HALIFAX - During the weeks Robert Mueller laid in a hospital bed, he thought about little other than hockey.

He had undergone surgery to remove a malignant brain tumour in November 2006 and was already planning his comeback. Many people were concerned that the German League goaltender might not survive while he was worrying about making his next start.

"No, not one second did I think (I wouldn't be back)," said Mueller. "I love this game and it was for sure a big support for me to have thoughts of playing hockey again. That's why I wasn't nervous or had fear at all."

A year and a half later, the 27-year-old is a member of the German team at the IIHF World Hockey Championship. He's the No. 2 man behind Dmitri Patzold but was in net for the team's lone victory so far - a 4-2 upset of Slovakia earlier this week.

His...