Right now in the KHL Michkov struggles with getting free of defensive coverage because of how poor his team is, how simple it is to just shadow him/limit his options offensively/dominate possession against Sochi, which results in completely neutering his team/shuts him down.
And that situation, combined with Michkov's inexperience at the senior level, russian-style coaching philosophies (veteran-heavy), and Michkov's own personal flaws as a prospect playing in a very high-level league, leads to him not having great offensive options to choose from offensively and thus to taking what's available to him; a lot of useless shots from the perimeter.
As a prospect, Michkov has flaws. It's undeniably true. And the somewhat recent "souring" on him of certain pro or amateur scouts (Will Scouching comes to mind first but there are others) has "some" grounds given his showing and sometimes lack of creativity in favor of pure sniping at Sochi, nevermind the production.
Except that those concerns are in my opinion way overblown.
In my view, aside from a general lack of defensive ability/acumen, a lack of size/strength, some cherry-picking offensively, a lack of truly elite skating ability that would alleviate concerns over his stature, and a bit of an entitled/bratty attitude on the ice at times, the flaws that Michkov exhibits are very easily fixable and there is not a lot of risk involved with him as far as being a good producer in the NHL goes (though becoming a "great" producer is something else entirely and will require ++ work ethic/dedication/abnegation).
To be sure, Michkov needs to get stronger, improve his balance, stick position, technique and angling of opponents when battling along the boards, and he needs to learn to make more incisive/quicker decisions with the puck/gaining confidence against pros. But those are some easy/quick adjustments to make, which most prospects end up making as they round-out their game.
And if Michkov just does his due diligences as far as practicing skating, watching videos and putting in the work in the gym go, just keeps building on his frankly jaw-dropping skillset/hockey IQ in the offensive zone, on the half-wall on the PP and as a conduit for transition, then he'll be set for a at least a top-6 role at the NHL level. With his talent that's the bare minimum level he should realistically reach if he makes those adjustments.
And I think he's dynamic-enough offensively to potentially become a franchise-altering type of player ala Panarin/Kaprizov, possibly even of the HHOF-bound type like Ovechkin/Malkin/Kucherov if he hits his absolute ceiling, which could happen but is FAR from the likeliest outcome let us be clear.
For one, Michkov's shooting (motion, range, off-foot shooting, release, wrist shot, slap shot, one-timer, everything really) is absolutely elite, even by NHL standards. But his trip in Sochi and paltry minutes played with SKA have wrongfully given some people the impression that Michkov is some kind of pure sniper, one-dimensional finisher, which isn't true at all.
He is one of the best half-wall players I've ever seen since Backstrom on the powerplay as a prospect with the way he dissects defenses, how much of a virtuoso he is with the touch/accuracy/timing of his passes, his manipulation of defending sticks with fakes. Seriously, Michkov's creativity and puck distribution at the MHL/VHL level are actually just as impressive as his scoring prowess despite what his stats would indicate at a glance. And he was often the primary puck carrier/playmaker at those levels.
I did not manage to see that many games of his, but the ones I saw at those levels (mostly VHL) this year he was just shining out there. And he was just consistently dangerous as an all-around offensive threat on the ice. So much so that I'd say that I personally haven't yet seen a better draft-eligible prospect playing in those leagues.
And I say that while remembering Kucherov obliterating the MHL in his draft year, Miroschnichenko and Yurov looking amazing last year, and many more since I started really paying attention to prospects (about 2006/2007 or so).
Seriously, forget the russian factor and geopolitics and just draft Michkov. Bet on his supreme talent and intelligence on the ice, they don't come around that often.
Sure, there is some amount of risk involved, and your team will have to wait a little while before getting him, but if things go right then you laugh all the way to the bank as your team welcomes a great offensive player in its lineup (with 50 goals, 100+ pts/season potential) when Michkov does come over from Russia in 2026 or so.
As a bonus, because there is some uncertainty involving Russia then you could even potentially "steal" Michkov and get him much lower in the draft than his skillset would normally warrant in a more "standard" geopolitical context.
As a sidenote, Michkov would be my personal #2 at the draft after Bedard. But I can understand favoring Fantilli and Carlsson above him given that they are also awesome, will play a more important position at the NHL level, and would appear as "safer", more "politically-correct" choices for GMs given the situation with Russia/Ukraine.
I don't agree personally, but Fantilli and Carlsson above Michkov at the draft is a reasonable position to defend. Any lower than that though, and it starts getting silly with the crazy potential that this kid has.
Unfortunately I think that this relative "devaluation" of russian prospects will be widespread this year and I suspect that the same inane babble used to argue not taking Michkov after the 4th spot will also negatively impact the ranking of Gulyayev and Simashev (among others still), who should both be top 20 picks (personally think Gulyayev should be top 10/12) but probably will only get drafted in the late first-round. Perhaps even lower if they are unlucky/teams get stubborn, and risk-averse.
Anyways, that's enough ranting/propping up Michkov's tires for one day. Any more than this and they will be propped so high they will levitate and he won't be able to drive. Cheers and have a good day.
