RW Matvei Michkov (2023, 7th, PHI) Part 4

[Steve Kournianos]

A lot of myths surrounding Michkov have been debunked, to the point where it’s more likely the media specifically targeted him for political reasons than Michkov being flawed or being an incredibly risky pick.

1) The Russian factor/KHL contract — debunked by Miroshnichenko, Khusnutdinov, Svechkov, Dorofeyev, Askarov etc. The fact that Michkov is literally in the NHL just over a year after being drafted proves how stupid, archaic, and xenophobic the term is. Bob McKenzie was full on board with pushing this narrative.

2) Inability to scout Russians because of COVID and Ukraine war — Completely debunked by Jerry Forton, Buffalo’s chief scout, who after the 2023 draft said he and his scouts had an easier time “getting access” to Russian players than many North American draft prospects. Teams who didn’t have Russian scouts on the ground have only themselves to blame, not a war or expired COVID restrictions.

3) Michkov has “character concerns” — completely debunked after the draft by the Flyers and Tortorella, who both said Michkov is ultra competitive and has little patience for substandard effort. Mark Messier was the same way and Canadians made him an icon and called it “leadership”. Clearly a double standard. Bedard was heralded for taking the game seriously and being robotic on game days.

4) Michkov is lazy off the puck — debunked within a week into training camp and easily one of the dumbest and most dishonest takes surrounding him. Cherry picking isn’t lazy if it’s done in spurts. Michkov can be a beast competitor in board battles.

5) Michkov isn’t a good skater — debunked from the start, as his edgework, balance, and agility are elite or near-elite. Very tough to lean off the puck and elusive to boot. Premier straight-line speed is not required to be a good skater nor to dominate the NHL. Panarin skates in mud and hit 100 points.

6) Michkov has a low IQ — not even needed to be debunked because it was moronic to even say so since his vision and anticipation are critical to his offense and production. There were a couple of bloggers who pushed this narrative and even ranked him outside the top 10. Unsurprisingly, a large portion of fans and even some in the media who didn’t track Michkov’s development took the bait and spread it across social media.

7) Michkov is bad defensively — not necessarily debunked yet, but Torts’ comments echo what I and many in this thread have been saying — he’s a winger paid to score goals and works hard to improve. He backchecks and sacrifices his body, which is a lot more than most teenage scorers offer. Another case of a double standard since Bedard is atrocious defensively as a center.

8) Michkov told teams he would not play for them — this is a gray area because of the agent quotes about not preferring Arizona and Washington, but we dont know if Michkov told them or any other teams beforehand not to draft him. I don’t buy it that Michkov forced his way to Philly, but the media narrative was so negative with help from anonymous scouts that I can see Michkov wanting to go only where he was truly wanted.

 

[thefutures]

A lot of myths surrounding Michkov have been debunked, to the point where it’s more likely the media specifically targeted him for political reasons than Michkov being flawed or being an incredibly risky pick.

1) The Russian factor/KHL contract — debunked by Miroshnichenko, Khusnutdinov, Svechkov, Dorofeyev, Askarov etc. The fact that Michkov is literally in the NHL just over a year after being drafted proves how stupid, archaic, and xenophobic the term is. Bob McKenzie was full on board with pushing this narrative.

2) Inability to scout Russians because of COVID and Ukraine war — Completely debunked by Jerry Forton, Buffalo’s chief scout, who after the 2023 draft said he and his scouts had an easier time “getting access” to Russian players than many North American draft prospects. Teams who didn’t have Russian scouts on the ground have only themselves to blame, not a war or expired COVID restrictions.

3) Michkov has “character concerns” — completely debunked after the draft by the Flyers and Tortorella, who both said Michkov is ultra competitive and has little patience for substandard effort. Mark Messier was the same way and Canadians made him an icon and called it “leadership”. Clearly a double standard. Bedard was heralded for taking the game seriously and being robotic on game days.

4) Michkov is lazy off the puck — debunked within a week into training camp and easily one of the dumbest and most dishonest takes surrounding him. Cherry picking isn’t lazy if it’s done in spurts. Michkov can be a beast competitor in board battles.

