Jett Luchanko impresses managers more than Matvei Michkov

At Flyers camp this year, Matvei Michkov is without a doubt the guy getting the most attention. The forward, who is the team’s big hope, arrived in America earlier than expected and we will see him in the NHL this season.

And obviously, in Philadelphia, it comes with tremendous enthusiasm.

For the moment, Michkov is having a solid camp. We saw him have very beautiful flashes during preparatory matches.

That said, as much as fans already like him, Michkov isn’t necessarily the top prospect in Philadelphia.

During the most recent episode of So Hockey (Radio-Canada), Martin Leclerc confided that he chatted to Flyers executives during their visit to Montreal this week… and there was something that came back:

Michkov is doing very well, but the one who impresses us the most is really Jett Luchanko. – The leaders of the Flyers, as reported by Martin Leclerc

For those who know him less, Luchanko was the Flyers’ first round pick in the last draft (13th overall). He’s not necessarily the most offensive, but we’re talking about a guy who has a very complete game.

Despite his 18 years, he doesn’t make many mistakes on the ice… and we know that John Tortorella likes players of this style.

Be careful, this does not (necessarily) mean that the leaders find that Luchanko is best than Michkov. That said, despite the presence of the Russian phenomenon, the Flyers staff is especially impressed by the work of young Luchanko.

However, that doesn’t stop John Tortorella from giving Michkov some love in the media, saying he doesn’t want to hamper the youngster’s creativity. It’s rare to see Torts make such comments publicly.

We will see if Luchanko will be able to force the Flyers’ hand, but at the moment, he really seems to be the one who has gained the most points since the start of training camp in Philadelphia.

And it’s impressive to see this in a context where he finds himself in Michkov’s shadow at camp.