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Battle on the Ice 冰上激战

 

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Two young stars battle for NHL supremacy  两位年轻球星争夺「职业冰上曲棍球联盟」至高无上殊荣

 

Who is the best hockey player in the world? Come back in ten years and I’ll give you an answer. For now, National Hockey League (NHL) fans have a delicious choice between Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin – much like deciding which is better, chocolate or lobster?

谁是全世界最优秀的曲棍球员？十年之后，我就有办法揭晓答案了。不过就目前而言，北美「职业冰上曲棍球联盟」（简称NHL）球迷们可从希尼．克劳斯比和亚历山大．欧瓦钦之间挑哪个最美味。

 

Fans argue whether Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux are the greatest players the NHL has ever produced, but these two young stars seem intent on crashing the party. Both were seen as heroes of downtrodden franchises – Crosby for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Ovechkin for the Washington Capitals – and neither has disappointed in lifting their respectiveteams out of the cellar, chalking up scoring titles and garnering personal awards.

对韦恩．葛瑞兹基和马里奥．勒缪克斯（译注：两人均为加拿大冰上曲棍球名将，现已退休）究竟谁才是NHL史上最佳球员，球迷仍争论不休，但两位年轻的球星似乎决心当不速之客加入评比（译注：crash the party指成为不请自来的不速之客）。两人都同样被视为被看轻的职业球队的英雄人物──克劳斯比隶属「匹兹堡企鹅队」，欧瓦钦则来自「华盛顿首都队」──两人不但都成功地让各自所属球队从低谷往上攀升，也嬴得了多项得分王头衔，还拿下许多个人奖项。

 

While team success is their ultimate goal, their individual exploits have triggered a heated debate. Ovechkin (age 23) edged out Crosby (age 21) for Rookie of the Year honors in their inaugural seasons. The next season, Crosby won the Hart Memorial Trophy as league MVP. Ovechkin quickly countered by capturing the league MVP title last year. This season, both are leading their teams to the playoffs, and personally rank amongst the league leaders in scoring categories.

虽然球队获胜才是他们的终极目标，但他们的个人成绩倒是引发激烈争辩。两人首次赛季中，欧瓦钦（现年廿三岁）挤下克劳斯比（现年廿一岁），嬴得「年度最佳新人奖」（译注：发生于二００六年）。但下一赛季，克劳斯比连忙洗刷前耻嬴得「哈特纪念奖」，成为联盟最有价值球员。随后欧瓦钦迅速扳回一城，夺下去年联盟最有价值球员殊荣。本赛季，两人都领导所属球队打入季后赛，在得分项目的个人成绩也在联盟中先群雄。

 

The results are similar, but that’s where the comparison ends, and the debate begins. Their playing styles are as different as the background from which they come.

虽然两人成果不相上下，但相互比较的结束就是争论的开端。他们打球的风格就和出身背景一样大相径庭。

 

Contrasting the two  身家对比

 

Ovechkin, born in Moscow, Russia, inherited an envious athletic pedigree – his father played professional soccer, while his mother won two Olympic gold medals in basketball for the Soviet Union. At 188cm, 100 kg, the jovial Ovechkin combines size, strength and speed to overpower opposing teams, whether on the power play or while killing penalties. This year, the Capitals upgraded the talent around him, making Ovechkin more dangerous than ever. And the results are showing, as Washington piles up the wins.

诞生于俄罗斯莫斯科的欧瓦钦，令人艳羡地出身于运动世家──父亲打职业足球，母亲则为前苏联嬴得过两届篮球奥林匹克金牌。身高一八八公分、体重一百公斤，天性快活的欧瓦钦无论在以多打少，或阻止对手以多打少得分时，都集结了身材、力道和速度的优势，足以击败竞争队伍。今年，首都队也提升了欧瓦钦队友的实力，使他比过去成了更危险的武器，而且这个策略已经奏效，因为「华盛顿首都队」已累积不少胜利佳绩。

 

 

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delicious [dɪˋlɪʃəs] adj. 美妙的; 怡人的; 有趣的

intent [ɪnˋtɛnt] adj. 专心致志的；坚决要做的[F][（+on/upon）]

crash the/a party <美俚> 未经邀请而闯进宴会，做不速之客 if you crash a party, or are a gatecrasher, you go somewhere you haven't been invited to

franchise [ˋfræn͵tʃaɪz] n. 特许经销企业(此只专业的运动团队) a professional sports team

cellar [ˋsɛlɚ] n.【美】【口】最低点；（体育比赛的）最后一名[the S]

chalk up 取得 to earn or score

exploit [ˈɛksplɔɪt] n. 功绩，功勋；辉煌的成就；英勇的行为

edge out 把…挤出去, 排挤 to beat someone in something such as a competition or election by a small amount

rookie [ˋrʊkɪ] n.【口】新手；菜鸟；新兵；生手

inaugural [ɪnˋɔgjərəl] adj. 就任的, 就职的, 开始的

MVP 最有价值球员 the person judged to be the most valuable player to the sport on the team

counter [ˋkaʊntɚ] v. 反击 to move, act, or respond so as to be in opposition

playoff [ˋple͵ɔf] n. 最后决赛阶段

envious [ˋɛnvɪəs] adj. 嫉妒的；羡慕的

pedigree [ˋpɛdə͵gri] n. 家世，血统，出身

overpower [͵ovɚˋpaʊɚ] v. 击败；制伏

opposing [əˋpozɪŋ] adj.（群体等）对立的，对抗的

power play 以多打少 a situation during a hockey game when one team has more players on the ice than the opposition because an opposing player or players have been temporarily removed from the game due to penalties

kill a penalty 阻止对手以多打少得分 to prevent the opposing team from scoring on a power play

penalty [ˋpɛn!tɪ] n.【体】犯规的处罚；罚球

pile up 增多; 积累 to gather or be gathered in a pile; accumulate

 

 

 

 

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Crosby comes from the familiar NHL breeding ground of hockey-crazed Canada. Raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Crosby’s father was a minor league goaltender who was good enough to be drafted by the Montreal Canadiens. The NHL dream was a given for this hockey prodigy, who started shooting pucks at age 2, skating the next year, and gave his first interview at age 7. It didn’t take long to realize that Crosby was meant to be a playmaker and goal scorer as he rewrote the record books in Canada’s Junior leagues. Today, the 180-cm, 93-kg center dazzles opponents with acrobatic skating, deft stickhandling and pinpoint passing.

