VOORHEES — Matvei Michkov’s 2026-27 has barely even begun. Three months from now, the positive feelings surrounding Michkov on Day 1 of Philadelphia Flyers training camp could seem like something out of a totally different timeline or alternate reality.

All that said, Thursday really could not have went any better for Michkov, and the Flyers.

Signs were already positive regarding Michkov heading into Day 1 of camp. The slow drip of Michkov workout videos certainly implied that he was taking the 2026 summer very seriously in terms of training. And then, his in-depth Russian language interview sealed the deal — he admitted point-blank that he had slacked off the previous summer, made it clear he wasn’t making the same mistake this time, and slipped in the jaw-dropping tidbit that he was now 30 pounds lighter than he was at the start of camp 12 months earlier.

Still, that interview was completed in Michkov’s first language (Russian), and in a relaxed setting. There was no hard evidence beyond Michkov’s word that he had truly put 2025 behind him. It would take Day 1 of 2026 Flyers training camp — with all eyes on him — to confirm whether the positive vibes would make it to North American shores.

Those vibes didn’t merely survive the journey. They’re straight up thriving at the moment. Michkov, intentionally or no, addressed essentially every item on the “Things Fans Are Worried About” Michkov checklist, and did so in especially reassuring fashion.

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