From Las Vegas to the World Championships: Developing the Best Goaltender at the World Championship
From October 2025 through April 2026, I served as the Goaltending Coach and Assistant Coach (coaching the forwards on the bench during games) for the Hungarian Women's National Team.
I traveled to Europe for tournaments in Germany (November), France (December), and Austria (February) as we prepared for the World Championships held in Hungary.
The World Championship schedule is one of the toughest in hockey—five games in seven days. There is almost no time to recover, and no time to waste.
Although our team came up just short and earned the silver medal, I couldn't be more proud of our starting goaltender, Anikó Németh, who played every minute of all five games and was named Team MVP and Best Goalkeeper of the Tournament.
Her tournament accomplishments:
🏆 IIHF Women's World Championship Best Goalkeeper
🥅 5 Games Played in 7 Days
✅ 4 Wins – 1 Loss
📈 .9421 Save Percentage
🚫 1 Shutout
🥅 Only 7 Goals Allowed in 5 Games
Watching Anikó earn this award after months of preparation was an unforgettable moment. She competed with incredible composure, consistency, and confidence against some of the best players in the world.
Anikó's performance reinforced what I believe are the key characteristics every goaltender needs to reach the Next Level:
Compete – Refuse to get scored on in practice and games.
Coachability – Be open-minded, trust your coaches, and continue learning.
Fitness – Put in the work year-round. Prepare properly before every skate, prioritize recovery, and make nutrition a priority.
Resilience – Focus on what went well and what you can improve. Learn to move forward after goals, losses, or setbacks.
Attention to Detail – Every practice, meeting, video session, workout, sleep habit, hydration routine, and preparation detail matters. Focusing on the task at hand and consistently improving the small details is how you get better day by day.
This experience reinforced to me that the same principles apply at every level of hockey. Whether I am preparing a National Team goaltender for the World Championships or helping a beginner goalie in Las Vegas take their first steps in the position, the process remains the same:
Develop the pro habits that make you a skilled and confident goaltender.
Representing Hungary on the international stage was an incredible honor, and I am grateful for the opportunity to work with such an amazing group of athletes and coaches. Coaching at the World Championships made me a better coach for the goalies in Las Vegas and across the world who train with Top Prospects Goaltending.
Ready to build the same habits used at the World Championship level?
At Top Prospects Goaltending, we help goaltenders from beginner to pro develop the habits that make them skilled, confident, and prepared to reach the next level.
Click below to reserve your next goalie lesson, register for a camp, or work with me virtually and start building your pro habits today.
See you at the rink,
Coach Chris Cobb
Top Prospects Goaltending
