Mikhail Yegorov navigated a mid-season jump to NCAA stardom, thriving with Boston University and earning a National Championship bid.
Advancing from junior hockey to the NCAA is hard enough on its own. Doing it midseason takes it to another level. But that's exactly what Mikhail "Big Mike" Yegorov did last season.
After starting the campaign with the USHL's Omaha Lancers, Yegorov joined Boston University (BU) for the Spring 2025 Semester. Yegorov not only survived, but thrived, starting games for the Terriers on a regular basis. His performance helped them to a 2025 National Championship appearance. He was candid about the abrupt transition with me.
"It was obviously hard and very rapid at first coming from Omaha, and right away, playing, practicing and playing with first round picks, a great team overall," said Yegorov. "I kind of looked at those guys thinking, 'Oh, my God, they're insane.' But then I quickly adjusted to the speed and to the power of them. They all treated me amazing, so I became part of the team... It was so fast that I couldn't really reflect on that."
The St. Petersburg native has learned quite a bit while completing his first full season at Boston University. Specifically, Yegorov told me he matured a lot and became a better leader, calling it a "very philosophical" year.
Away from Agganis Arena, Yegorov is like many other college students. He has school, hangs out with teammates and enjoys video games. Educationally, Yegorov is on track to graduate in two and half years, majoring in economics and math. Due to Yegorov's numerous math classes, a "good chunk" of his time is spent on school.
Yegorov sees some athletic similarities between his game and one of his Russian countrymen playing in the NHL, but says his main area of on-ice focus is to be more structured in net.
"My main strength is my athleticism and how big I am, how well I'm moving in the net, how fast I am," Yegorov said. "I think that part of my game is similar to (Andrei) Vasilevsky's. I can move obvious, not as fast as he does, but I can say that we have some similarities...I am trying to move my game towards a more structured approach, and I think we're doing a good job on that with my goalie coach."
One of the biggest entities in his corner is the New Jersey Devils, who selected Yegorov in the 2nd Round (49th Overall) of the 2024 NHL Draft. Yegorov praised New Jersey and their place as a sounding board in his development as he heads into his junior year this fall.
"The Devils are always there for me and they help me grow," Yegorov said. "They're a huge resource to me. It's awesome just to have them, you know, and they don't really interfere a lot with my development. At the same time, they're always around, and I can feel that they're watching in a good way."
Seeing Yegorov's poised demeanor last year before and after going to Boston, I know when Big Mike puts his mind to something, it usually gets done. He lauded the fans for their support, and is excited to get back to business this fall. The Devils have their goalie of the future, ready to continue blooming at Boston University.