5) Michkov isn’t a good skater — debunked from the start, as his edgework, balance, and agility are elite or near-elite. Very tough to lean off the puck and elusive to boot. Premier straight-line speed is not required to be a good skater nor to dominate the NHL. Panarin skates in mud and hit 100 points.

6) Michkov has a low IQ — not even needed to be debunked because it was moronic to even say so since his vision and anticipation are critical to his offense and production. There were a couple of bloggers who pushed this narrative and even ranked him outside the top 10. Unsurprisingly, a large portion of fans and even some in the media who didn’t track Michkov’s development took the bait and spread it across social media.

7) Michkov is bad defensively — not necessarily debunked yet, but Torts’ comments echo what I and many in this thread have been saying — he’s a winger paid to score goals and works hard to improve. He backchecks and sacrifices his body, which is a lot more than most teenage scorers offer. Another case of a double standard since Bedard is atrocious defensively as a center.

8) Michkov told teams he would not play for them — this is a gray area because of the agent quotes about not preferring Arizona and Washington, but we dont know if Michkov told them or any other teams beforehand not to draft him. I don’t buy it that Michkov forced his way to Philly, but the media narrative was so negative with help from anonymous scouts that I can see Michkov wanting to go only where he was truly wanted.

It was pretty sad how he was treated by media and others leading up to the draft considering the tragedy he was already dealing with

 

[Kshahdoo]

A lot of myths surrounding Michkov have been debunked, to the point where it’s more likely the media specifically targeted him for political reasons than Michkov being flawed or being an incredibly risky pick.

1) The Russian factor/KHL contract — debunked by Miroshnichenko, Khusnutdinov, Svechkov, Dorofeyev, Askarov etc. The fact that Michkov is literally in the NHL just over a year after being drafted proves how stupid, archaic, and xenophobic the term is. Bob McKenzie was full on board with pushing this narrative.

2) Inability to scout Russians because of COVID and Ukraine war — Completely debunked by Jerry Forton, Buffalo’s chief scout, who after the 2023 draft said he and his scouts had an easier time “getting access” to Russian players than many North American draft prospects. Teams who didn’t have Russian scouts on the ground have only themselves to blame, not a war or expired COVID restrictions.

3) Michkov has “character concerns” — completely debunked after the draft by the Flyers and Tortorella, who both said Michkov is ultra competitive and has little patience for substandard effort. Mark Messier was the same way and Canadians made him an icon and called it “leadership”. Clearly a double standard. Bedard was heralded for taking the game seriously and being robotic on game days.

4) Michkov is lazy off the puck — debunked within a week into training camp and easily one of the dumbest and most dishonest takes surrounding him. Cherry picking isn’t lazy if it’s done in spurts. Michkov can be a beast competitor in board battles.

5) Michkov isn’t a good skater — debunked from the start, as his edgework, balance, and agility are elite or near-elite. Very tough to lean off the puck and elusive to boot. Premier straight-line speed is not required to be a good skater nor to dominate the NHL. Panarin skates in mud and hit 100 points.

6) Michkov has a low IQ — not even needed to be debunked because it was moronic to even say so since his vision and anticipation are critical to his offense and production. There were a couple of bloggers who pushed this narrative and even ranked him outside the top 10. Unsurprisingly, a large portion of fans and even some in the media who didn’t track Michkov’s development took the bait and spread it across social media.

7) Michkov is bad defensively — not necessarily debunked yet, but Torts’ comments echo what I and many in this thread have been saying — he’s a winger paid to score goals and works hard to improve. He backchecks and sacrifices his body, which is a lot more than most teenage scorers offer. Another case of a double standard since Bedard is atrocious defensively as a center.

8) Michkov told teams he would not play for them — this is a gray area because of the agent quotes about not preferring Arizona and Washington, but we dont know if Michkov told them or any other teams beforehand not to draft him. I don’t buy it that Michkov forced his way to Philly, but the media narrative was so negative with help from anonymous scouts that I can see Michkov wanting to go only where he was truly wanted.

Yeah, pretty much this, great post.

 

[karltonian]

A lot of myths surrounding Michkov have been debunked, to the point where it’s more likely the media specifically targeted him for political reasons than Michkov being flawed or being an incredibly risky pick.

