How Matvei Michkov’s rookie year stacks up to the first seasons of hockey’s superstars

The Philadelphia Flyers, as you are almost assuredly aware, have not seen a Stanley Cup in forty-nine years (and counting, most likely). They have overcome persistent heartbreaks, hurdles, and phases of general gloom. After waving goodbye to legendary Flyer Claude Giroux, fans began to shift their focus toward finding the next great player who could bring Lord Stanley’s Cup back to the City of Brotherly Love.
Cut to the 2023 NHL Draft. Connor Bedard, the first generational-level talent since Connor McDavid in 2015, sat atop a gilded heap of other franchise-level prospects capable themselves of being the first overall pick in most other years. But leading up to the draft, there was a player w...