M: Hello everyone! Welcome back to EnglishPod! My name is Marco. 
E: And I’m Erica. 
M: And today we’re gonna be bringing you another great sports lesson. 
E: Yes, this one is for all our hockey fans. 
M: I know we have a lot of listeners from Russia, so this is a very popular sport in Russia, 
Czech Republic… 
E: Yes. 
M: So… 
E: And Canada. 
M: And Canada, right. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Very very popular in Canada. 
E: It’s our national game. 
M: Hehe. Well, I guess cause you guys have so much ice. 
E: I know, there’s nothing else to do. 
M: Skiing and hockey.  
E: Uh. 
M: 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. 
E: We have three words for you now, um, the first one really simple, puck. 
M: Puck. 
E: Puck. 
M: Puck. 
E: P-U-C-K. Puck. 
M: So, it’s almost like duck. 
E: Aha. 
M: But with the P. 
E: Yes. 
M: And this is actually kind of like the ball that you use in hockey. 
E: But it’s not as ball. 
M: But it’s not as ball. 
E: It’s flat. 
M: It’s flat. 
E: And round. 
M: And round. 
E: Uh. 
M: So. It looks like a disk. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Kind of like mini frisbie. 
E: Yes. 
M: And this is what the players do, this is what they… 
E: They chase this around. 
M: They chase it, right. 
E: Yeah. 
M: So in basketball you have a ball, in soccer you have a ball, in hockey you have a puck. 
E: Yep. 
M: Okay, our next word… 
E: Key game. 
M: A key game. 
E: A key game. 
M: So, this word key… 
E: Important. 
M: Means important, right? 
E: Really important. 
M: Really important. 
E: Yeah. 
M: So I can say a key game is a really important game. 
E: Exactly. You could also maybe say a key player. 
M: Key player is a really important player. 
E: Uhu, or even a key goal. 
M: A key goal, okay. So, let’s take a look at our last word now, finals. 
E: Finals. 
M: Finals. 
E: The finals. 
M: So, the finals are the last games. 
E: That’s right., um, and the winner of the finals wins the championship. 
M: Okay. For example, in the World Cup in soccer… 
E: Uhu. 
M: 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. 
E: Yes. 
M: Okay. So, now we’re ready to listen to our dialogue and it’s gonna be a little bit faster 
than usual… 
E: Uhu. 
M: Because it’s a sport commentator, right? 
E: And it’s exciting. 
M: And it’s exciting. 
E: Yeah. 
M: 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. 
A: Hello everyone! I’m Rick Fields, and here with me
is Bob Copeland.
B: Howdy folks, and welcome to today’s game! You
know, Rick, today is a key game between Russia
and Canada. As you know, the winner will move
on to the finals.
A: That’s right, and it looks like we’re just about ready
to start the match. The ref is calling the players for
the face-off... and here we go! The Russians win
possession and immediately set up their attack!
Federov gets checked hard into the boards!
B: Maurice Richard has the puck now, and passes it
to the center. He shoots! Wow what a save by the
goalie!
A: Alright, the puck is back in play now. Pavel Bure
is on a breakaway! He is flying down the ice! The
defenders can’t keep up! Slap shot! He scores
B: What an amazing goal!
 
M: Alright, so the Canadians versus the Russians, ha? 
E: It reminds me of a classic classic game. 
M: Exactly, the classic match. 
E: Yeah. 
M: So let’s take a look at some of the vocabulary that we heard in the dialogue in 
“language takeaway”. 
Voice: Language takeaway. 
E: We have five phrases in language takeaway today, um, and the first one is face off. 
M: Face off. 
E: Face off. 
M: Face off. 
E: So, Marco, a face off here is a noun, right? 
M: It’s a noun… 
E: Uh. 
M: Exactly. And it’s… so in the beginning of the match the two players will stand face to 
face. 
E: Yes. 
M: Right, that’s why it’s called kind of a face off. 
E: Uhu. 
M: And the referee will drop the puck. 
E: Yes. 
M: And they’ll try to get it. 
E: Exactly, so that’s the face off. 
M: That’s the face off. 
E: Yeah. 
M: Okay, let’s take a look at our next word, check. 
E: Check. 
M: To check. 
E: To check. So an interesting verb here, hey? 
M: It… yeah, it’s really interesting because it’s different from the way that you would say 
check or revise, right? 
E: Yes, yep. 
M: This is actually kind of a violent move. 
E: Yeah. So what do you do? 
M: So basically in hockey you take your body and you hit another person with it. 
E: Okay, so, to check someone is to hit them with you body. 
M: With your body, right. 
