‘If I had to do it again…’: Tortorella Talks Michkov and His Last Benching

Ahead of Thursday’s game against the Washington Capitals, Flyers’ head coach John Tortorella addressed the Matvei Michkov benching against the Islanders on January 30th.

“They (confrontations) will be inevitable, but they’re so productive,” Tortorella said about the confrontation with Michkov.

Tortorella went on to elaborate, sharing as much as he was comfortable with about what those conversations were like.

“The conflict that I’ve had with him is not X’s and O’s. It’s not a mistake. And everybody looks at one mistake… you have to make an assumption; that’s what happens because I don’t give you any information on what really is going on, and I’m not going to because it’s just not right.” said Tortorella.

Tortorella Talks Michkov’s Benching

“Honestly, if I had to do it again, I probably should have played him in the third period,” Tortorella said, addressing Michkov’s benching after his confrontation with the Flyers’ bench boss mid-game.

Michkov did not see any ice time after the Islanders’ first goal of the game. It is worth noting that Michkov’s benching was ill-timed, all things considered. The Flyers were playing from behind the entire game. The Flyers were shut out the game prior, and Michkov scored what was the game’s first goal. It was later wiped for goaltender interference.

The Flyers needed offense, and one of their biggest threats to score was benched.

After the game, Tortorella said this about the benching: You (the media) may not believe it, but it’s for the right reason. We care about him; I care about him… we’re going to do this the right way with the kid because we think he is special. It is my job to do that no matter what happens.” 

It has been a week since Tortorella benched Michkov, and he proved that even coaches can learn from these events, too.

“If I had to do it again, I would have (played Michkov), I should have, could have, would have. I learned too,” Tortorella said. “Emotion is a double-edged sword. You know, it’s a really good thing, but you make mistakes with it too, and I think we both live in that one.”

Michkov This Season

In 53 games this season, Michkov has 14 goals and 20 assists for 34 total points, which is second on the Flyers in total points.

Michkov has gone stale, not just since being benched but since his 10 points in five games in early December. Since December 12th, Michkov has totaled seven points. In that stretch, he has two seven-game pointless streaks and a five-game skid. Five of Michkov’s seven points since December 12th came in a six-game stretch between January 11th and 21st.

With the upcoming Four Nations break, Michkov could use the reset.

“It starts with the mental part of it, and then that goes to the physical part of it. Sometimes, you watch him play right now just to get up and down the ice. It’s just like the weight of the world’s on him,” said Tortorella on Michkov.

There is an upcoming mental and physical refresh because of the break.

“I think he’s tired mentally, and once that clears up, I think he’ll be more free-flowing,” said Tortorella. “Everybody talks about athletes being tired, and they always think it’s physical; more often it’s mental.” 

The Flyers not participating in the Four Nations Face-Off will have a break from February 9th through the 21st.