Matvei Michkov To Make Significant Change Next Season

John Tortorella is long gone now, but perhaps his influence is living on in Philadelphia Flyers' young Russian Matvei Michkov. According to a report by Sergey Demidov in rg.org, Michkov says he is done trying the lacrosse-style 'Michigan' goal.

One season was enough for me. I didn’t score once with it, so for now, I’ll leave it aside...
I wouldn’t say whether it’s welcome in the NHL or not—that’s not what matters to me. If you score, it’s welcome. If you don’t, it can be seen in different ways.

The 20-year-old phenom made several attempts at the fancy maneuver last season, much to former head coach Tortorella's chagrin. But none of the attempts were successful.

Matvei Michkov was SO close to hitting the lacrosse goal @OTBLaxPod #LetsGoFlyers
pic.twitter.com/QGomfiX7Bo
— Underground Sports Philadelphia (@UndergroundPHI) December 13, 2024

Michkov went for the MICHIGAN HATTY and got stuffed 😭 pic.twitter.com/lO9tcpdI0w
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) February 7, 2025

Now, Michkov will leave any lacrosse goal attempts to his new teammate, Trevor Zegras, who is no stranger to the spectacular-looking play:

MICHIGANS EVERYWHERE! Zegras hits this Michigan by letting it ramp up the toe! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/XRSK7PAavV
— Pavel Barber (@HeyBarber) December 24, 2023

Even without the Michigan attempts, we're pretty certain that Michkov will get by just fine this coming year. He finished his rookie season with 26 goals and 37 assists for 63 points in 80 games. His 26 goals were tops among all NHL freshmen. And those numbers came even while battling some playing time issues at various points from Torts.

New head coach Rick Tocchet is a fresh lease on life for Michkov... with or without Michigan goals.

Putting the Michigan on ice is just part of a significant focus change for the coming season for the Russian—a focus on team success:

“I like the direction the team is going,” Michkov told RG Media. “You can see that everyone wants to make the playoffs and is doing what it takes. I’ve played two seasons in Sochi and now one in Philly, and I still haven’t played a single playoff game. It’s time to change that. I want to grow not just as an individual, but most of all as a team.”