1) The Russian factor/KHL contract — debunked by Miroshnichenko, Khusnutdinov, Svechkov, Dorofeyev, Askarov etc. The fact that Michkov is literally in the NHL just over a year after being drafted proves how stupid, archaic, and xenophobic the term is. Bob McKenzie was full on board with pushing this narrative.

2) Inability to scout Russians because of COVID and Ukraine war — Completely debunked by Jerry Forton, Buffalo’s chief scout, who after the 2023 draft said he and his scouts had an easier time “getting access” to Russian players than many North American draft prospects. Teams who didn’t have Russian scouts on the ground have only themselves to blame, not a war or expired COVID restrictions.

3) Michkov has “character concerns” — completely debunked after the draft by the Flyers and Tortorella, who both said Michkov is ultra competitive and has little patience for substandard effort. Mark Messier was the same way and Canadians made him an icon and called it “leadership”. Clearly a double standard. Bedard was heralded for taking the game seriously and being robotic on game days.

4) Michkov is lazy off the puck — debunked within a week into training camp and easily one of the dumbest and most dishonest takes surrounding him. Cherry picking isn’t lazy if it’s done in spurts. Michkov can be a beast competitor in board battles.

5) Michkov isn’t a good skater — debunked from the start, as his edgework, balance, and agility are elite or near-elite. Very tough to lean off the puck and elusive to boot. Premier straight-line speed is not required to be a good skater nor to dominate the NHL. Panarin skates in mud and hit 100 points.

6) Michkov has a low IQ — not even needed to be debunked because it was moronic to even say so since his vision and anticipation are critical to his offense and production. There were a couple of bloggers who pushed this narrative and even ranked him outside the top 10. Unsurprisingly, a large portion of fans and even some in the media who didn’t track Michkov’s development took the bait and spread it across social media.

7) Michkov is bad defensively — not necessarily debunked yet, but Torts’ comments echo what I and many in this thread have been saying — he’s a winger paid to score goals and works hard to improve. He backchecks and sacrifices his body, which is a lot more than most teenage scorers offer. Another case of a double standard since Bedard is atrocious defensively as a center.

8) Michkov told teams he would not play for them — this is a gray area because of the agent quotes about not preferring Arizona and Washington, but we dont know if Michkov told them or any other teams beforehand not to draft him. I don’t buy it that Michkov forced his way to Philly, but the media narrative was so negative with help from anonymous scouts that I can see Michkov wanting to go only where he was truly wanted.

This underplays the Ukraine war massively. Russia was being subject to increasing sanctions and there was some question about whether Russians could even travel within the West.

 

[Fantomas]

This underplays the Ukraine war massively. Russia was being subject to increasing sanctions and there was some question about whether Russians could even travel within the West.

Not so much by summer 2023, but there was some concern in the early going, sure.

 

[Fatass]

A lot of myths surrounding Michkov have been debunked, to the point where it’s more likely the media specifically targeted him for political reasons than Michkov being flawed or being an incredibly risky pick.

1) The Russian factor/KHL contract — debunked by Miroshnichenko, Khusnutdinov, Svechkov, Dorofeyev, Askarov etc. The fact that Michkov is literally in the NHL just over a year after being drafted proves how stupid, archaic, and xenophobic the term is. Bob McKenzie was full on board with pushing this narrative.

2) Inability to scout Russians because of COVID and Ukraine war — Completely debunked by Jerry Forton, Buffalo’s chief scout, who after the 2023 draft said he and his scouts had an easier time “getting access” to Russian players than many North American draft prospects. Teams who didn’t have Russian scouts on the ground have only themselves to blame, not a war or expired COVID restrictions.

3) Michkov has “character concerns” — completely debunked after the draft by the Flyers and Tortorella, who both said Michkov is ultra competitive and has little patience for substandard effort. Mark Messier was the same way and Canadians made him an icon and called it “leadership”. Clearly a double standard. Bedard was heralded for taking the game seriously and being robotic on game days.

