Flyers GM Danny Briere breaks silence on Tocchet-Matvei Michkov drama

It has been a disappointing season for the Philadelphia Flyers. They are currently outside of a playoff position, and some players have not met expectations as well. One of those is Matvei Michkov, who is mired in a sophomore slump. There is also drama between head coach Rick Tocchet and Michkov. The drama seemed to hit a breaking point over the weekend.

Now, the Flyers front office is addressing the situation, with the GM Danny Briere finally breaking his silence, according to Kevin Kurz of The Athletic.

“One thing I know about Matvei is how driven he is. He wants to be the best player he can be. He admitted himself that he wasn’t in the best physical condition coming in. It’s going to be tough to catch up. He’s in better shape than he was when he arrived this season,” Briere told the media.

Michkov has seen his playing time decline, dropping nearly two minutes of ice time per game from last season. This has been amid rumors that he showed up out of shape and also missed treatment sessions.

“Unfortunately, everybody is in better shape than they were in training camp. So it’s really tough for him to catch up with the amount of games that we have, the amount of travel we have. It’s just tough for him to catch up in season. He’s going to do that in the offseason. It was a good lesson for him. And it’s just going to make him a better hockey player coming in next year,” Briere concluded.

Michkov did see his playing time tick back up against the Washington Capitals on Tuesday. He played 15:54 in the game, while also adding an assist in the 4-2 victory over the Caps. Still, he is not on the same pace as his rookie campaign. In 2024-25, he found the back ofthe net 26 times while adding 37 assists, good for 63 points. This season, he has lit the lamp just 13 times while adding 16 helpers. That places him on pace for just 44 points, well behind his pace from 2024-25.

The Flyers are now 25-20-10 on the season, which is good for sixth in the Metropolitan Division, and seven points out of a playoff spot. They will play their final game before the Olympic break on Thursday, hosting the Ottawa Senators.

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