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Foreign exchange

For European hockey players who come to North America, their English skills can prove to be just as important as their hockey skills in adjusting to life in the NHL.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO

© St. Petersburg Times,
published September 23, 2001

Imagine it is your first day of work. You walk into your new office and realize you can't communicate with your co-workers ... or your boss.

Even the very thing you have been hired to do is different from how you have been taught.

Now you know how many Europeans feel when they come to North America to play hockey and are faced with a language they don't understand, a culture some have never experienced and a style of play that, in many cases, runs counter to their understanding of the game.

With the fall of communism and greater attention to scouting across the Atlantic, the NHL, the minor leagues and even Canada's junior leagues are more of a melting pot than ever.

The Lightning, for example, has players in its organization from Russia, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and Slovakia.

Most have learned English, but some, like 18-year-old Russian left wing Evgeni Artukhin and 20-year-old Swedish defenseman Henrik Bergfors, do not speak the language.

That not only hurts when the coach is explaining the fine points of the game, it makes it difficult to do everyday things such as opening a bank account or buying a car.

Some players are surprised by the differences in the game; the smaller NHL rinks, the speed of the game, the physical play and the strategy. It's a dump-and-chase game in the NHL compared to Europe, where, according to Tampa Bay right wing Jimmie Olvestad, a native of Sweden, "you try to pass and make a play."

"It's tough for the Europeans. I know they're at a disadvantage when they come here," Lightning coach John Tortorella said. "But this is the NHL. Things happen quickly, and you've got to jump aboard.

"If you miss the boat, you miss an opportunity."

Phil Thibodeau, director of team services, said the Lightning wants players to make the most of that opportunity, so it hires tutors to help them learn English.

He said the tutors usually get great results. One only has to chat with minor-league goaltender Evgeny Konstantinov, a Russian who could barely speak a word of English last season, to see the effects.

One notable failure was Alexander Kharitonov. Thibodeau said the former Lightning right wing, now with the Islanders, never got comfortable with English.

The problem: Kharitonov brought his wife and young son from Russia and spoke only his native language at home. He also befriended Russian players such as Andrei Zyuzin, Nikolai Khabibulin and former Lightning defenseman Sergey Gusev.

While those players speak English well, "When they're together, they're going to speak Russian no matter how much we tell them to speak English," Thibodeau said.

"I think that hurt him," Tortorella said. "But the onus goes on the player here. You just can't bob your head up and down and say, 'I know' and then go out there and not know.

"You have to find a way to get this accomplished because there are 23 other players the coaching staff has to worry about. They can't be always on that person."

Lightning right wing Nikita Alexeev said he was so determined to learn English when he arrived from Russia as a 16-year-old, he went to the movies three or four times a week.

He said he learned the language in about three months.

"It was important to understand people. It is part of life, to live," said Alexeev, now 19.

How do European players live while trying to acclimate? Some snapshots:

Zyuzin, who spoke no English, remembers buying his first car, a Mercedes, in San Jose. "I was here by myself for three months, and I had to buy some insurance," he said. "They brought in some guy, and I know I ended up paying too much money."

Lightning defenseman Stan Neckar also couldn't speak English. The Czech Republic native said the first time he tried to open a bank account in Ottawa, the language barrier could not be overcome. A second visit with a Czech teammate who spoke English accomplished the transaction.

During one game, Neckar said he broke his stick and yelled for another by pleading, "Give me my steak."

"The guys really laughed at me," he said.

As for the game:

"It's different," said Lightning forward Juha Ylonen, who is from Finland. "In Europe, you don't throw the puck in. You pass it. And the bigger rink gives you more room and more time."

"The speed, the pace is higher here. You have to be much quicker with your legs and with your head," said Olvestad, who was fluent in English before coming to the United States. "It's also a simpler game. If you have a problem, you just lift (the puck) up. In Sweden, you try to pass and make a play."

Minor stuff, Ylonen said, when compared with the ability to communicate.

"You have to be willing," he said, "to learn the language."

Word games

A translation of hockey terms into other languages:

IN SLOVAK

puck: puk

goal: goal

offsides: offsides

stick: hokejka

helmet: prilba

IN CZECH

puck: puk

helmet: helma

stick: hokejka

fight: souboj

icing: zakzane' uvolneni'

IN RUSSIAN

puck: shyba

fight: draka

icing: brobros

IN FRENCH

puck: rondelle

fight: combat

icing: deblement

shift: shift

goaltender: gardien de but

Stanley Cup: Coupe Stanley

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