“His call-up was well deserved because he put the work in and has the work ethic.” Torchetti said. “He put in his time in practice and in preparation for his game. Now he has to keep on being consistent here. I think he is capable of it.”
Freddy Chabot, the Wild’s goaltending development coach, agreed. He said Michalek’s temperament and his eagerness to improve his skills and goaltending strategies are major factors in his quick rise from playing major college hockey last year at Harvard.
“Michalek has a really good demeanor so when he makes a mistake or has a bad day he seems to get over it quickly,” Chabot said. “He doesn’t criticize, he doesn’t whine. He works and competes every day.”
Michalek said that he didn’t always have that focus, but that a searing and embarrassing mistake he made in 2012 while at Harvard contributed substantially to his maturing as player and person.
“A few of us got into trouble with the school for academic dishonesty on a take home test,” Michalek said. “It was an unfortunate situation and I definitely could have handled it better. I served a one-year suspension.”