After winning bronze at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, Danish-born Finnish star Michelle Karvinen will soon play at the 2022 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship in Denmark.
photo: Matt Zambonin / HHOF-IIHF Images
It all started in the town of Rodovre. Just west of Copenhagen, it’s the home of the Rodovre Ishockey Klub, which has produced numerous elite hockey players, including Michelle Karvinen, who is widely regarded to be one of the best Finnish national team players of all time.
Born to a Danish mother and Finnish father, Karvinen grew up playing in Denmark. “There was not a lot of girls playing back then, so I was mainly playing with boys. I had a really good childhood there. I actually grew up playing with two guys who have played in the NHL, Mikkel Bodker and Lars Eller. Those two were my linemates growing up.”
Coached by her dad Heikki, who came to Finland as one of the first import players in the ‘70s, Karvinen’s club team competed in a tournament in Finland when she was 12 years old. It was then that Finland first took notice of her.
“We were doing really well. Everybody waskind of wondering how a Danish team could win against these Finnish teams,” said Karvinen. “Then [the Finnish national team coach] found out that my dad was Finnish, and also that I was playing on the team.”
Karvinen was invited to Finland’s U20 camp when she was 13, launching a career in which she has won six World Championship medals and three Olympic medals over 14 seasons, captained an NCAA team, and won league championships in Sweden, Switzerland and Russia (with China’s KRS Vanke Rays).
She also excelled in Denmark’s U20 boy’s league and spent some time in the Danish women’s league early in her career, scoring 29 goals and 22 assists in just eight games in her first full season with Rodovre’s women’s team. At this time in the 2000s, Denmark usually competed in the Division II of the IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship, while Finland was consistently placing third or fourth in the world.
Born to a Danish mother and Finnish father, Karvinen grew up playing in Denmark. “There was not a lot of girls playing back then, so I was mainly playing with boys. I had a really good childhood there. I actually grew up playing with two guys who have played in the NHL, Mikkel Bodker and Lars Eller. Those two were my linemates growing up.”
Coached by her dad Heikki, who came to Finland as one of the first import players in the ‘70s, Karvinen’s club team competed in a tournament in Finland when she was 12 years old. It was then that Finland first took notice of her.
“We were doing really well. Everybody waskind of wondering how a Danish team could win against these Finnish teams,” said Karvinen. “Then [the Finnish national team coach] found out that my dad was Finnish, and also that I was playing on the team.”
Karvinen was invited to Finland’s U20 camp when she was 13, launching a career in which she has won six World Championship medals and three Olympic medals over 14 seasons, captained an NCAA team, and won league championships in Sweden, Switzerland and Russia (with China’s KRS Vanke Rays).
She also excelled in Denmark’s U20 boy’s league and spent some time in the Danish women’s league early in her career, scoring 29 goals and 22 assists in just eight games in her first full season with Rodovre’s women’s team. At this time in the 2000s, Denmark usually competed in the Division II of the IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship, while Finland was consistently placing third or fourth in the world.
Women's Hockey Ambassadors: Michelle Karvinen
Now in her 4th Olympics, Finland's Michelle Karvinen knows what it takes to stay mentally tough through a tournament. With every game, she hopes to inspire the rookies and future generations.
“When I had to decide between Finland and Denmark, it was an easy choice back then because I never thought I would get an opportunity to play in a World Championship at the highest level, or even go to the Olympics [with Denmark].”
Since then, Denmark has seen a meteoric rise through the women’s hockey ranks, something that thrills and excites Karvinen. In 2019, the country earned promotion to the top division for the first time since their World Championship debut in 1992, and competed in their first ever Olympics earlier this year. Now Denmark is hosting the top division of the World Championships, a highly significant opportunity for furthering the growth of hockey amongst Danish girls and women.
“I never thought it would happen, that we would play a Worlds in Denmark, but it’s obviously so special for me, and for the girls who come from Denmark,” said Karvinen, who knows and has played with many of the players on Denmark’s roster throughout her career. With Finland in Group A and Denmark in Group B, whether or not they will meet in the World Championship is yet to be known. They however played a pre-competition exhibition game on Sunday – in Rodovre.
This in many ways feels like a full-circle moment for Karvinen, as she returned to the country and to the town where she first learned to play to compete at the highest level and reunite with teammates, friends and family – which was no doubt extra significant since there were little to no spectators at the 2021 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship or 2022 Olympics due to Covid-19 restrictions.
“My whole family will there, including my grandparents, who are both in their 90s,” Karvinen said before the game. “After everything that the whole world has been going through, it’s nice to kind of be back to normal, but it’s extra special to me because [the people in attendance] will be people that I know and care a lot about.”
The two nations met in their last exhibition game in Rodovre on Sunday evening, which Finland ended up winning 8-0. Karvinen scored a goal on her old home ice.
As for what’s in store for visiting teams, spectators and media? Karvinen believes that with this World Championship being in Denmark, everyone is in for something exceptional.
“We have this word in Danish, it’s called ‘hygge’, and it’s kind of the way of living there. It’s a really warm culture. I think that’s the best way to describe it, and I think that people will feel very welcomed there.”
Since then, Denmark has seen a meteoric rise through the women’s hockey ranks, something that thrills and excites Karvinen. In 2019, the country earned promotion to the top division for the first time since their World Championship debut in 1992, and competed in their first ever Olympics earlier this year. Now Denmark is hosting the top division of the World Championships, a highly significant opportunity for furthering the growth of hockey amongst Danish girls and women.
“I never thought it would happen, that we would play a Worlds in Denmark, but it’s obviously so special for me, and for the girls who come from Denmark,” said Karvinen, who knows and has played with many of the players on Denmark’s roster throughout her career. With Finland in Group A and Denmark in Group B, whether or not they will meet in the World Championship is yet to be known. They however played a pre-competition exhibition game on Sunday – in Rodovre.
This in many ways feels like a full-circle moment for Karvinen, as she returned to the country and to the town where she first learned to play to compete at the highest level and reunite with teammates, friends and family – which was no doubt extra significant since there were little to no spectators at the 2021 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship or 2022 Olympics due to Covid-19 restrictions.
“My whole family will there, including my grandparents, who are both in their 90s,” Karvinen said before the game. “After everything that the whole world has been going through, it’s nice to kind of be back to normal, but it’s extra special to me because [the people in attendance] will be people that I know and care a lot about.”
The two nations met in their last exhibition game in Rodovre on Sunday evening, which Finland ended up winning 8-0. Karvinen scored a goal on her old home ice.
As for what’s in store for visiting teams, spectators and media? Karvinen believes that with this World Championship being in Denmark, everyone is in for something exceptional.
“We have this word in Danish, it’s called ‘hygge’, and it’s kind of the way of living there. It’s a really warm culture. I think that’s the best way to describe it, and I think that people will feel very welcomed there.”