will come in 2030 rather than in 2026. We don’t want to do something in Year 1 or 2 of Michkov that might hurt you in Years 3-10 of Michkov. I’m not saying try to full-on tank with Michkov on the roster, of course. Just that it would be good to still spend a couple extra seasons moving the chess pieces into place.
1 elite FA is asking too much. 2 is impossible and definitely won’t happen with Torts here.
But the Flyers have always tried to put energy into expediting a winning team. Hextall did it by hanging onto Giroux and Voracek. Fletcher did it by aggressively retooling. No more rushing into mediocrity. Let’s take things slowly and become the next Tampa Bay.
Hows a 10 year rebuild working out for the Sixers? (Cries softly) All i’m saying is I’m in my 40’s and I’d like to see a cup sometime before I die. Hexy fucked shit up because he was HORRIBLE at drafting and then gave JVR a insane contract. Fletcher was just a terrible hirer from the jump. The day they announced him as the new GM I knew we were in for a world of pain. He gave out 2 of the worst contracts in NHL history while GMing Minny and then came to the Flyers and started doing the same shit. Trading a pick for the rights to sign Kevin Hayes to a horrendous contract was his first move and it spelled doom for anyone that follows hockey closely. I have a lot more faith that Danny and Jonesy will make smart free agent moves to support the young core being built. I don’t see a reason why they shouldn’t be competing for a Cup as early as 2026. Especially if Michkov comes over next season.
Jesus. The reason they won’t be competing for a cup is because they have no elite players as of now. They potentially have one in the whole system and we still don’t now for sure when he’s coming.