Matvei Michkov is another big step closer to playing for the Flyers.
On Monday, the organization announced that his three-year entry-level contract has been signed.
The 19-year old phenom will be coming over, though after a few more details and travel logistics – which will keep him from attending development camp this week – get ironed out, GM Danny Brière said after the NHL Draft this past weekend.
But on opening night of the 2024-25 NHL season, Michkov will be a Philadelphia Flyer.
"We're excited to have Matvei under contract and we look forward to him joining our team at training camp in September," Brière said in a statement Monday. "We've kept a close eye on his development since the draft and to be able to add a player like Matvei, who brings a high-level of talent, skill and game-breaking abilities, he will be a key piece to our future."
As a highly-talented right winger out of Russia with the potential to become one of the NHL's next goal-scoring stars, Michkov was taken seventh overall by the Flyers at the draft in Nashville last summer, though with the understanding that he wouldn't be available to the team for quite some time – a point that concerned other clubs, along with Russia's ongoing geopolitical climate, and led to him sliding down the board.
He was already locked into play the next three seasons pro for SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL, but Brière and his front office had already started lining the Flyers up for a long-term rebuild. They could wait.
And over the course of the next year – as the Flyers made a surprise but stalled-out playoff push, and as Michkov was producing highlight after highlight after a loan down to HC Sochi – they did.
But then the season ended, and rumblings started going around that the wait for Michkov might not end up as long as initially expected.
MORE: Projecting the Flyers' 2024-25 lineup with Matvei Michkov on the roster
SKA St. Petersburg brass did interviews over in Russia where they openly talked about how Michkov could get to the NHL and the Flyers sooner rather than later, Michkov's social media channels became curiously more populated with photos and videos of himself in Flyers gear, and back here in Philadelphia, Brière and other Flyers execs held their cards on the matter as close to the vest as they could.
Then, last Sunday, word broke that Michkov's representation had negotiated an out from his contract with SKA St. Petersburg and would be leaving Russia to go join the Flyers in North America.
"For us, it doesn't change," Brière said during his pre-draft media availability back on June 20, while holding back a now incredibly telling smile. "If they tell us he's coming on September 1, we'll jump on it. The mindset for us is still we're going into next season without him. He has two years left on his contract. If something changes from today until then, we'll certainly be happy. But I don't have much news on that. We read what's going on and we hope for the best."
They got the best. Michkov is on his way.
"I’m extremely happy to officially become a part of the Flyers family," Michkov said in a statement. "Being in the NHL has been a dream for me since childhood. I would like to say a huge thank you to the Flyers management for their trust. I will do everything possible to meet their expectations. I can't wait to join my teammates and start preparing for the new season together, and I would especially like to greet our fans.
"We have the same dream to win the Stanley Cup and I promise that I will do my best to help this team and make that possible."
MORE: Matvei Michkov's early arrival is a sign that the Flyers are on the path to contention
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