Flyers Defenseman Uses His Journey From Russia To Help Michkov Adjust To America

Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Egor Zamula spoke after training camp on Friday about how he's helped fellow Russian Matvei Michkov settle into his new surroundings, and detailed his own journey of being a young player having to find his way in a completely new culture.

Egor Zamula, Philadelphia Flyers

(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Zamula said that it was difficult to have only one other Russian player on the Flyers last year (forward Denis Gurianov), noting that "when you come home after bad games, you want to speak to somebody, and you [end up] talking with your TV or chair. It's very tough."

This season, Zamula has two other Russian players to keep him company—goaltender Ivan Fedotov and, of course, Matvei Michkov.

The Russian trio spent a lot of time together over the summer, enjoying Russian dinners cooked by Michkov's mother (who is currently living in the U.S. with him, along with his younger brother) and Fedotov's wife, and even attending the U.S. Open in New York City.

"We hang out together [and] it's always fun," Zamula said. "It's not hard for me to help him because [when I played in the WHL], I didn't have any Russian guys. I tried to do my best and never give up and start to understand my teammates...I never worked with an [English] teacher, just listening to [teammates speaking English] helped me."

This experience has made Zamula sympathetic to Michkov's adjustment process, as he embraces his unofficial role of, as some have joked, "personal assistant."

"I understand how hard it is, and I do my best to try and help him get comfortable here," he said. "It's different for him, but he will be fine."

Multiple coaches and teammates have stated that Michkov's English has improved immensely, and that he seems to understand what's being spoken to him and is getting better at being able to respond in English as well.

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