Matvei Michkov #39 of the Philadelphia Flyers celebrates a goal against the Los Angeles Kings (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Bobby Clarke, the most famous captain and leader in the history of the Philadelphia Flyers, a two-time Stanley Cup winner, is now one of three senior vice presidents of the Flyers along with Bill Barber and Paul Holmgren.
Having access to any game and the team's locker room, he does not influence any decisions - and at 75, he now spends most of his time in Sarasota, Florida. Now he just wants to watch hockey and enjoy life, while willingly sharing his views on the development of the team.
“Building a team is extremely difficult. Some of these teams have been at it for 10 years, so there's got to be some element of luck. If you get lucky and get a McDavid or a Matthews in the draft early, that's a big start,” said Clarke to RG about the difficulties of building a winner in the salary cap era. “If you're constantly drafting in the middle of the first round, you're not likely to get a superstar. So, to cover your bases, you've got to get a great goalie, probably two or three stars in your lineup, and a good coach.”
Clarke drafted his own superstar in the middle of the 1st-round in the 2006 NHL Draft, when they selected forward Claude Giroux 22nd overall. He helped build a team that would compete for a Stanley Cup, going all the way to the Finals in 2010, but ultimately fell due to a lack of strong goaltending.
It’s the bit of luck that goes into winning a Stanley Cup, according to the former Flyers GM.
Flyers Goaltending Woes
Speaking of goaltending in Philadelphia, it’s a position that the organization has been looking to find stability in for many years. It’s a problem that continues to plague them to this day, with promising goaltenders in the pipeline, but no true number 1 goalie on the roster.
“Yeah, we haven't even got a number one right now,” said Clarke regarding the Flyers’ rebuild. “We've got to get one”.
The path from promising prospect to established number one goaltender is admittedly not the easiest path in hockey, according to Clarke. The Flyers currently have two young Russian goaltenders in the organization that could one day fill the starter’s role down the line, but adaptation to the NHL has proven to be difficult so far.
“Yeah, Fedotov has struggled, but it's a big change in the game for him to come over here. He probably should be in the minors learning small ice surface; it’s a totally different style of game that's played in Russia,” said Clarke. “At times he shows he's really good, at times he's a little lost there.”
Although many teams in the KHL play on NHL-sized rinks, the physical, quicker style in North America is often the biggest challenge for young European talent. However, Clarke believes that one of the Flyers’ young goaltenders are going to have to step up soon if the team is going to have any success moving forward.
“Somebody has to get consistent; whether it's Fedotov or Kolosov. Only Ersson has been close to being consistent,” said Clarke.
“So, who does the coach trust? Who does the team trust? You don't know who the hell to put in there. Somebody's got to get consistent, I think”.
It’s a situation that has unfortunately been an issue in Philadelphia for ages. However, it does certainly feel like the Flyers have two legitimate candidates to eventually fix the decade-long quest for a top-end starting goaltender.
A Future Star
Not unlike Fedotov and Kolosov, rookie Matvei Michkov is also starting to get accustomed to the NHL. After putting up 27 points in his first 27 games this season, Michkov’s production has slowed down a little bit, but Clarke believes the Flyers have a star on their hands.
“He's going to be a good one. He's going to be really good. He’s really smart and really competitive and just 20 years old,” said Clarke. “But, as good as these kids are, you’re going to have to wait to see their true potential. Look at Bedard, he's not setting the league on fire and it’s his second year. These kids, they'll hit their stride at 23 or 24 in a few years. They look good now, but they’re just scratching the surface.”
Michkov has been going through some growing pains as of late, but Clarke believes that’s simply part of the adaptation period of any young star in the league. Teams have begun to take Michkov seriously, and it shows in his coverage on the ice; meaning that Michkov needs to adapt his game to counter those defensive tactics.
“When you've played on the big ice, there's a lot more ice to work on,” said Clarke. “Now teams see him coming. Coverage against him is much tighter, guys are on him, so he's got to check more to get the puck and stuff. He's learning the game, but he's very competitive, so that's good.”
Playing Physical Hockey
Growing up in Manitoba, Canada, as the son of a coal miner, Clarke played on quite a few outdoor rinks. Despite having a love for pond hockey, he wasn’t initially a fan of the NHL’s outdoor games at all.
“I didn't [like it] when I first started. I thought it was a gimmick, but I like it now. Big show. That's sports. Sports is a big entertainment show now. Which is okay. I like them now.”
One of the best aspects of free hockey is the physicality and the aggressive nature of the sport. Of late, we’ve seen a push to try and eliminate the high-end aggressive plays in hockey for the betterment of player health, especially in their post-careers.
However, Clarke believes the players still have an appetite for the rigors of the contact in hockey, including the odd fight here and there.
“They still fight. There's still plenty of toughness in the game. It's not a soft game, it's a hard game,” said Clarke. “I think sometimes we remember the game from generations ago and think it was a lot tougher than today's game. I don't think it is. It was tough, but it's tough now, too. These guys, they hit, they bang, they push and shove and stuff. There's still lots around”.
Due to the speed and impact of contact in the game, some players, especially with the institution of the instigator penalty, feel like they can take liberties on the ice. Clarke believes it’s one of the main reasons fighting should still be allowed, on top of making it entertaining for players and fans alike.
That type of physicality and toughness is synonymous with the legacy of the Broad Street Bullies, and something the Flyers are continually striving to revive as they push toward a successful rebuild.
Igor Rabiner has written for Sport-Express, the biggest Russian sports website, since 1994. He has covered seven FIFA World Cups, seven Winter Olympics, and three Summer Olympics. He is the author of 28 books with total sales of over 500,000 copies. He won an AIPS Sport Media Award for best column and interviewed exclusively Pele, Wayne Gretzky, Franz Beckenbauer, Alex Ovechkin and many other soccer, ice hockey, and tennis superstars. From 2016 to 2021, he has regularly contributed to the Russian version of NHL.com. Has contributed to The Guardian, British soccer magazine The Blizzard, and other world publications. One of the authors of the encyclopedia 'Kings of Ice," which came out in North America in 2002. From 2013 to 2021, Rabiner was a co-owner and teacher in a private sports journalism school in Russia. He has 56,500 followers on X and over 25,000 readers on Telegram, Facebook and Instagram.
