Hockey

Hello everyone! Welcome back to EnglishPod! My name is Marco.

And I’m Erica.

And today we’re gonna be bringing you another great sports lesson.

Yes, this one is for all our hockey fans.

I know we have a lot of listeners from Russia, so this is a very popular sport in Russia, Czech Republic…

Yes.

So…

And Canada.

And Canada, right.

Uhu.

Very very popular in Canada.

It’s our national game.

Hehe. Well, I guess cause you guys have so much ice.

I know, there’s nothing else to do.

Skiing and hockey.

Uh.

Alright, so, it’s gonna be a really fun lesson, we’re gonna have a lot of great vocabulary, so… before we start in the dialogue let’s take a look at “vocabulary preview”. Voice: Vocabulary preview.

We have three words for you now, um, the first one really simple, puck.

Puck.

Puck.

Puck.

P-U-C-K. Puck.

So, it’s almost like duck.

Aha.

But with the P.

Yes.

And this is actually kind of like the ball that you use in hockey.

But it’s not as ball.

But it’s not as ball.

It’s flat.

It’s flat.

And round.

And round.

Uh.

So. It looks like a disk.

Uhu.

Kind of like mini frisbie.

Yes.

And this is what the players do, this is what they…

They chase this around.

They chase it, right.

Yeah.

So in basketball you have a ball, in soccer you have a ball, in hockey you have a puck.

Yep.

Okay, our next word…

Key game.

A key game.

A key game.

So, this word key…

Important.

Means important, right?

Really important.

Really important.

Yeah.

So I can say a key game is a really important game.

Exactly. You could also maybe say a key player.

Key player is a really important player.

Uhu, or even a key goal.

A key goal, okay. So, let’s take a look at our last word now, finals.

Finals.

Finals.

The finals.

So, the finals are the last games.

That’s right., um, and the winner of the finals wins the championship.

Okay. For example, in the World Cup in soccer…

Uhu.

There’s only one game played in the finals. So, after everyone gets eliminated there’s the one game where the winner is the champion.

Yes.

Okay. So, now we’re ready to listen to our dialogue and it’s gonna be a little bit faster than usual…

Uhu.

Because it’s a sport commentator, right?

And it’s exciting.

And it’s exciting.

Yeah.

And there’s a lot of action, so don’t worry about listen to it and then we’ll come back and talk about some of the vocabulary.

Alright, so the Canadians versus the Russians, ha?

It reminds me of a classic classic game.

Exactly, the classic match.

Yeah.

So let’s take a look at some of the vocabulary that we heard in the dialogue in “language takeaway”. Voice: Language takeaway.

We have five phrases in language takeaway today, um, and the first one is face off.

Face off.

Face off.

Face off.

So, Marco, a face off here is a noun, right?

It’s a noun…

Uh.

Exactly. And it’s… so in the beginning of the match the two players will stand face to face.

Yes.

Right, that’s why it’s called kind of a face off.

Uhu.

And the referee will drop the puck.

Yes.

And they’ll try to get it.

Exactly, so that’s the face off.

That’s the face off.

Yeah.

Okay, let’s take a look at our next word, check.

Check.

To check.

To check. So an interesting verb here, hey?

It… yeah, it’s really interesting because it’s different from the way that you would say check or revise, right?

Yes, yep.

This is actually kind of a violent move.

Yeah. So what do you do?

So basically in hockey you take your body and you hit another person with it.

Okay, so, to check someone is to hit them with you body.

With your body, right.

Aha.

You can’t use your arms or your legs or your hands, you can only hit them like with your shoulder or your… or your hip.

Yeah.

Sort of hip check.

Okay.

So, yeah. It’s very cool.

Alright.

Our net word, goalie.

Goalie.

Goalie.

Goalie.

A goalie is a person.

Right.

And probably the bravest…

Yeah.

Of the hockey match.

No kidding.

So, why don’t you tell us what the goalie does?

Um, the goalie prevents the puck from coming in the net.

From going into the goal, right?

Yeah, so the goalie stops the other team from getting a goal.

A goal.

Yep.

Okay, so, the goalie prevents the goals.

Uhu.

Alright, very interesting. Now, our fourth word is related to goalie.

Yes.

Save.

Save.

Save.

A save.

A save, right?

Yeah, it’s a noun here.

It’s a noun here. So, the goalie makes saves.

That’s right. When he stops a goal he makes a save.

Makes a save, right.

Yeah, yeah.

Okay, we have some examples, so we can understand this form of using save.

Yes. Voice: Example one.

That was an unbelievable save! Voice: Example two.

The goalie didn’t make the save. Voice: Example three.

What a save! The Russians win!

Yeah, a little bit unusual hear that save is a noun instead of a verb but I think those examples were helpful.

Uhu.

Uhu.

Now let’s take a look at our last word. Breakaway.

Breakaway.

Breakaway.

A breakaway.

Okay, so you have two words there that we know already. Break.

Yes.

Right. And away.

Yep.

So what do these two words together actually mean?

Well, imagine a group of hockey players all fighting to get the puck, right?

Uhu.

And then one player breaks off… breaks out…

Escapes.

Of the group, yeah, yeah-yeah. And he is… he skates down the ice and he has the puck.

Uhu.

And he’s far away from the other players.

