Matvey Michkov is certainly a polarizing player.
While he may not make headlines for his spectacular play, too often he does so for negative reasons.
His physicality, his defensive shortcomings, his behavior off the ice… In short, although he is very talented, he remains a player who can be quite difficult to handle. trainer.
John Tortorella broke the ice with the Russian when he arrived in the NHL, and now it’s Rick Tocchet’s turn to manage him.
However, Tochet recently admitted to The Athletic that he was too hard on Michkov… which is quite surprising, knowing Tochet.
What could a full season with Porter Marton do for the power play? Will Devner Barki play more center? Who has an advantage in the fight for spots in defense?
This and much more in an exclusive Q&A with Rick Tocchet:
— Kevin Kurz (@KKurzNHL) September 3, 2026
Even though coaches like Tortorella and Tocchet aren’t afraid to speak their minds and may come across as too harsh, at the end of the day they want what’s best for their players.
This is exactly what Tochet said about Michkov in an interview. Essentially, he wants Michkov to feel comfortable on the ice and be able to be creative because that is his strength.
First of all, he regrets that last year he was too harsh when commenting on his fitness for the fifth time.
“I’ve already said it four times. I don’t think I needed to say it a fifth time. As a coach, you learn a lesson. So I take that comment back.” — Rick Tochet
Indeed, by the fifth time it was too much. He probably realized even before that that being in shape was very important in the NHL. It is impossible to be at your best without being in good physical shape.
Of course, there are exceptions like Dustin Byfuglien, but we can all agree that a guy like Michkov needs to be in shape more than Byfuglien does at his position.
In short, Michkov will have to come to training camp in good physical shape if he wants to have a great season and, most likely, defeat his coach.
In a nutshell
– Enjoy the show.
Another HUGE show at #CFMTL and FC Supra.
On the menu this week on IMFC Radio:
– 15th place out of 15 in the East–
Prince: fine and
whining – Alexis Sanchez
shy– Injuries and comebacks–
Amaya and
Losenko – What are we working on in…— Maxime Truman (@MaximeTruman) September 8, 2026
– Worth reading.
Good news.
— Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) September 8, 2026
– EA Sports sold the dream (finally) with new voice lines, but it turned out to be artificial intelligence…
EA Sports used artificial intelligence to create John Buccigross’ voiceover commentary in NHL 27.
He said, “They’re using some AI stuff now. They played something back to me using my voice. It’s like, well, it’s pretty good… but sometimes the AI does things wrong.”pic.twitter.com/d7g2siBPtR
— Mike Straw (@MikeStrawMedia) September 7, 2026