Seven-Time Champion Maria Batalova Is Ready for Her Next Challenge: The 2026 PWHL Draft
- Daria Mironova
- May 11
- 4 min read
For years, Maria Batalova has been one of the faces of women’s hockey in Russia - a cornerstone of Agidel Ufa and the national team, a dominant two-way defenseman, and now a seven-time Women’s Hockey League (ZhHL) champion.
This season added even more hardware to an already loaded resume: Best Defenseman in the league, Coaches’ Player of the Year, and another championship trophy.
But now, Batalova is preparing for something bigger.
After conquering Russian hockey, the 29-year-old star says she will officially enter the 2026 Professional Women's Hockey League Draft, hoping to continue her career in North America.
And she sounds ready for the moment.
“I Never Get Tired of Winning.”
Q: Maria, after another championship and two major individual awards, what does this season mean to you?
Maria Batalova: It means a lot. Especially the award voted on by coaches. Players sometimes vote for teammates or friends, but coaches pay attention to the entire league. They analyze everything. So, when they choose you, it feels really meaningful.
Q: From the outside, Agidel looked dominant again. Was the season tougher than people realized?
Maria Batalova: Definitely tougher.
We had roster changes, new players coming in, players returning from injuries, and others leaving. We basically had to rebuild chemistry throughout the season. There were emotional moments, disagreements, difficult conversations - but that’s part of building a championship team. We demanded the maximum from each other every single day.
Q: When did you start believing another title was coming?
Maria Batalova: After our playoff series against Dynamo. That’s when I felt it internally. I honestly believed we would finish the series quickly.
Q: Your late goal against Dynamo became one of the defining moments of the playoffs.
Maria Batalova: We were losing 1–0 late in the game. Sasha Nesterova made a great pass, and I scored. After that goal, the entire energy changed. You could feel it immediately.
Q: Seven championships. Do trophies still motivate you the same way?
Maria Batalova: Absolutely. I never understand when people say they’ve won enough already. We work the entire season for one thing - to win. That’s the reward for all the sacrifices. I never get tired of winning.
The Grind Behind the Championships
Q: You play huge minutes - close to 30 per game sometimes. How do you maintain that level physically?
Maria Batalova: Years of work. For the last three seasons, I’ve worked consistently with a strength and conditioning coach, and it has completely changed my preparation. We focus on endurance, strength, coordination - everything. At this point, heavy minutes feel normal to me.
Q: What was the hardest part of the season?
Maria Batalova: Without question, the road trip to Krasnoyarsk and Sakhalin, followed immediately by the national team camp.
That stretch was brutal. The constant time zone changes and almost no recovery time. Honestly, there were moments where it felt like your body completely stopped understanding reality. You’d step onto the ice for evening practice, but internally your body thought it was the middle of the night. You’re exhausted, barely awake, but you still have to think quickly, skate hard, execute systems, and compete.
Q: And there still wasn’t much time to recover afterward?
Maria Batalova: None. Right after Sakhalin, we flew to Moscow and immediately went into the national team camp in Novogorsk. The first few days were awful. Especially evening practices - your body just shuts down from fatigue. But you push through it. That’s hockey.
“This Summer, I’m Entering the PWHL Draft.”
Q: You’ve stayed close with Russian players who already made the jump to North America?
Maria Batalova: Of course. We all followed them closely after they were drafted and moved overseas. At first, it was difficult for them to adapt to a new league and a different style of hockey, but they began to perform at their level. I recently spoke with Anna Shokhina about her season and life there. I’m genuinely happy for all of them.
Q: Does seeing them there make you want to test yourself in North America, too?
Maria Batalova: Absolutely. This summer, I’m going to seriously focus on improving my English because I’m officially entering the 2026 PWHL Draft.
Q: That’s a major announcement.
Maria Batalova: Right now, we’re working through all the paperwork and applications. There honestly hasn’t even been time to relax after the season because all my focus is on this opportunity.
Q: Are you nervous about criticism or people doubting the move?
Maria Batalova: Not really. People will always criticize. This season, I heard negative comments directed at Russian players who had already gone overseas - people saying they weren’t succeeding or couldn’t handle the level. But I respect them tremendously because they took a risk. They could have stayed in Russia with stable contracts and comfortable situations, but instead, they challenged themselves in another country and another league. That takes courage.
Q: How difficult do you think the transition to North America will be?
Maria Batalova: Very difficult. It’s not only hockey. It’s a different language, different culture, different mentality. Women’s hockey there gets huge attention - packed arenas, thousands of fans, media coverage, and social media pressure. You have to adjust to all of it at once: teammates, systems, lifestyle, expectations. A lot of people don’t realize how hard that actually is.
Q: And you still want that challenge?
Maria: Of course. If I have the chance to compete at that level, I want to take it.
Maria Batalova doesn’t speak in headlines or dramatic statements. Everything about her approach feels confident, calm, and grounded in work ethic.
But after another title run and now a looming jump toward the Professional Women's Hockey League, one thing is becoming clear: one of Russia’s most accomplished players is ready to test herself on the biggest stage in women’s hockey.
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