Matvei Michkov’s Instagram activity has become part of the Flyers conversation again, and this time it’s tied to his ice time.
A couple of posts pointing out how little he’s been on the ice were liked on the account, which raised the obvious question: was it Michkov himself, or someone else handling the page? The account had been wiped about a month ago, when the Flyers were still winless through their first seven games, and it was set to private with no photos left on it.
That leaves room for the possibility that someone from his camp is running it, the way managers sometimes post on behalf of fighters in MMA. But it’s also entirely possible Michkov is the one doing the liking while otherwise staying quiet on the page.
Either way, the posts hit on a real issue. Michkov leads the Flyers with 10 goals, yet he’s averaging only 15:53 per game.
That’s less than TK, Coots and Tyson Foerster. And while center and wing minutes aren’t always a clean apples-to-apples comparison, the bigger point is hard to miss: among NHL players with at least 10 goals, Michkov has the lowest average ice time in the league.
The goals themselves have come in different forms, including tap-ins and backdoor cleanup chances. But for a Flyers team that struggles this badly to score and doesn’t have much offensive talent to spare, there isn’t much room for nitpicking. At this stage, the team has to take goals however they come.
That’s really the heart of the debate around Michkov. This isn’t some new problem; it’s the oldest coaching question in the book.
How do you handle a gifted attacking player who may not defend well, may not want to defend, and wants the puck more than everyone else? Keyshawn Johnson once put it bluntly: “ just give me the damn ball.
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The same logic shows up in hockey all the time. Every team has to decide whether to force a talented scorer into a strict two-way mold or lean into what he does best.
With Michkov, the Flyers are dealing with one of the few players on the roster who can actually create offense. Trying to make him fit a generic team role would be like asking Lionel Messi to come back and defend in a 4-4-2 low block.
Not that Michkov is the hockey Messi, not even close, but the idea is the same: use the player in a way that amplifies the strengths and covers the flaws.
If everybody on the Flyers simply does things “the right way” and leaves the ice at the proper time, the result is a lineup full of clones. And that kind of sameness is not exactly a winning formula.
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