4) Michkov is lazy off the puck — debunked within a week into training camp and easily one of the dumbest and most dishonest takes surrounding him. Cherry picking isn’t lazy if it’s done in spurts. Michkov can be a beast competitor in board battles.

5) Michkov isn’t a good skater — debunked from the start, as his edgework, balance, and agility are elite or near-elite. Very tough to lean off the puck and elusive to boot. Premier straight-line speed is not required to be a good skater nor to dominate the NHL. Panarin skates in mud and hit 100 points.

6) Michkov has a low IQ — not even needed to be debunked because it was moronic to even say so since his vision and anticipation are critical to his offense and production. There were a couple of bloggers who pushed this narrative and even ranked him outside the top 10. Unsurprisingly, a large portion of fans and even some in the media who didn’t track Michkov’s development took the bait and spread it across social media.

7) Michkov is bad defensively — not necessarily debunked yet, but Torts’ comments echo what I and many in this thread have been saying — he’s a winger paid to score goals and works hard to improve. He backchecks and sacrifices his body, which is a lot more than most teenage scorers offer. Another case of a double standard since Bedard is atrocious defensively as a center.

8) Michkov told teams he would not play for them — this is a gray area because of the agent quotes about not preferring Arizona and Washington, but we dont know if Michkov told them or any other teams beforehand not to draft him. I don’t buy it that Michkov forced his way to Philly, but the media narrative was so negative with help from anonymous scouts that I can see Michkov wanting to go only where he was truly wanted.

Teams that passed on MM are the ones saying these unfounded things. They are trying to appease their fan bases, who are rightfully demanding to know how their GMs could be so stupid as to pass on a generational talent. And it wasn’t just one club that made the mistake; it was five!

 

[MrGuyPerson]

8) Michkov told teams he would not play for them — this is a gray area because of the agent quotes about not preferring Arizona and Washington, but we dont know if Michkov told them or any other teams beforehand not to draft him. I don’t buy it that Michkov forced his way to Philly, but the media narrative was so negative with help from anonymous scouts that I can see Michkov wanting to go only where he was truly wanted.

Elliotte Friedman said on 32 thoughts 3 weeks ago "The one thing I really believe about Michkov, Jan(Yan?), he wanted to go to the Flyers. I don't know if mainipulated is the right word so I don't want any of negative connotations that come with that, but it is very clear that Michkov and his representatives kind of... worked the draft in a way that got them where they wanted to go and that was Philadelphia. It's clear now he really wanted to go to Philly and... if... okay, the biggest answer to your question is 'if people knew it might only take him taken him 1 year, yes. But I think that Michkov his representatives and the Flyers were working as hard as they could to make sure nobody else was going to realize that necessarily and that the player wanted to go to certain spots and didn't want to go to other spots. And I think because of the Russian Option it scared some teams away. Now, I know that there were some teams that didn't like that this happened, but hey... you know...if you can work it, you can work it. And I have no problem with what Michkov and the Flyers did and I think at the end of the day he wanted to be in Philadelphia and very clearly some teams knew that he didn't necessarily want to go there and your just not going to take the chance. So I don't know if anything would have mattered or been different. He wanted to go somewhere and he got there."

The original question, "Hello from Slovakia Kyle and Elliotte. Do you think that if other teams knew it would have only taken Matvei Michkov 1 year to come to the NHL, they would have drafted him earlier. Which NHL team do you think would have taken him?"

I would say Friedman is more or less the Adam Schefter of hockey so I'm gonna roll with what he is saying, but I don't think we will ever really know what went down with his draft process. Unless they say F it and make a tell all documentary after he retires I suppose.

Is it at all possible that merely having a preferred destination would be seen as a snub by certain proud franchises? Idk I could easily see a room full of old dudes say, " Preferred Destination? F*** you. You haven't played an NHL game yet and you have a preferred destination. Being drafted anywhere should be an honor. Character Issue having mother f***er".

Based on what Elliotte said the "Character Issues" media could have easily been a smoke screen from Philly/Mich's reps to ensure others took the bait. We will never know for sure what really went down, but we know "he wanted Philly"

 

[Steve Kournianos]

This underplays the Ukraine war massively. Russia was being subject to increasing sanctions and there was some question about whether Russians could even travel within the West.

