The Philadelphia Flyers are doing everything in their power to deny that Matvei Michkov asked for a trade. While no one should take a reporter's word as gospel, I struggle to find a scenario where Kevin Weekes would talk about a player's desire for a fresh start without knowing that it is 100% accurate. If Michkov is on the block, Montreal is a very intriguing destination for some people.
Michkov isn't the second-line center the Canadiens want, but he checks a lot of boxes for the type of player Montreal may be interested in. He would be another scorer in the forward group, and his 10 goals would put him second on the team, which is a testament to how good he has been this season, given the Flyers' struggles.
Michkov is also the trendy pick for a Canadiens destination because of the story it would create, as many fans wanted him at the draft, but they took David Reinbacher instead. They made it right the following year by drafting Ivan Demidov, and Reinbacher is starting to look like he may be an NHLer sooner than expected, but some still aren't happy with the drafting decision.
Do the Canadiens really NEED Matvei Michkov?
Canadiens fans may or may not want to hear this opinion, but I think that acquiring Michkov would be a mistake for Montreal. It's well documented that the left-shot Russian winger isn't most comfortable on the left side, both personally and in terms of production, which means he would need to play right wing to be at his best.
There is a bit of a blockade at that position right now, as Demidov and Cole Caufield are locked in to the top two spots. Playing Michkov with Demidov is exciting on paper, but would that actually fit if both want to play right wing? I can see that causing some problems.
Michkov doesn't exactly have the best mindset, so it isn't like the Canadiens could justify moving him to third-line right wing in his eyes, and for the price it'd cost to acquire him, it wouldn't make much sense for the team either.
That leaves the Russian without a natural fit on Montreal's roster. Nikita Kucherov is a natural right winger, too, but the veteran could move to the left side and figure it out a lot easier than the younger Michkov can. The younger Russian winger might make sense given the Canadiens' current construction, but as a fit and someone who can get you closer to winning a Stanley Cup right now, Kucherov is the clear choice.
The Sheet host, Jeff Marek, has been very vocal about positionless hockey, where the game is so free-flowing now that teams could roll with three wingers on a line and it wouldn't really matter as long as one of them can get good enough at faceoffs. If you adopt that philosophy, maybe Michkov could work out, but it's a risk a team that is already a Stanley Cup contender probably doesn't need to take.
Michkov could come to Montreal, find a home on the left side or at center, grow up a little after some questionable moments in Philadelphia, and lift the Cup alongside Demidov. However, that scenario has a lot of ifs and maybes that Kent Hughes may not want to risk.
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