Right, right, so he’s going away from the other players by himself.

Yeah.

Okay, so breakaway.

Uhu.

Alright. So, we’ve looked at a lot of hockey language here.

Yep.

And I think it’s time now to listen to our dialogue again. This time we’re gonna slow it down a little bit.

Yes. I think this will help you to understand these words a little bit better. DIALOGUE, SECOND TIME (slow)

Okay, this dialogue is interesting because we have commentators narrating or describing what’s happening.

Yeah.

In that moment, right?

Yeah, and they’re using some interesting grammar, aren’t they?

Exactly, they are, because some actions are happening in that moment, but… we noticed something a little bit strange.

Alright, well, let’s look at it in “grammar breakdown”. Voice: Grammar breakdown.

Okay, let’s listen to this sentence that we previously heard in the dialogue. Sentence 1: Maurice Richard has the puck now and passes it to the center, he shoots! Maurice Richard has the puck now and passes it to the center, he shoots!

I noticed that he’s using the present simple, right?

Yeah.

Yeah, even though the action is now…

Uhu.

It’s in present simple.

Yes, even though the action is happening in that moment he’s not using the present progressive…

Yeah.

Or the present continuous [NOTE: present progressive = present continuous]

Yep.

This is because, if you noticed, the actions are very very brief.

And fast.

And fast.

And exciting.

Exactly.

Uhu.

So you… don’t really have enough time to say, for, example, he is shooting… right?

Yes.

Because it’s only one quick action, he shoots the puck very fast.

Uhu.

Right. Or for example, you wouldn’t really say he is passing.

Yeah, he is passing the puck.

Right. It’s just one quick action, he takes it and he passes it and the action is finished.

Yes, I think we can see a few more examples of this. Let’s listen again. Sentence 2: The Russians win possession and immediately set up their attack. The Russians win possession and immediately set up their attack.

Here we can hear that he’s using the present simple again, because these are very short actions that finished quickly, right?

Exactly.

And it… it’s actually very very common when you’re describing something you see…

Uhu.

That’s happening now…

Uhu.

That’s really exciting, it’s common to use present simple.

Exactly, if you pay attention, most sporting events are in the same way, right?

Yep, uhu.

Ah, they would describe the actions that are happening in the present simple.

Yep.

Not present progressive.

Yeah, but Marco, you have an example of, um… up some present progressive here, right?

Yes, let’s listen to this sentence. Sentence 3: He is flying down the ice. He is flying down the ice.

Now, we heard this sentence he is flying down the ice.

Uhu.

Right. Now this one in the progressive.

Yeah, why is that?

Well, first of all, when we say he’s flying down the ice is not that he’s literally flying, okay?

No, he’s not in the airplane.

He’s just skating really fast…

Yep.

Right. So we kind of exaggerate and we say oh, he’s flying down the ice, but he’s actually skating…

Uhu.

So, this is a progressive action…

So, it’s…

He is doing it.

It’s happening for more than one second.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Exactly. So that’s why we would say he’s flying down the ice instead of he flies down the ice.

Yes.

Right.

Yep.

Unless he was like really really really fast.

Yeah.

Okay.

Okay, so here we see that sometimes in English we do use present simple to talk about what’s happening now, right?

Uhu.

When it happens really really quickly.

Uhu.

Or when we want to show that it’s really exciting.

Exactly.

Yep.

Makes it much more exciting if we just use the present simple.

Yeah.

Okay, let’s listen to this exciting dialogue one more time and we’ll come back and talk a little bit more.

Alright, so hockey is the Canadian national sport.

Well, actually it isn’t…

It isn’t.

The national sport, yeah.

What is it?

Lacrosse isn’t…

Lacrosse!

Yeah, but anyway, we’re not… we don’t have a lesson about lacrosse today.

Not yet.

No, um, but actually all Canadians love hockey.

Uhu.

Like we start playing hockey when we’re about two years old.

Yeah, I’ve heard that…

Yeah.

I’ve heard that, ah, some Canadian children learn how to skate before they learn how to walk.

It’s totally common.

Hehe. Well, it’s a great sport, very very exciting, it’s very fast paced.

Uhu.

And it’s very aggressive, that’s what I like about it.

I know.

Not violent, but very aggressive.

Yep, but you know what, I must tell you that I’m not a good Canadian, um…

You’re not a hockey fan?

No, I’m not.

Really?

Yeah, I really… I really hate hockey.

Why?

Um, I… you know what the puck is so small, it’s hard to see where it is on the ice and it’s cold and… these guys are fighting and anyway.

Hehe. Have you ever been on a hockey game?

Yeah, um…

Yeah.

Many times and I just find that the puck is really small.

Hehe. Maybe you just need better seats.

Maybe.

Hehe. Well, what do you guys think about hock? We’ll post some… some videos and some pictures of hockey on… on the comment sections, so you more or less see a little bit more about this really interesting sport and tell us what you think about it.

Yeah. So visit our website englishpod.com and you’ll find some interesting stuff about hockey, right?

Exactly.

Um, and also lots of other great lessons.

I exactly… and also if you have any questions or doubts about the lesson you can leave your questions on the site.

Uhu.

Alright, we’re out of time, we’ll se you guys next time.

Thanks for listening and… Good bye!

Bye!