Miroshnichenko silenced all that. There were commercial flights to Turkey from Russia as early as 2021. From Turkey they could fly anywhere. That’s why he was able to attend the 2022 draft. Besides, it was moot by 2023 and scouts already live viewings on Michkov for all of 2021. Forton said he as a scouting director was totally comfortable drafting Russians because the Sabres made attempts to scout them when others wouldn’t. Many teams had owners who ordered scouts not to draft them. Even still, it is moronic to let politics force teams to miss out on a generational talent. Look at all the Cubans who helped teams win World Series.

The Ukraine war also was an excuse for Western corporate media to blacklist Russian prospects, which The Hockey News did in their 2022 draft preview. Their publisher is part Ukrainian and made his staff downrank all the top Russian prospects. He even wrote a column saying Russian prospects might be on the front lines and should be avoided. Another writer from The Hockey News is who started the “character issues” nonsense on Michkov. The Hockey News didnt post a story on their main page after the Michkov two-goal game but did one for Coronato.

 

[Frank Drebin]

Elliotte Friedman said on 32 thoughts 3 weeks ago "The one thing I really believe about Michkov, Jan(Yan?), he wanted to go to the Flyers. I don't know if mainipulated is the right word so I don't want any of negative connotations that come with that, but it is very clear that Michkov and his representatives kind of... worked the draft in a way that got them where they wanted to go and that was Philadelphia. It's clear now he really wanted to go to Philly and... if... okay, the biggest answer to your question is 'if people knew it might only take him taken him 1 year, yes. But I think that Michkov his representatives and the Flyers were working as hard as they could to make sure nobody else was going to realize that necessarily and that the player wanted to go to certain spots and didn't want to go to other spots. And I think because of the Russian Option it scared some teams away. Now, I know that there were some teams that didn't like that this happened, but hey... you know...if you can work it, you can work it. And I have no problem with what Michkov and the Flyers did and I think at the end of the day he wanted to be in Philadelphia and very clearly some teams knew that he didn't necessarily want to go there and your just not going to take the chance. So I don't know if anything would have mattered or been different. He wanted to go somewhere and he got there."

The original question, "Hello from Slovakia Kyle and Elliotte. Do you think that if other teams knew it would have only taken Matvei Michkov 1 year to come to the NHL, they would have drafted him earlier. Which NHL team do you think would have taken him?"

I would say Friedman is more or less the Adam Schefter of hockey so I'm gonna roll with what he is saying, but I don't think we will ever really know what went down with his draft process. Unless they say F it and make a tell all documentary after he retires I suppose.

Is it at all possible that merely having a preferred destination would be seen as a snub by certain proud franchises? Idk I could easily see a room full of old dudes say, " Preferred Destination? F*** you. You haven't played an NHL game yet and you have a preferred destination. Being drafted anywhere should be an honor. Character Issue having mother f***er".

Based on what Elliotte said the "Character Issues" media could have easily been a smoke screen from Philly/Mich's reps to ensure others took the bait. We will never know for sure what really went down, but we know "he wanted Philly"

I don’t think its even pride
If the kid made it clear to you that he has zero interest in playing for your team its a foolish choice to waste a pick on him

What would his trade value be if he was still in russia refusing to report to the team that drafted him? Maybe a top 10 pick or equivalent prospect if the team he’s interested in is willing to pay that?

I think if teams knew he wasn’t going to play for them they just decided to draft and develop someone else rather than kicking the can down the road a couple years

 

[Steve Kournianos]

Elliotte Friedman said on 32 thoughts 3 weeks ago "The one thing I really believe about Michkov, Jan(Yan?), he wanted to go to the Flyers. I don't know if mainipulated is the right word so I don't want any of negative connotations that come with that, but it is very clear that Michkov and his representatives kind of... worked the draft in a way that got them where they wanted to go and that was Philadelphia. It's clear now he really wanted to go to Philly and... if... okay, the biggest answer to your question is 'if people knew it might only take him taken him 1 year, yes. But I think that Michkov his representatives and the Flyers were working as hard as they could to make sure nobody else was going to realize that necessarily and that the player wanted to go to certain spots and didn't want to go to other spots. And I think because of the Russian Option it scared some teams away. Now, I know that there were some teams that didn't like that this happened, but hey... you know...if you can work it, you can work it. And I have no problem with what Michkov and the Flyers did and I think at the end of the day he wanted to be in Philadelphia and very clearly some teams knew that he didn't necessarily want to go there and your just not going to take the chance. So I don't know if anything would have mattered or been different. He wanted to go somewhere and he got there."

