On Sunday, the Philadelphia Flyers landscape changed.
Matvei Michkov and SKA St. Petersburg separated. His contract, set to terminate after the 2025-2026 KHL season, ended two seasons early. Now, Michkov will be on the Flyers next season.
Philadelphia is walking on clouds. Adding a high-end, generational talent elevates and accelerates the rebuild in the big picture. It also curates a ripple effect in the short term. How will the lineup look with Michkov in the mix?
Lately, I did a couple of deeper dives into the possible outcomes regarding Cam Atkinson. Would he remain on the Flyers roster, melting off the cap at the end of next season? Will he be bought out, giving him a clean slate to sign with any NHL franchise? Are there trade partners Atkinson and Philadelphia agree to work with due to his modified no-trade clause? The news regarding Michkov could put more pressure on these narratives, too.
How does Michkov affect Atkinson? Does his arrival put a priority on the Flyers to handle Atkinson?
Potential Flyers Lineup: Michkov
Michkov will likely begin the season in the top six.
He will remain steadfast in Philadelphia. The Flyers will not put Michkov in a position to not compete in the NHL. John Tortorella has to approach Michkov differently from this season with Morgan Frost and Bobby Brink. If not, Michkov could return to the KHL, per earlier discussions with Alexander Medvedev:
“Unlike the situation with Ivan Fedotov, we are in contact with Philadelphia. The Flyers’ management does not even hide their desire for Matvei to come to them and try his hand at the NHL. But, if you go earlier, then you need to have a provision in the contract that if Philadelphia is tempted to send him to the AHL, he will have the right to return.” – Alexander Medvedev; 4/30/2024
Of course, there is no temptation to send Michkov to the AHL. That much is clear. Tortorella will push Michkov, who wants to win badly in Philadelphia:
“Sometimes, in my mind, you get to the future, moving away a couple of years ago from now, when ‘The Mad Russian’ comes over here. You start bringing in some free agents when the time is right with some more offensive skill. I want that to fall into place when they come in. I want them to stay with this style.” – John Tortorella; 11/30/2023
So, what does a potential Flyers lineup look like with Michkov next season? The forward group could look like this on opening night:
Tippett-Couturier-Konecny
Foerster-Frost-Michkov
Farabee-Laughton-Brink
Cates-Poehling-Hathaway
Many will want Michkov to thrust onto the top line, but developmental processes are critical. However, it is not farfetched to acknowledge that Michkov will eventually be on the top line if his development moves as expected. But, the one ripple Michkov already brings is the exemption of Atkinson. Atkinson made sense to hold on to if Michkov never leaped the KHL to the NHL next season. Essentially, it is a certainty that Atkinson is the odd man out.
Ripple Effect: Atkinson
The buzzing conversations regarding Atkinson revolve around the possibility of a buyout or trade. In a contract season, a rigid scene suggests Atkinson as a healthy scratch. He will make $5.875mil, and Daniel Brière recently expressed the plan to qualify the restricted free agents in Philadelphia, including Brink.
A buyout is the easiest way to remove Atkinson from the Flyers, but it comes with an extra season of dead cap on the books. Keith Jones drove the point home about clearing cap space and will not want to carry money for an extended period when they could prepare to welcome weapons as the rebuild accelerates with Michkov.
To avoid a buyout and move Atkinson, Philadelphia would need trade partners. Water cooled on the alleged interest from the San Jose Sharks. He was not jumping at the opportunity to join the Sharks, either. A place that makes sense would be the Columbus Blue Jackets, but there is no smoke on that front. It is common knowledge that Atkinson would be keen to return to his former team, where he spent the rest of his NHL career, and possibly connect with Johnny Gaudreau.
Of the three options, holding onto Atkinson is still sensible, even with the arrival of Michkov.
Brink was up-and-down with Tortorella last season, and Atkinson could be the veteran presence for the forwards like Marc Staal was with the defense this season. Atkinson could be the extra forward, occasionally in the lineup, and when the season is over, no money carries over.
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