E: Aha. 
M: 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. 
E: Yeah. 
M: Sort of hip check. 
E: Okay. 
M: So, yeah. It’s very cool. 
E: Alright. 
M: Our net word, goalie. 
E: Goalie. 
M: Goalie. 
E: Goalie. 
M: A goalie is a person. 
E: Right. 
M: And probably the bravest… 
E: Yeah. 
M: Of the hockey match. 
E: No kidding. 
M: So, why don’t you tell us what the goalie does? 
E: Um, the goalie prevents the puck from coming in the net. 
M: From going into the goal, right? 
E: Yeah, so the goalie stops the other team from getting a goal. 
M: A goal. 
E: Yep. 
M: Okay, so, the goalie prevents the goals.  
E: Uhu. 
M: Alright, very interesting. Now, our fourth word is related to goalie. 
E: Yes. 
M: Save. 
E: Save. 
M: Save. 
E: A save. 
M: A save, right? 
E: Yeah, it’s a noun here. 
M: It’s a noun here. So, the goalie makes saves. 
E: That’s right. When he stops a goal he makes a save. 
M: Makes a save, right. 
E: Yeah, yeah. 
M: Okay, we have some examples, so we can understand this form of using save. 
E: Yes. 
Voice: Example one. 
A: That was an unbelievable save! 
Voice: Example two. 
B: The goalie didn’t make the save. 
Voice: Example three. 
C: What a save! The Russians win! 
E: Yeah, a little bit unusual hear that save is a noun instead of a verb but I think those 
examples were helpful. 
M: Uhu. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Now let’s take a look at our last word. Breakaway. 
E: Breakaway. 
M: Breakaway. 
E: A breakaway. 
M: Okay, so you have two words there that we know already. Break. 
E: Yes. 
M: Right. And away. 
E: Yep. 
M: So what do these two words together actually mean? 
E: Well, imagine a group of hockey players all fighting to get the puck, right? 
M: Uhu. 
E: And then one player breaks off… breaks out… 
M: Escapes. 
E: Of the group, yeah, yeah-yeah. And he is… he skates down the ice and he has the puck. 
M: Uhu. 
E: And he’s far away from the other players. 
M: Right, right, so he’s going away from the other players by himself. 
E: Yeah. 
M: Okay, so breakaway. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Alright. So, we’ve looked at a lot of hockey language here. 
E: Yep. 
M: And I think it’s time now to listen to our dialogue again. This time we’re gonna slow it 
down a little bit. 
E: Yes. I think this will help you to understand these words a little bit better. 
A: Hello everyone! I’m Rick Fields, and here with me
is Bob Copeland.
B: Howdy folks, and welcome to today’s game! You
know, Rick, today is a key game between Russia
and Canada. As you know, the winner will move
on to the finals.
A: That’s right, and it looks like we’re just about ready
to start the match. The ref is calling the players for
the face-off... and here we go! The Russians win
possession and immediately set up their attack!
Federov gets checked hard into the boards!
B: Maurice Richard has the puck now, and passes it
to the center. He shoots! Wow what a save by the
goalie!
A: Alright, the puck is back in play now. Pavel Bure
is on a breakaway! He is flying down the ice! The
defenders can’t keep up! Slap shot! He scores
B: What an amazing goal!
 
M: Okay, this dialogue is interesting because we have commentators narrating or 
describing what’s happening. 
E: Yeah. 
M: In that moment, right? 
E: Yeah, and they’re using some interesting grammar, aren’t they? 
M: Exactly, they are, because some actions are happening in that moment, but… we noticed 
something a little bit strange. 
E: Alright, well, let’s look at it in “grammar breakdown”. 
Voice: Grammar breakdown. 
M: 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! 
E: I noticed that he’s using the present simple, right? 
M: Yeah. 
E: Yeah, even though the action is now… 
M: Uhu. 
E: It’s in present simple. 
M: Yes, even though the action is happening in that moment he’s not using the present 
progressive… 
E: Yeah. 
M: Or the present continuous [NOTE: present progressive = present continuous] 
E: Yep. 
M: This is because, if you noticed, the actions are very very brief. 
E: And fast. 
M: And fast. 
E: And exciting. 
M: Exactly. 
E: Uhu. 
M: So you… don’t really have enough time to say, for, example, he is shooting… right? 
E: Yes. 
M: Because it’s only one quick action, he shoots the puck very fast. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Right. Or for example, you wouldn’t really say he is passing. 
E: Yeah, he is passing the puck. 
M: Right. It’s just one quick action, he takes it and he passes it and the action is finished. 
