Flyers Prospects Matvei Michkov, Alexei Kolosov Duel in KHL

In the first leg of a back-to-back against each other, Alexei Kolosov’s Dinamo Minsk narrowly defeated Matvei Michkov’s HK Sochi. Michkov scored against Kolosov in the clash of the Philadelphia Flyers prospects, but ultimately Sochi lost to Minsk, 2-1.

Late in the second period, Sochi won a draw at the left circle, and Michkov promptly drifted to the right circle to create space for himself. Despite the pass landing in his skates, the 2023 No. 7 overall pick quickly recovered and whipped a shot over Kolosov’s blocker to open the scoring. Minnesota Wild prospect Marat Khusnutdinov and Artur Tyanulin were credited with assists on the goal.

IT'S MICHKOV TIME ‼️
🚨 Matvei Michkov #LetsGoFlyers
🍏 Marat Khusnutdinov #mnwild
1-0 Sochi #KHL pic.twitter.com/6fAGlaeAFi

— Hockey News Hub (@HockeyNewsHub) November 9, 2023

Sam Anas tied the game on a penalty shot minutes later, bringing Kolosov’s side level at 1-1. Former NHLer Alexander Volkov scored the game’s third and final goal, securing the 2-1 victory for Minsk.

The Flyers’ brass will be happy to see Kolosov earn this win; the 21-year-old had lost his previous three starts. In addition, Kolosov has managed a save percentage north of .900 just twice in his last eight games dating back to Oct. 13. He does, however, have three shutouts to his name this KHL season. Overall, the future Flyer is now up to an 8-7-0 record, a .911 save percentage, and a 2.25 GAA along with those shutouts.

Having played the first leg of the back-to-back, Kolosov would not face Michkov again in the second leg. Instead, it became Michkov’s opportunity to show he was the top dog. Unfortunately, the results were much of the same.

The Philadelphia Flyers would love to see Michkov take over games like these, but the 18-year-old had to settle for an assist in the 6-2 second leg loss. Michkov did have a goal in the first game and an assist in the second, but in total, Sochi lost the two games 8-3 on aggregate. In addition, Sochi are one of three teams in the KHL to have allowed 100 or more goals this season. Their 73 goals scored places them below most teams atop their respective divisions.

Indeed, the Flyers would have loved to see Michkov play with a better supporting cast. That was the original idea when he was still with SKA St. Petersburg, but head coach Roman Rotenberg had other plans. In general, the Flyers will be happy to see that their prized prospect is a KHL All-Star thanks to his 10 goals, 10 assists, and 20 points in 22 games played.

For more Flyers news and up-to-date coverage, visit Philly Hockey Now and like our Facebook page.
Follow us on 𝕏:
@PhillyHockeyNow, @ByJonBailey, @BroadStreetBull