The Philadelphia Flyers (26.32 years) and San Jose Sharks (27.2 years) are among the NHL’s seven youngest teams. So, it was no surprise to see young talent making an impact when they faced off on Monday. The battle between Matvei Michkov and Macklin Celebrini, both top five in Calder Trophy odds (with Michkov the consensus favorite) largely lived up to the hype. Michkov tallied a goal and an assist but Celebrini was also noticeable and goated Michkov into a penalty at the end of regulation.
The game could have ended with Celebrini scoring the winner with Michkov in the box. Instead, it concluded with Celebrini being stopped by Sam Ersson in the shootout and Michkov dancing around Vitek Vanecek right after to score the winner. Quite the turn of events.
This was always going to be a big night for Michkov. Not only was he facing one of the few teenagers who could hang with him on a hockey rink, but it was his first night back in the Flyers lineup after a two-game stint in the press box.
“I watched the two games. It was good to watch and get some time off and everything,” said Michkov post-game, as translated by Flyers skating coach Slava Kuznetsov. “Plus being in Florida it’s a good time to get the good rest.”
Michkov Responds to Scratching Well
It would only be a good rest if Michkov responded to it with a good game. Fortunately, it didn’t take long for him to make his mark, setting up Travis Konecny for a one-timer that gave the Flyers a 2-0 lead late in the first period. Yes, it did come on the power play, which hasn’t been Michkov’s problem this season. But it was worth noting that the Flyers’ power play was in a 1/19 rut before that goal, so it’s not like the Flyers didn’t need a boost there.
However, Michkov showed real progress in his overall game. The Flyers collected 70.83% of the shot attempts (17-7) and 73.43% of the expected goals (0.66-0.24) with Michkov on the ice. And for those hoping for a more tangible, obvious power play, look no further than Michkov’s second-period breakaway goal. This time, he picked the right time to fly the zone, handled Ryan Poehling’s stretch pass in stride, and slid the puck through Vanecek’s legs to give the Flyers a 3-0 lead.
John Tortorella didn’t heap any praise on Michkov and called him out (as well as Sean Couturier and Owen Tippett) for extending their shifts late in the second period when the Sharks scored two goals to get back in the game. But this was a clear step forward for Michkov. His aforementioned Corsi For (shot attempts) percentage was his highest in any game this season and his expected goals percentage was second highest behind Oct. 18 against the Edmonton Oilers.
Michkov said he felt like he had energy coming off the rest, and while maybe that manifested negatively on that late penalty, he looked good. And while healthy scratching a player as talented as Michkov will always raise eyebrows, 2006 No. 1 pick Erik Johnson pointed out that player development appears to be shifting in the direction of giving young players time off, comparing Michkov’s situation to how the Anaheim Ducks handled Leo Carlsson last season.
It’s not an apples-to-apples situation but it shows that other organizations see the benefits of youngsters getting time off. Michkov was in the press box for different reasons than Carlsson, though, and therefore expectations will be different going forward.
Andrae May Be Here to Stay
The Flyers lost another piece of their blue line before Monday’s game when Jamie Drysdale was placed on injured reserve. Though it’s not expected to be a long-term absence, any time on the shelf for him is a concern after the 22-year-old played just 42 games in the prior two seasons combined.
However, Drysdale’s absence meant an opportunity for someone else. And Emil Andrae, another 22-year-old, took that chance and ran with it. He also picked up an assist on Konecny’s goal, taking Drysdale’s place on the top power-play unit and kickstarting the gorgeous passing play that put the Flyers up 2-0.
But like with Michkov, Andrae made the biggest impact at 5-on-5. He was everywhere, finding himself at the center of numerous A-plus scoring chances as both a playmaker and a shooter. He should have had at least one more point if not for a tap-in miss in the second period by Konecny and easily could have finished with three or four. The timid version of Andrae that looked overwhelmed in a four-game trial last season looks like a different player than the current iteration. His confidence with the puck was evident all night.
Like Michkov, Tortorella declined to say more than a sentence about Andrae’s game. “Played good. Played some good minutes against the top line,” was all he had to offer. However, actions speak louder than words. Tortorella put Andrae on the top pair next to Travis Sanheim and pushed him almost five minutes past his previous career high (set on Saturday, just the second time he’d cleared 19 minutes at the NHL level).
“I try to trust my instincts, trying to shoot when I have to, and trying to pass when I have to,” Andrae said. “So I still think that I can shoot a lot more, getting pucks through to the net. I think I did a good, pretty good job today.”
He rewarded Tortorella with a 76.34% xGF, second to all Flyers defensemen behind Egor Zamula. And as Tortorella noted, San Jose’s top two centers Celebrini (8:45) and Mikael Granlund (6:25) saw a lot of Andrae, while Zamula faced both for less than three minutes each.
The Flyers have two injured defensemen right now — Drysdale and Cam York. Kevin Kurz of The Athletic reported Drysdale won’t miss more than two weeks and Jackie Spiegel of The Philadelphia Inquirer reported York practiced Monday morning in a regular jersey (as opposed to non-contact). And while Andrae is the lone member of the team’s blue line who is waiver-exempt, it’s hard to imagine the Flyers sending him down.
If Andrae Stays, Who Goes?
That’s the harder question to answer. Right now, the Flyers only have 13 forwards, so there’s not much maneuvering they can do there. Zamula is last on the defense depth chart, but his relationship with Michkov as a fellow Russian may be too important.
There are, of course, two other Russians on the roster: Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov. It’s rare for a team to carry three goaltenders for an extended period. The path of least resistance would be to demote Kolosov, who doesn’t require waivers. However, if not for injuries to Ersson and Kolosov that kept both out of the lineup on Thursday, Fedotov would likely still be regarded as unplayable at the NHL level.
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If Fedotov had stayed unproven, the Flyers could’ve approached him about a two-week conditioning stint in the American Hockey League. They wouldn’t have to put him through waivers to do so (although it’s not like anyone is claiming him at a $3.25 million cap hit). The appealing thing for Fedotov is that he wouldn’t be in the AHL for long. Kolosov has played okay in his brief career, although his numbers (.863 save percentage, minus-1.2 goals saved above expected per Moneypuck) don’t paint a pretty picture.
Typically, the tie goes against the 22-year-old in this situation, especially since the Flyers have said they want to develop him in the AHL. But Kolosov wasn’t exactly on board with that plan before the season and sending him back to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms could risk ruffling feathers.
Advanced statistics via Natural Stat Trick
