The 2025-26 NHL season is not even a week old, yet some are already panicking about their team or players.
It's quite frankly way too early for any of that, but it won't stop fans from feeling a certain way should they not like what they're seeing.
For the Philadelphia Flyers, excitement was high to see their young core take another step this season, particularly around Matvei Michkov.
Their young winger dazzled as a rookie, flashing a dynamic skill set that the Flyers haven't had in quite some time, and expectations were that Michkov would continue ascending in year two, further cementing himself as a star in the league.
While it's only been two games, the early returns haven't been great, and according to Ryan Whitney and Paul Bissonnette, the youngster might have come into the season out of shape. Here is what they had to say during the recent episode of the "Spittin' Chiclets" podcast.
"I've got little birdies everywhere, and I'm hearing that he didn't come in in great shape," Whitney said.
"He's out of shape. He's out of shape... Not from Tocch (Rick Tocchet), but I heard he's out of shape," Bissonnette added.
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The 20-year-old Michkov has gone pointless through the first two games of the new campaign, averaging just 14:11 of ice time in the process. He's coming off a very strong debut season where he potted 26 goals, 37 assists, and 63 points in 80 games played.
Michkov dealt with an offseason injury
There are no excuses for Matvei Michkov potentially having come into 2025-26 in less than ideal shape; however, there could be a reason for it.
With rumors about his condition swirling, Rick Tocchet revealed that Michkov actually dealt with an ankle injury throughout the summer. Flyers reporter Charlie O'Connor shared the news on X (formerly Twitter).
Tocchet says that re: Michkov, he did deal with an ankle injury this summer that affected some of his offseason training. He's fully healthy now, though.
— Charlie O'Connor (@charlieo_conn) October 13, 2025
"So he's a little bit behind the eight-ball when it comes to that, but it's something that we're going to correct."
Perhaps that could explain his slow start and limited workload through two games.
Either way, Michkov will need to work himself into game shape sooner than later, because Philadelphia needs him at his best to have any chance of staying in the wild card race.