Michkov was on fire most of the evening, not getting a point on the Flyers second goal of the night (and a power play goal at that by Tyson Foerster) but creating some space and time just by being on the ice and the focus of a few Washington players.
The goal also earned Konecny a secondary assist, his 38th of the year and a career high for the winger for assists in a seaon.
I spy with my little eye
The Flyers finally had their two new acquisitions from Calgary at Wells Fargo Center Thursday night. Midway through the second the Flyers telecast showed both Andrei Kuzmenko and Jakob Pelletier chatting in the management suite with Flyers general manager Danny Briere and President of Hockey Operations Keith Jones. The duo were hoping to play against Washington but bad weather in Toronto thrwarted that idea. It’s a good sign that both should be in the lineup against Pittsburgh.
Michkov: man, myth, Mad Russian II
Did I mention Michkov yet? Well the Flyers ended up with four guys rushing up ice on an odd-man rush. The end result was Rodrigo Abols feeding Michkov with a great pass that the Flyers’ rookie made no mistake putting in.
Michkov had 11:55 of ice time in all situations after two periods, trailing only Bobby Brink (12:18) and Tyson Foerster (13:04) among forwards. In the third he was just as stellar, seeing the ice as only high-end talent does for a cross ice feed that didn’t result in a goal but kept the Capitals hemmed in for a good chunk of time. And Michkov’s first attempt at his first NHL hat trick was a “Michigan.” He got quite close but Lindgren foiled the chance.
The goal seemed to open up the floodgates a bit in terms of loose checking as both teams were running and gunning, playing as if it was overtime and three-on-three hockey. Yet both Lindgren and Fedotov answered the call with some great stops. Lindgren also got some help from the post on a Tyson Foerster shot in close.
Had their chances
Philadelphia had a handful of great chances off the rush in the third, perhaps none better than the one Jamie Drysdale’s had on the fly thanks to a great pass by Anthony Richard. Again Lindgren was up to the task. Tyson Foerster and Bobby Brink also had some opportunities to tie things up after giving up two goals in the third.
With the goalie pulled and down one, Michkov’s one-timer went to Foerster but he wasn’t able to get enough of his stick on the puck to tie things up. Holding his head in disbelief, Foerster almost did it. But almost doesn’t count in hockey.
The Flyers had the lead after two, gave up two in the third and spoiled Matvei Michkov’s two-goal effort, losing 4-3 to the Capitals. A rather exciting, entertaining hockey game despite the outcome.
The basics
First period: 17:31 – Matvei Michkov (Travis Sanheim), 19:07 – Alex Ovechkin (Martin Fehervary, Dylan Strome)
Second period: 4:17 – Connor McMichael (Aliaksei Protas, Jeff Chychrun), 7:23 – Tyson Foerster (Emil Andrae, Travis Konecny) (PPG), 11:19 – Matvei Michkov (Rodrigo Abols, Jamie Drysdale)
Third period: 6:23 – Lars Eller (Taylor Raddysh), 12:05 – Jakob Chychrun (John Carlson, Taylor Raddysh)
SOG: 22 (PHI) – 18 (WAS)
Some takeaways
Mental lapses on a known player
Alex Ovechkin is chasing goals. He’s had a few over the years. So you’d think the Flyers might have someone on him most of the night. Unfortunately late in the first Travis Konecny and Noah Cates didn’t get the job done, leaving Ovechkin with plenty of real estate to score on Ivan Fedotov to tie things up 1-1. Adding more salt into the wound was how it seemed preventable with a bit more awareness.
Cates started the second much better. A strong opening shift put the Caps on their heels for a long shift. Then in killing a penalty Cates and Garnet Hathaway created a chance that Washington goalie Charlie Lindgren stopped while being deep in his own net. The penalty had just ended but essentially the Flyers were still down a man as the Flyer never got back in the play before Connor McMichael tipped in an Aliaksei Protas pass.
Konecny was again on the wrong end of another miscue in the third when a clearing attempt failed, leaving Lars Eller with a shot that Fedotov didn’t see.
Fedotov
In what is probably his last start before the 4 Nations Face-Off break, Fedotov’s first save was eight minutes in and a Tom Wilson breakaway. This time the mouth-breathing Wilson decided not to run over the opponent but decided to shoot the puck, with Fedotov making a strong save. Flyers blueliner Cam York got the rebound and got it out of Ovechkin’s way. York was pushed into the net by Ovechkin yet the rush up ice was whistled down. Fedotov also made a good clear on the first Flyers penalty kill, then delivered fine stops on Ovechkin and then Dylan Strome.
Minutes later York drove the net and got a feed from Bobby Brink. York tried to wait out Lindgren but was denied on another scoring chance. Despite having only four shots as the game was 11 minutes old, the shots were generally quality chances.
One of the better saves Fedotov made was in the third period homestretch when a designed bank pass off the backboard was picked up by a speedy Ethen Frank. Frank’s shot could’ve made it 4-3 Washington but Fedotov kept the Flyers on even ground.
Michkov: man, myth, Mad Russian
Matvei Michkov stole the puck early on and made something out of nothing in his opening shift. His shot came while corkscrewing Capitals defenseman Martin Fehervary but Lindgren got a piece of it. His next shift drew a penalty as he had a good chance while falling and hooked by Rasmus Sandin. He looked like he was filled with vim and vigor to start, maybe pissed at Tortorella’s comments that he needed the upcoming two-week break to rest and recuperate. A high-risk series of passes between linemate Sean Couturier and Michkov led to a chance by the captain but Lindgren stopped it.
The fourth time was the charm. Michkov got up ice and behind the Capitals and was in on a breakaway thanks to a great pass by Travis Sanheim. The Mad Russian (looking for his sixth shot attempt late in the first) was deadly this time as he beat Lindgren clean on the glove side for his 15th goal of the year.
Feb 6, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Flyers right wing Matvei Michkov (39) celebrates his goal with center Rodrigo Abols (18) and center Sean Couturier (14) against the Washington Capitals during the first period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
Share this article
Link copied!
Related Articles
Get Geared Up
