Today it was confirmed that the Philadelphia Flyers would not need to wait the 3 full years. Instead, after one year in the KHL after being drafted Matvei Michkov is expected to sign with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Heading into the 2024-25 NHL season the list of favorites to win the Calder Memorial Trophy will be as wide open as ever. The list will include names like presumptive 2024 first overall selection Macklin Celebrini, his teammate Will Smith, former Flyers prospect Cutter Gauthier, and of course Matvei Michkov as well as many more.
Each of these players will go through their ups and downs as a rookie but the true determination will likely be made by who is most consistent. Whether that be consistent through playing time, performance, or both. All of these players have the opportunity to be franchise-changing talents whichever player succeeds at that will likely come home with the award.
As the season begins it will be fascinating to see which of these rookies takes the league by storm and joins names like Connor Bedard, Cale Makar, and Auston Matthews as Calder Memorial Trophy winners.