The original question, "Hello from Slovakia Kyle and Elliotte. Do you think that if other teams knew it would have only taken Matvei Michkov 1 year to come to the NHL, they would have drafted him earlier. Which NHL team do you think would have taken him?"

I would say Friedman is more or less the Adam Schefter of hockey so I'm gonna roll with what he is saying, but I don't think we will ever really know what went down with his draft process. Unless they say F it and put in a documentary after he retires I suppose.

Is it at all possible that merely having a preferred destination would be seen as a snub by certain proud franchises? Idk I could easily see a room full of old dudes say, " Preferred Destination? F*** you. You haven't played an NHL game yet and you have a preferred destination. Being drafted anywhere should be an honor. Character Issue having mother f***er".

Based on what Elliotte said the "Character Issues" media could have easily been a smoke screen from Philly/Mich's reps to ensure others took the bait. We will never know for sure what really went down, but we know "he wanted Philly"

This is Friedman’s opinion, which is valid and well-thought, but still an opinion.

I think it’s a chicken vs the egg situation — Did the media’s anti-Michkov sentiment force him to desire (key word) the team who wanted him most, or did Michkov want to be a Flyer from Day 1?

Thing is, the anti-Michkov stuff happened well before we knew a draft order. It began to gain steam (conveniently) after Bedard’s lights-out WJC in January of 2023 when the Flyers were a .500 team and The Hockey News said scouts were concerned over his character. Flyers were in the 11-13 range at midseason, so it’s more likely teams were scared of Michkov first than the other way around.

 

[Hinterland]

This is Friedman’s opinion, which is valid and well-thought, but still an opinion.

I think it’s a chicken vs the egg situation — Did the media’s anti-Michkov sentiment force him to desire (key word) the team who wanted him most, or did Michkov want to be a Flyer from Day 1?

Thing is, the anti-Michkov stuff happened well before we knew a draft order. It began to gain steam (conveniently) after Bedard’s lights-out WJC in January of 2023 when the Flyers were a .500 team and The Hockey News said scouts were concerned over his character. Flyers were in the 11-13 range at midseason, so it’s more likely teams were scared of Michkov first than the other way around.

Friedman is so well connected.. he wouldn't say anything like this on the podcast if there wasn't any smoke. He was probably unable to verify or prove this which is why he phrased it the way he did but if he puts out stuff like this then it's usually because somebody told him. It's most certainly more than an opinion.

 

[Steve Kournianos]

Friedman is so well connected.. he wouldn't say anything like this on the podcast if there wasn't any smoke. He was probably unable to verify or prove this which is why he phrased it the way he did but if he puts out stuff like this then it's usually because somebody told him. It's most certainly more than an opinion.

No, it’s clearly an opinion and you as a fan are speculating like he is. He said “I really believe” and “I think” several times. He’s a corporate media insider with years of experience who clearly knows the difference between a confirmed report and speculation. There is no confirmed report that Michkov played the system. It’s just as believable that Friedman is trying to cover for the media who are looking like bitter fools with every good thing Michkov does.

The truth has yet to be told, end of story.

 

[Hinterland]

No, it’s clearly an opinion and you as a fan are speculating like he is. He said “I really believe” and “I think” several times. He’s a corporate media insider with years of experience who clearly knows the difference between a confirmed report and speculation. There is no confirmed report that Michkov played the system. It’s just as believable that Friedman is trying to cover for the media who are looking like bitter fools with every good thing Michkov does.

The truth has yet to be told, end of story.

Yes, it's not confirmed which is why he phrased it the way he did but Friedman doesn't bring up a topic like this just to voice his opinion.

