On Monday, SKA St. Petersburg announced that Matvei Michkov will be loaned back to HC Sochi for the remainder of the KHL season.
The Saint Petersburg front office ruled it a “mutual agreement” as it was beneficial for Michkov’s career and growth. He wasn’t going to get the playing time he deserved and he did not exactly meet eye to eye with SKA HC Roman Rotenberg.
This is not a first for the 18-year-old, who was also loaned last season. After appearing in only three games for SKA in 2022-23, he was sent to Sochi, where he had nine goals, eleven assists, and twenty points in 27 games; leading the team in points per game. Things appear to be repeating themselves, although this time Michkov only played in one game for Saint Petersburg and has since been transferred.
In St. Petersburg’s first four games, Michkov was a healthy scratch for three of them, and in the game he did play, he was held pointless and only saw 6:12 of ice time. No matter how talented the young players are, SKA is infamous for playing veterans over them. Therefore, it would benefit all parties if Michkov parted ways with the team and played elsewhere.
Matvei Michkov wanted to make things work with head coach Roman Rotenberg without returning to Sochi. It holds some painful memories for him, as he lost his father while playing in Sochi. Despite this, he is ready to tackle the situation head on and understands his father would not want him to sacrifice his career and development as a result.
SKA HC Roman Rotenberg on loaning Matvei Michkov to Sochi:
Matvei Michkov is expected to make his season debut for HC Sochi on Wednesday, taking on Severstal at 12:00PM ET.
By: Dylan Robillard (@DylanRobillard_)
photo credit: KHL.ru
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