PHILADELPHIA – Just about all eyes seemed to be on one player, even when he didn’t score for the first 59 minutes of the game.
So when Matvei Michkov did put the puck in the net, even without a goalie standing in the crease to foil the attempt, all heck broke loose at the Wells Fargo Center.
The 19-year-old Russian was all smiles as he headed to the Flyers bench to receive congratulations.
You could say the outcome of the game, a 2-0 Flyers’ win on Thursday night, was somewhat secondary.
The other real bright spot for the Flyers was the play of goaltender Samuel Ersson, who looked in midseason form.
Erik Johnson’s goal at 4:36 of the third period broke a scoreless tie. Michkov picked up an assist on the play.
Michkov scored into the empty net with 1:03 to play after goaltender Marcus Hogberg skated to the bench.
After the game Michkov received justified praise for his overall game, not just the insurance goal.
“He’s an exciting player,” linemate Owen Tippett said. “He thinks the game so well and he’s got a lot of skill. It’s going to be fun going forward.
“When a guy plays with that kind of confidence, he’s only going to get better. It’s nice to play with a guy like that. He can make those type plays because he thinks the game so well.”
While the fans might appear excited, Michkov looks just as enthusiastic.
“Everytime we’re on the bench, he just wants to go out there,” Tippett said. “The excitement is contagious. The guys kind of feed off of it. If you think you’re open, he’s good enough to make that extra play, that extra move.”
Ersson was seeing his first action. From his perspective, Michkov’s performance was an eye-opener.
“He is very confident, you can tell,” Ersson said. “He’s not scared to try things, some unexpected things.”
Even a veteran like Travis Konecny has been impressed with Michkov’s play.
“You can tell he loves the game,” Konecny said. “He wants to score, he wants to be on the offensive side of things. We’ve all been giving him a hard time that he hasn’t scored in any of the games yet so I’m sure he’s excited about that.”
A total of 27 shots by the two teams failed to produce a goal in the first period. Ersson and Hogberg were up to everything thrown their way.
It was more of the same in the second period. Both teams had good scoring chances but couldn’t convert. Ersson was particularly sharp during a New York power play.
Finally, Johnson broke the ice and then Michkov finished the deal. Later, assistant coach Rocky Thompson, substituting for head coach John Tortorella, had nothing but good things to say about the budding celebrity. Including praise about the defensive side of the puck.
“He’s been working really hard, you can tell,” Thompson said. “He’s made a diligent effort. He’s backchecking hard. But you can see his ability to make plays.
“He had opportunity to generate opportunites to help his teammates and opportunities to score himself. Tonight he got a goal and an assist. I thought he did a good job.”
>Glad to be back
The Flyers’ Morgan Frost said it was fun playing back on home ice again, even if it was just a preseason game, after skating the first two games on the road.
“It’s super exciting,” Frost said. “I think for a preseason game, we got a great turnout out there, and it’s always a little weird the first time you come back and and play a game, when you spend so much time here for for so long, and then take some time off, but I think everyone’s excited to be here.”
>Short shots
The Flyers return to action on Saturday when they host the Boston Bruins. . .Flyers top rookie prospects Michkov and Jett Luchanko both saw action on the top two lines. Michkov played right wing on a familiar line with Frost at center and Tippett on the left side. Luchanko centered Konecny and left wing Tyson Foerster. . .Prior to the game, the Flyers presented a video tribute and held a moment of silence to honor brothers Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, the South Jersey hockey-playing brothers who were killed in a bicycle/car accident last month. Johnny was in the midst of a stellar NHL career, most recently with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
