Top NHL prospect loaned to KHL competitor with Russia banned from World Juniors

As the 2023 World Junior Championship gets closer, hockey fans are focused on the next wave of talent. Connor Bedard and Adam Fantilli will show why they are expected to go at the very top of next year’s draft while competing against the best players in their age group from all over the world.

Well, not all over the world. Russia has been banned from the upcoming tournament because of its invasion of Ukraine, meaning Matvei Michkov – another top prospect – won’t get to compete.

Instead, Michkov is set to join the worst team in the KHL for the rest of the season as reports out of Russia have him loaned to HC Sochi. Though it may seem like a demotion given his place with powerhouse club SKA St. Petersburg, it should allow the young forward to actually receive some regular playing time. So far this year he has played just a handful of shifts in the KHL, spending most of his time in the VHL, where he has 10 goals in 12 games.

Michkov, 18, is a very interesting prospect when it comes to the draft. Compared to Alex Ovechkin at times as he grew up, there is an expectation that he will become the next face of Russian hockey. If there weren’t other complicating factors, he would be pushing Bedard for the first overall selection.

The biggest of those factors is his contract, which will keep him in Russia through the 2025-26 season. This loan to Sochi does not extend or shorten his deal with SKA; it only gives him an opportunity to play through the end of the year.

Any team that selects him will have to wait, and though he is expected to come to North America when his contract is up, there is no guarantee of that just yet.

This opportunity, though, will be able to give NHL front offices a bit of a closer look (at least through video) before committing to a several-years wait. If he can show off for Sochi, even in a losing effort – the club is dead last in the KHL – the hype surrounding his future will only increase.