Michael Karow Has Bigger Goals than Just Scoring a Goal
Photo By BCEagles.com
Michael Karow has been so close to finally getting the monkey off his back. In overtime of the first round of the Beanpot, he had a great look, but Ashton Abel made a better save. Against Merrimack, he sent one trickling through Jere Huhtamaa’s legs, but the puck died before crossing the goal line (and a quick whistle would’ve negated it anyway). A few posts have also been in his fortunes lately.
But that first collegiate goal isn’t the primary goal for Karow. While Boston College’s junior blue-liner would be happy to break the 105-game scoreless drought, he’s focused on contributing in any way he can to help the Eagles win.
“Some guys get excited scoring goals, and yes I get excited for those too, but it’s just exciting to go out there and have a good shift,” Karow said. “To be able to shut down some other teams’ top lines has been fun.”
Karow, arguably BC’s top defensive defenseman, recognizes that the role he plays isn’t a glamorous one, and he’s fine with that.
“Sometimes a good defensive game means no one notices you, and you fly under the radar by just keeping the other team off the scoreboard and not making a ton of mistakes,” he said.
Growing up in Green Bay, Karow was actually in a position to score a few more goals in his youth; he played forward until he was in eighth grade. Around that time he went through a growth spurt and was one of the bigger kids on the ice. When his coach mentioned a move to the blue line, Karow obliged, just happy to be out there on the ice. As a defenseman he was able to see the ice much better, and he credits the move for helping advance his playing career.
You don’t have to take his word for it, the on-ice success speaks for itself. After all, he’s one of the best defensemen on the No. 4 team in the nation and is an NHL prospect.
When the Arizona Coyotes selected Karow in the fifth round of the 2017 draft, he became just the fifth player to be drafted from Green Bay.
“When each guy comes along and gets drafted, it’s kind of a little bit of a boost to the community,” Karow said. “So it was nice to be able to do that personally, and it’s nice knowing I have a bunch of people there behind me to support me.”
Draft night was an interesting experience for Karow. It wasn’t a certainty he would be drafted at all in 2017, and he certainly wasn’t expecting to get the call from Arizona. When it did, though, Karow was elated; all his hard work had paid off.
“It was a little bit of a surprise when they called my name, but again it’s something you dream about as a little kid,” Karow said. “You always want to be in that position, so it was an awesome experience.”
His future with the Coyotes is a bit uncertain. It’s likely he’ll play out his senior season, meaning his draft rights would expire, and he could sign with any NHL squad. Karow isn’t rated on Arizona’s top prospect boards, but his shutdown defensive skills make him a valuable add for many NHL teams.
He reminds me a lot of the Bruins’ Brandon Carlo, someone who may not show up on the score sheet but has the defensive prowess that is invaluable come playoff time. Pair him with an offensive-minded defenseman, like the Bruins have done with Carlo and Torey Krug, and you’ve got yourself a solid tandem. Just check out this video of Carlo breaking a league-leading 115-game scoreless drought; I fully expect this to be the scene when Karow finally records a goal.
Karow’s recruiting journey was different than that of most of the other players I’ve interviewed. Often I hear players, especially local kids, stick within the Hockey East during their tours. I’ve also learned that it means a lot them when a school is the first one to show interest. Karow, by contrast, criss-crossed the nation on his recruiting tour and chose a school in Boston College that came in relatively late in the process.
In fact, Karow’s name wasn’t on many recruiting boards, or draft boards for that matter, until a standout weekend at the 2017 USHL Fall Classic. It was a time of transition for Karow, who had just moved to Youngstown, OH a few weeks prior to play with the USHL’s Phantoms. But that didn’t stop him from being one of the best players on the ice during his three games that weekend.
“Frankly, I went into it a little naive, just ‘I’m going to go out there and play hockey,’ not realizing who was in the stands,” Karow said.
The NHL and NCAA scouts who were in the stands were quite impressed with what they saw. During the ensuing recruiting process, Karow toured Ohio State, Nebraska-Omaha and UMass Lowell before ultimately deciding on BC.
Despite BC being one of the later schools to throw their name in the hat, the combination of excellent academics and athletics interested Karow. He saw a handful of schools with older history on, but BC offered a school steeped in tradition that included a lot of recent history. BC also presented the opportunity to create history during his four years on campus.
“They showed a lot of genuine interest in me, and BC carries with it a big reputation,” Karow said. “To be able to come to such a good school and such a good program, it was the whole package.”
Karow is the only non-freshman, non-senior on the Eagles blue line. As it stands, he’s in for a big uptick in minutes during his senior campaign. Drew Helleson, Marshall Warren and Mitch Andres will be sophomores, and two freshmen will be coming in. He’ll most certainly see first or second pairing minutes in the future, but for most of the 2019-20 season, Karow has served as BC’s seventh defenseman. Sometimes teams rarely play their extra skater, but Karow’s role doesn’t diminish his ice team, which speaks to his versatility. It’s difficult to switch up defensive pairings, because hockey players are creatures of habit. They get comfortable with their partner and get to know where each other will be on the ice. Karow doesn’t have that one true defensive partner; he can have six on any given night.
“[Being the seventh defenseman] is definitely a little bit of a challenge,” Karow said. “You kind of get used to guys and there tendencies, so you just have to mentally refresh yourself when you hear your name called on the bench. But it’s been fun contributing any way I can to the team.”
That’s exactly what Karow is going to do: give all he can to help this Eagles team win. Whether or not the goal comes is secondary. Bringing home a National Championship comes first.