32 thoughts isn't about Friedman's opinion. He may do predictions for fun but otherwise it's about what he's hearing, not about his personal opinions. It's about the insight he has thanks to his connections, his network. He's the nr.1 insider in the NHL and that's why the podcast is so good.

 

[Steve Kournianos]

Yes, it's not confirmed which is why he phrased it the way he did but Friedman doesn't bring up a topic like this just to voice his opinion.

32 thoughts isn't about Friedman's opinion. He may do predictions for fun but otherwise it's about what he's hearing, not about his personal opinions. It's about the insight he has thanks to his connections, his network. He's the nr.1 insider in the NHL and that's why the podcast is so good.

All irrelevant. You are speculating that Friedman’s speculation is more than speculation simply because he’s an insider.

 

[Frank Drebin]

All irrelevant. You are speculating that Friedman’s speculation is more than speculation simply because he’s an insider.

"but it is very clear that Michkov and his representatives kind of... worked the draft in a way that got them where they wanted to go and that was Philadelphia. It's clear now he really wanted to go to Philly and...."

This isn't an opinion or speculation on Friedmans part. If it is he certainly was quite careless in his use of words.

 

[Steve Kournianos]

"but it is very clear that Michkov and his representatives kind of... worked the draft in a way that got them where they wanted to go and that was Philadelphia. It's clear now he really wanted to go to Philly and...."

This isn't an opinion or speculation on Friedmans part. If it is he certainly was quite careless in his use of words.

Literally said “kind of”.

Not confirmed.

Also, didn’t Friedman say he didn’t want to use the word “manipulate”? Funny that he insinuated that immediately thereafter.

Again, for the umpteenth time, the negative Michkov reports that originated from the Canadian media began making the rounds almost four months before the draft lottery — well before Michkov knew where Philly was drafting. Bob McKenzie also quoted scouts admitting certain NHL owners said no to drafting Russians. Friedman is conveniently leaving these parts out.

Friedman is a member of the media with an agenda. He is no different than Dreger, McKenzie, LeBrun etc. who get their info from agents, league officials, and if they’re lucky, from the GMs themselves.

If there was concrete evidence Michkov told every team “no” except Philly, he would have tweeted it months ago. Instead, he is doing what everyone else is — speculating.

 

[Frank Drebin]

Literally said “kind of”.

Not confirmed.

Also, didn’t Friedman say he didn’t want to use the word “manipulate”? Funny that he insinuated that immediately thereafter.

Again, for the umpteenth time, the negative Michkov reports that originated from the Canadian media began making the rounds almost four months before the draft lottery — well before Michkov knew where Philly was drafting. Bob McKenzie also quoted scouts admitting certain NHL owners said no to drafting Russians. Friedman is conveniently leaving these parts out.

Friedman is a member of the media with an agenda. He is no different than Dreger, McKenzie, LeBrun etc. who get their info from agents, league officials, and if they’re lucky, from the GMs themselves.

If there was concrete evidence Michkov told every team “no” except Philly, he would have tweeted it months ago. Instead, he is doing what everyone else is — speculating.

"kind of" in this context means "in a specific way".

But its fine, its clear you have your mind made up on this. Agree to disagree and move on.

 

[Steve Kournianos]

"kind of" in this context means "in a specific way".

But its fine, its clear you have your mind made up on this. Agree to disagree and move on.

I learned my lesson from Lindros. There were 10,000 rumors for two years and it took 20+ years for the truth to come out. My stance has always been that Michkov was worth every risk and should have gone No. 2 overall, which is how it was trending until the Ukraine war ramped up anti-Russian sentiment. The media created a circus just like they did in 1991-92.

Don Henley along with nearly 70% of Americans dont trust the media and for good reason.

 

[Frank Drebin]

I learned my lesson from Lindros. There were 10,000 rumors for two years and it took 20+ years for the truth to come out. My stance has always been that Michkov was worth every risk and should have gone No. 2 overall, which is how it was trending until the Ukraine war ramped up anti-Russian sentiment. The media created a circus just like they did in 1991-92.

Don Henley along with nearly 70% of Americans dont trust the media and for good reason.

I'm confident one day we'll know the truth. Till now I guess its just different degrees of speculation