John Tortorella threathens Flyers rookie Matvei Michkov after last night’s game

The Philadelphia Flyers might have picked up their second consecutive win by beating the St. Louis Blues on Thursday, head coach John Tortorella was not overly happy when he met with reporters after the game. There is always room for improvement in his mind even if the Flyers have won three of their last four games following a six-game losing streak. Torts especially had it for rookie forward Matvei Michkov, who many saw as a top prospect coming as a saviour to Philly.

In 11 games so far this season, the Russian player has collected four goals ans nine points, but Tortorella told media on Thursday that Michkov could sit on the sidelines to watch his teammates in the next few games:

“He’s a 19-year-old kid playing in the best league in the World. He’s totally not concentrated on certain parts of the game. If I see other guys going, then he’s going to sit and watch a bit. That’s all that was. He has had some struggles.”

Torts has always been hard on players and often enjoys sending struggling ones to the press box to send them a clear message and get them to think about what they can do better. However, despite the Flyers’ struggle, I personally feel like Michkov’s presence on the ice is electrifying and I love his desire to score and win. He is resilient and I am sure that if Torts decides to makes his threats of benching him a reality that Michkov will only turn the setback into motivation and come back better and stronger.

The Flyers organization, and the fans, have long been waiting for a player like Michkov and maybe Torts will have to be careful for backlash if he does make him a healthy scratch.