Mikhail was always into sports from an early age and was considered by many to be one of the best youth athletes in Vienna. In his early years, he was obsessed with football (soccer) and managed to make Austia Wien youth teams. He met his level there and spent a few years toiling away trying to break through before his family moved to Chicago in his developing years where he picked up hockey and fell in love with the game. He spent hours watching the SHL, years before the Chicago Syndicate were formed, and wanted to be like his idols in Kristian Eriksson (who he had the opportunity play with in his first few years in the SHL) and Lord Pretty Flacko in his prime years. After a year or so, his family returned to Austria where he joined the Vienna Capitals youth teams and started to rise up the ranks, where he ended up playing two years ahead of his own age group at 15 years old. Eventually he ended up getting seen by the SHL and made the move back to North America and the rest is history.