Tag Archives: hockey

A Little Thoughtfulness Goes a Long Way for a Hockey Fan

Leave a reply
I’ve got a quick story to tell you about some really nice, thoughtful customer service.
I was having lunch today at one of my favourite spots, The Pilot, in Toronto.  If you don’t know this place, it’s one of the oldest pubs in Toronto, opening in 1944, although in a different location.  It honours the WW2 air force pilots. 
I like it because this place always seems to have a great atmosphere to it, and the food is better than your average pub fare for sure, which is important to me.  BTW have you tried their fries?  Outstanding!
Anyway so I’m sitting in the upper dining area by myself, watching boxing on TV while I wait for my burger and fries.  (Don’t worry, I did have my beer already!)  After a quick TKO I think to myself  “Is Canada playing today in the World Juniors (IIHF)?” 
I make a mental note to myself to ask to waitress when she comes back. 
I didn’t get the chance because my food was brought out to me by a guy from the kitchen.  So since I had already NLP-programmed myself to ask my question, I did, even though he was not my server.  He said he wasn’t sure if Team Canada was playing but he would check for me and if it was, change the channel on ‘my’ TV. 
I felt a little guilty after he left because I was sure he had other responsibilities to handle, and after all, he wasn’t my server.  I also told myself not to be upset if he indeed does not come back.
Imagine my pleasant surprise when he came back and informed me that Team Canada wasn’t playing until 8pm in the evening.  I thought that was great he came back, and thanked him.
Then 2 minutes later he returns and says “The other Team Canada is playing, the international league – do you want me to put that on the TV for ya?”  I understood he was referring to the Spengler Cup tourney and immediately said “Sure!”
So I had the pleasure of watching the first period of the game while I ate and relaxed.  I thought that was really considerate and cool of him to come back twice, and it showed empathy and a care for his work environment.  No wonder it is a really popular pub!  Little things make the difference, and little things go a long way in customer satisfaction and loyalty.  I will be going back, of course!
Last thought on this:  Go Team Canada Go!  Both of you!

What’s a Canuck and What’s a Bruin?

Leave a reply

Hi folks.

This blog post is a little late – I should have written it a while ago, but I was busy watching the Stanley Cup playoffs.  Yes I’m referring to our love of hockey, and right now in the NHL there are only 2 teams left – one Canadian and one American.

So if you are currently living or working in one of these countries, or are watching the playoffs because you enjoy hockey, you may be wondering about the strange names of the teams.  We have the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins.  But what do those names mean?

Well first off – the word Canuck is an old word, and is slang.  The exact origins are not clear, but most of the research I’ve done leads me to believe it was first used to refer to early French-Canadians.  However these days Canuck refers to any and all Canadians.

Is it bad, like “Yankee”?

No – 99% of the time we do not take offense to being called a Canuck.  It is a soft term, and not only do we have a very good hockey team named the Canucks, but in our early history we had a character, almost like a super hero, named “Johnny Canuck” who would fight off the invaders of Canada and the Nazis during WW11 in comic books.  As a matter of fact, the current Vancouver Canucks goalie, crowd-favourite Roberto Luongo, has a picture of Johnny Canuck on his goalie mask!  I guess it’s for good luck – we’ll see soon if it works!

What does Bruin mean?  A simple answer is it refers to a bear.  It comes from Reynard’s fables.  How it got to Boston, I’m not sure, but anyway it is a bear.  And right now Boston is playing like bears!

Right now the series is tied 3-3, and the teams are travelling back to Vancouver for the final game 7 on Wednesday to see who will win the Stanley Cup for 2011.  I of course am rooting for (cheering for) Vancouver.  “Go Canucks Go!”

PS – if you are interested in hockey, you can find hockey vocabulary on this blog by searching it.  The more words and phrases you know, the more you will enjoy the game.

Help with Watching & Talking HOCKEY!

Leave a reply

As you watch the 2010 Winter Olympics, there is not a sport more exciting to Canadians than Hockey. Watch the games and learn more with this vocabulary. Ask a Canadian or American to explain the ones you do not know. Enjoy!

PEOPLE
The Referees or “Refs”
The Linesman/men
The Players
The Forwards
The Defense
The Goaltender
The Goalie
The Netminder
The Fans
The Coach
The G.M.
(General Manager)
The Announcer
The Enforcer
The Captain (C)
The Assistant (A)

KEY NOUNS
A Slap/Wrist shot
A Face-off
A Period
A Tie-game
Overtime/Sudden Death
Rebound
The Net
The Puck
The Stick
An Assist
The Boards/Glass
The Rink
A Scrap
Penalty
Power Play
A Shoot-out

KEY VERBS
Hits
Shoots (the puck)
Passes
Skates
Deflects/Redirects/Tips
Scores
Saves
Intercepts
Blocks(the shot)
Checks
Stickhandles/Dekes
Dives
Assists
Ices (the puck)
Elbows
Kill a Penalty

PENALTIES
Roughing
High-sticking
Cross-checking
Hooking
Holding
Tripping
Boarding
Slashing
Unsportsmanlike Conduct
Fighting
2-minute Minor
4-minute Major
(Double Minor)
5-minute Major
10-Minute Misconduct
Game Suspension

EXPRESSIONS YOU MAY HEAR
He/She leads in points/goals/assists/penalty minutes
He/She picks it up
It’s cleared down the ice
He/She plays the puck (around the net)
He/She ices the puck
He/She wins the draw
He’s/She’s knocked down/out
S/He shoots, S/he scores!
Oh what a save!
Glove-save!
S/He Flashes the leather!
What’s the score?
Just wide of the post
It hit the crossbar
Dropped the gloves
Fires a rocket
Ran (him/her) into the boards
It’s the go-ahead goal
They blew a 3-0 lead

The Russian people are great!

2 Replies

Say what you will about the Russian gov’t, the military and some parts of history, but the Russian people are quite okay in my books.

Thursday I was invited over to a student’s house with her hubby and a few others to eat and drink. I FINALLY had Russian vodka. Predictably, the girls drank cocktails (I introduced them to cape cods: vodka, cranberry juice and lime) and the guys drank straight vodka in shots. The rules were simple. No one drinks alone. A toast or 2 comes before the drink, and after the shot you can chase it with juice or eat a pickle, tomato or fish and onions. (Similar to mackerel??). I held my own (naturally….) and we exchanged language, jokes and legends of hockey. Yes sir – they still remember 1972.

Afterwards one of the guys who is also a student of the English training for managers program insisted on accompanying me home via taxi to ensure I did not get ‘kidnapped’. Before leaving we stopped by his (and his wife’s) flat a few floors below, and when they opened the door I was stunned. What was hanging on the coat rack? A Toronto Maple Leafs cap! WOW! He smiled and told me he also has a jersey to match. This I have to capture on film. So he invited me to come by sometime for Cuban cigars and cognac and we can take some pictures. He also gave me a Cuban for the road.

He and his wife took me home and even insisted on paying for my cab! Amazing generosity. All I can do is thank them, be a good teacher and try to repay them when given a chance – which will hopefully be soon. Russians and Canadians mix well – like ice and hockey I suppose.

Tomorrow I am going to do some more site-seeing and picture-taking. I’ll be in touch.