E: 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. 
E: Here we can hear that he’s using the present simple again, because these are very 
short actions that finished quickly, right? 
M: Exactly. 
E: And it… it’s actually very very common when you’re describing something you see… 
M: Uhu. 
E: That’s happening now… 
M: Uhu. 
E: That’s really exciting, it’s common to use present simple. 
M: Exactly, if you pay attention, most sporting events are in the same way, right? 
E: Yep, uhu. 
M: Ah, they would describe the actions that are happening in the present simple. 
E: Yep. 
M: Not present progressive. 
E: Yeah, but Marco, you have an example of, um… up some present progressive here, 
right? 
M: Yes, let’s listen to this sentence. 
Sentence 3: He is flying down the ice. He is flying down the ice. 
M: Now, we heard this sentence he is flying down the ice. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Right. Now this one in the progressive. 
E: Yeah, why is that? 
M: Well, first of all, when we say he’s flying down the ice is not that he’s literally flying, 
okay? 
E: No, he’s not in the airplane. 
M: He’s just skating really fast… 
E: Yep. 
M: Right. So we kind of exaggerate and we say oh, he’s flying down the ice, but he’s 
actually skating…  
E: Uhu. 
M: So, this is a progressive action… 
E: So, it’s… 
M: He is doing it. 
E: It’s happening for more than one second. 
M: Yeah. 
E: Yeah. 
M: Exactly. So that’s why we would say he’s flying down the ice instead of he flies 
down the ice. 
E: Yes. 
M: Right. 
E: Yep. 
M: Unless he was like really really really fast. 
E: Yeah. 
M: Okay. 
E: Okay, so here we see that sometimes in English we do use present simple to talk about 
what’s happening now, right? 
M: Uhu. 
E: When it happens really really quickly. 
M: Uhu. 
E: Or when we want to show that it’s really exciting. 
M: Exactly. 
E: Yep. 
M: Makes it much more exciting if we just use the present simple. 
E: Yeah. 
M: Okay, let’s listen to this exciting dialogue one more time and we’ll come back and talk a 
little bit more. 
A: Hello everyone! I’m Rick Fields, and here with me
is Bob Copeland.
B: Howdy folks, and welcome to today’s game! You
know, Rick, today is a key game between Russia
and Canada. As you know, the winner will move
on to the finals.
A: That’s right, and it looks like we’re just about ready
to start the match. The ref is calling the players for
the face-off... and here we go! The Russians win
possession and immediately set up their attack!
Federov gets checked hard into the boards!
B: Maurice Richard has the puck now, and passes it
to the center. He shoots! Wow what a save by the
goalie!
A: Alright, the puck is back in play now. Pavel Bure
is on a breakaway! He is flying down the ice! The
defenders can’t keep up! Slap shot! He scores
B: What an amazing goal!
 
M: Alright, so hockey is the Canadian national sport. 
E: Well, actually it isn’t… 
M: It isn’t. 
E: The national sport, yeah. 
M: What is it? 
E: Lacrosse isn’t… 
M: Lacrosse! 
E: Yeah, but anyway, we’re not… we don’t have a lesson about lacrosse today. 
M: Not yet. 
E: No, um, but actually all Canadians love hockey. 
M: Uhu. 
E: Like we start playing hockey when we’re about two years old. 
M: Yeah, I’ve heard that… 
E: Yeah. 
M: I’ve heard that, ah, some Canadian children learn how to skate before they learn 
how to walk. 
E: It’s totally common. 
M: Hehe. Well, it’s a great sport, very very exciting, it’s very fast paced. 
E: Uhu. 
M: And it’s very aggressive, that’s what I like about it. 
E: I know. 
M: Not violent, but very aggressive. 
E: Yep, but you know what, I must tell you that I’m not a good Canadian, um… 
M: You’re not a hockey fan? 
E: No, I’m not. 
M: Really? 
E: Yeah, I really… I really hate hockey. 
M: Why? 
E: 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. 
M: Hehe. Have you ever been on a hockey game? 
E: Yeah, um… 
M: Yeah. 
E: Many times and I just find that the puck is really small. 
M: Hehe. Maybe you just need better seats. 
E: Maybe. 
M: 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. 
E: Yeah. So visit our website englishpod.com and you’ll find some interesting stuff about 
hockey, right? 
M: Exactly. 
E: Um, and also lots of other great lessons. 
M: I exactly… and also if you have any questions or doubts about the lesson you can leave 
your questions on the site. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Alright, we’re out of time, we’ll se you guys next time. 
E: Thanks for listening and… Good bye! 
M: Bye!