VOORHEES, N.J. — Early into practice Wednesday, Matvei Michkov scored a goal on a basic rush drill.
The 19-year-old Russian pumped his fist after seeing the puck hit the back of the net. He didn't celebrate in a boastful manner. Instead, he did so in subtle fashion — happy that he did well in something he takes seriously.
Even in practice.
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Under the spotlight or not, the kid loves to score goals. And he has scored some big ones just 23 games into his NHL career. He has three overtime winners, tied with Oilers star Leon Draisaitl for the most in the NHL. He has a shootout winner. And his nine goals and 19 points lead all NHL rookies.
"Good offensive players, that is what they're like, they want to be the guy on the ice," Flyers assistant coach Rocky Thompson said Thursday at morning skate. "But there's a reason why he scores goals in the situation; just watch him in practice. He's not warming up our goalies, he is focusing in on perfecting his execution in those situations.
"So when he's in those situations, he has a higher level of execution than some players who don't necessarily put in that type of focus during practice. He is out there every single day looking to score goals in certain areas. He's practicing that, so it becomes an unconscious thing when he gets in that moment."
The Flyers' coaches have had to work around the language barrier when instructing Michkov on aspects like the defensive side of the puck at 5-on-5. Assistant coach Brad Shaw said they've taught him "more with diagrams and video," making it "much more visual instead of audial." Naturally, there are going to be hiccups. And the Flyers expected that.
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Before the season, head coach John Tortorella said the Flyers didn't want to overload Michkov with information. After sitting the winger for two games in November, the Flyers feel they've seen growth in his overall makeup.
"He's making a concerted effort to try to be better without the puck," Thompson said. "Like Torts had said, we don't want to be in his ear too much because that can be stifling and that can also hurt the positives in his game. It's a patient process with Mich.
"It's hard on him, you've got to put yourself in his shoes, he doesn't understand what you're saying half the time, maybe more than half the time. It's just little pieces at a time so it's not overwhelming. And we've already seen improvement and a concerted part on him, his effort, to be better in those situations. So we're happy with where the progress is going."
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