The purported Matvei Michkov trade request rumor has caught fire over the last couple of days. And it has gotten so far out there because of the conflicting reports regarding the veracity of the actual information.
The sides involved have essentially denied that the rumor is true, leaving Kevin Weekes, who initially reported on the situation, hanging out to dry.
But now, another insider, Elliotte Friedman, has shed some interesting light on the situation. During Thursday’s edition of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Friedman revealed where he believed the rumor originated.
“I want to say something here: He (Weekes) did not make this up… Number one, he shares the same agent when he played as Michkov, Paul Theofanous. And Michkov was frustrated after Vancouver, that bench blowup, either he or someone in his camp said it, and then when it turn into a firestorm, people ran for cover; doesn’t mean it’s untrue.”
All right, so several things to unpack here. Firstly, Friedman was referring to a heated argument between the Michkov and defenseman Nick Seeler during Philadelphia’s 3-1 win over Vancouver on Monday night.
The argument happened during a TV timeout, and Friedman believes the frustration led to Michkov himself or someone in his camp, to say something, spurring the Michkov trade request rumor.
As Friedman noted, it’s not that the actual reporting by Weekes is untrue, it’s just that, when Weekes ran with the story he heard, everyone involved wanted to back out of the situation.
There Is an Agenda Behind Michkov Trade Request Rumor
Another thing that Friedman’s comments bring to light is the reasoning why things would get out the way they did.
Friedman’s commentary makes it sound like things were said in the heat of the moment and suddenly took a life of their own.
“I guarantee you that after that game, someone, either Michkov or someone around him, was angry, upset. ‘I’ve had enough of this,’ emotional, it happens, and it got to Kevin (Weekes) and he reported it as such.”
If that’s the case, it would make sense that it would have been Michkov’s agent, whom Weekes shares a connection with, who made the situation known to Weekes. Then, as Weekes’ colleague Emily Kaplan stated, there was an “agenda” to put the idea out there that Michkov wanted out.
Again, it’s not that the Michkov trade request rumor is not a lie, it’s just that it’s not quite in a similar vein as the Dylan Larkin or Connor Hellebuyck situations.
Flyers Most Likely Didn’t Know About the Situation
Now, it seems that it is true that the Flyers didn’t know about the Michkov trade request. And that’s because the news got out before the organization actually heard anything about it.
Perhaps there was some locker room venting, leading Michkov to unload his frustration on his agent. Things got out, and the words “trade request” swirled around at some point. Weekes jumped the gun, and there wasn’t even a chance for the Flyers to hear about the situation before it got out.
Now, everyone appears to be in a conciliatory tone, not because they’re chickening out of the situation, but because cooler heads have prevailed.
In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising to imagine a discussion between Flyers GM Daniel Briere and Theofanous regarding the alleged Michkov trade request. That situation potentially led to a de-escalation of the situation. However, the damage has already happened.
Now, the two sides will have to figure out how to navigate the fallout, as there does not appear to be a trade on the horizon.
Michkov Trade Request Rumor Origin Revealed by Insider