Philadelphia Flyers prospect Matvei Michkov has been loaned from SKA Saint Petersburg to HK Sochi, SKA head coach Roman Rotenberg confirmed on Monday.
The news was first reported by Hockey News Hub, a top source of KHL and Russian hockey news, on X (formerly Twitter).
Michkov had appeared in just one of SKA’s first four contests this season, skating for only 6:12 in a 4-3 loss on the road against Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod on September 6th.
Rotenberg had healthy scratched Michkov in the other three games after a strong preseason, leaving many wondering why he wasn’t playing.
Michkov will now be returning to a Sochi club that he enjoyed success with last season in his draft year. He recorded 9 goals and 11 assists for 20 points in 27 games with Sochi in 2022-23 before being selected by the Flyers with the 7th overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. Michkov also scored 10 goals and 4 assists in 12 games with SKA-Neva Saint Petersburg of the VHL, Russia’s second-tier league.
Michkov had previously expressed positive feelings on potentially returning to Sochi before his father’s death, but afterwards showed reluctance to go back as he said everything there reminded him of his father.
Hopefully Michkov is in a better state of mind and ready to return to Sochi, but he should earn plenty of ice time with the team and keep developing into a superstar player.
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