The Philadelphia Flyers snapped a six-game losing streak Thursday night, defeating the Montreal Canadiens 6-4 in their first game following the morning dismissal of head coach John Tortorella.
Matvei Michkov led the Flyers with two goals and an assist under interim coach Brad Shaw.
The 19-year-old Russian rookie opened the scoring just 1:55 into the first period, assisted on Sean Couturier’s first of two goals, and added his 22nd goal of the season in the third period.
Tortorella had faced criticism for his handling of Michkov, frequently scratching the forward or limiting his ice time as part of what the coach described as a tough-love development approach.
Michkov logged 20:29 of ice time against Montreal, recording six shots.
Nicolas Deslauriers and Tyson Foerster also scored for Philadelphia, while goaltender Samuel Ersson made 26 saves in the victory.
The Canadiens, who suffered their fourth consecutive loss, got goals from Alex Newhook, Cole Caufield, Patrik Laine and Christian Dvorak. Goaltender Jakub Dobes stopped 24 shots.
Michkov’s opening goal came when he shoveled the puck high into the net past Dobes to give the Flyers an early advantage they wouldn’t relinquish.
The Flyers had lost 11 of their last 12 games under Tortorella before his firing.
Montreal currently holds the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Canadiens visit Ottawa on Friday night, while the Flyers host Buffalo on Saturday.
