SKA wishes Matvei Michkov success!

Forward Matvei Michkov is leaving SKA and will join the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL during the off-season.

The player’s KHL rights will remain with SKA.

Michkov joined SKA in 2020. The forward progressed through all levels of the SKA system, winning the Kharlamov Cup with SKA-1946 while becoming the top goalscorer of the MHL playoffs. Michkov notably became the first player born in 2004 to play for SKA in the KHL.

As a SKA player, Michkov became a vice-champion, the MVP and the top goalscorer of the 2021 World U18 Championship, recording more points than any other player at the tournament. Michkov subsequently made his debut for the senior Russian national team in November 2021, becoming the youngest player in history to do so. Michkov also became the youngest player to score in the history of Soviet and Russian national teams.

HC SKA thanks Matvei for the years spent with our system, wishing him further success in his career!

Matvei Michkov:

- After spending a lot of time thinking, I have taken the decision to move to the NHL. I want to say a huge thank you to the SKA management for being cooperative in this matter. I immediately stated that I only want to play for SKA in the KHL, no more loans or trades. I'll fight for my place in the NHL, but in the event that I subsequently return to the KHL, I will only play in Saint Petersburg.

The decision wasn’t easy, but I feel that it’s the right one. I’m full of energy and desire to prove that I’m worthy of playing in the NHL. My father always dreamt of seeing me make my NHL debut, so personally it was very important to take this step in his honour. I’m confident that he would have supported this decision.

Thank you to Roman Rotenberg for believing in me, inviting me to join SKA and providing me with all of the possibilities to develop and improve my game. Thank you to all of the coaches, players and staff members with whom I’ve worked and won here. And, of course, I want to say thank you to the fans. I’m sure that we’ll meet again. See you in the future, Saint Petersburg!