克劳斯比来自为人熟知的孕育NHL之地：疯冰球的加拿大（译注：NHL于一九一七年在加拿大蒙特娄创立）。克劳斯比在新斯科细亚省哈利法克斯长大，父亲是次联守门员，球技好到获选入「蒙特娄加拿大人队」（译注：职业冰上曲棍球队）效力。对这位曲棍球神童来说，怀抱NHL梦想似乎是理所当然，因为他两岁就开始射球，次年开始滑冰，七岁就接受生平第一次访问。各界很快就发现，克劳斯比注定就是主将和进球员，他在加拿大青少年联盟赛中屡创纪录。如今，这位身高一八０公分、体重九十三公斤的中锋，以神乎其技的滑冰技巧、灵活运球和精准传球，令对手眼花撩乱。

 

The NHL has capitalized on Crosby’s good looks and nifty moves, marketing him as the face of the league, which is struggling to shake its violent image. Ovechkin, on the other hand, appeals more to the rough-and-tumble crowd that favors a league known for black eyes and missing teeth.

NHL其实也借着克劳斯比的帅气脸庞和高超球技来牟利，在极力想甩脱暴力形象之际，以他的脸蛋为联盟代言。另一方面，欧瓦钦却比较受到偏好粗暴打法的球迷喜爱，这些群众偏爱以黑眼圈和打落牙齿着称的联盟。

 

Loads of talent  神乎其技

 

What’s lost in the debate over who’s better is that both have shown a knack for shifting gears. Ovechkin is capable of occasionally tiptoeing through opposing defenses, then lifting a delicate backhand over the goaltender’s shoulder, displaying a finesse seldom seen in a big man. Highlight reels are full of shifts where Crosby grinds his way behind the net, with a defenseman draped on his shoulders, finally jamming the puck just inside the net.

但激辩两人高下的争论中，却遗漏了一点，那就是两人都擅长突然转换动作（译注：shift gears指突然转换，例如换话题、换文件等等）。欧瓦钦偶尔会蹑手蹑脚地穿过对方防守大阵，然后突然扬起一记灵敏的反手击球，越过了守门员的肩膀，十足展现出大块头男性中很罕见的灵巧。精彩画面充斥了转换动作，像是克劳斯比摩擦冰面滑行到网后，即使有对手后卫攀在他的肩膀上，他最后还是能击球入网。

 

NHL games are a combination of fluidity and brutishness and non-stop, end-to-end action, all on ice. The playoffs are a stage where the fighters exit to the left, and the stars grab the spotlight in their quest for hockey’s championship trophy, the Stanley Cup. Which star will shine the brightest this year –Crosby or Ovechkin?

NHL赛事结合了变化无常和粗鲁，以及从头到尾、连续不断的紧凑动作，而这全都发生在冰上。季后赛提供了一个舞台，战将从左方下台，而球星们则嬴得冠军奖杯：史丹利杯，成为镁光灯的焦点。今年哪位球星将会绽放最耀眼的光芒──会是克劳斯比还是欧瓦钦呢？

 

−by Bill Quinn

 

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breeding ground 滋生地；养殖场 a place or set of circumstances that encourages the development of certain ideas or conditions

goaltender [ˈɡolˌtɛndɚ] n.（足球等运动的）守门员

draft [dræft] n.【美】征（兵）；征集

prodigy [ˋprɑdədʒɪ] n. 奇才，天才

puck [pʌk] n.（冰上曲棍球用）橡皮圆盘

playmaker [ˋple͵mekɚ] n.【体】主控球员

scorer [ˋskorɚ] n. 得分者

center [ˋsɛntɚ] n.（球队的）中锋

acrobatic [͵ækrəˋbætɪk] adj. 特技表演人的

stickhandling 用球杆拖球运行 a hockey move where a player carries the puck on the stick while moving along the ice

stickhandle [ˈstikˌhænd!] n. [体育] 用棍击球; 运球

pinpoint passing 精准的传球 the act of transferring the puck to a teammate with very precise aim

pinpoint [ˋpɪn͵pɔɪnt] adj. 精确的

nifty [ˋnɪftɪ] adj. 极好的；漂亮的

rough-and-tumble [ˋrʌfənˋtʌmb!] adj. 杂乱无章的，混乱的 characterized by roughness and disregard for order or rules

knack [næk] n. 本领；熟练技巧

shift gears 变速, 改变方式; 改变方法 to suddenly change what you are doing

tiptoe [ˋtɪp͵to] v. 踮起脚走; 蹑手蹑脚地走

delicate [ˋdɛləkət] adj. 敏锐的，灵敏的

backhand [ˋbækˋhænd] n. 反手拍；反手击球 the use of the back part of the blade on a hockey stick in order to make a pass or shot

finesse [fəˋnɛs] n. 技巧；手段；手腕

reel [ril] n. 电影胶片 a roll of photographic film holding a series of frames to be projected by a movie projector

grind [graɪnd] v. 刺耳地缓慢移动 to move with noisy friction

defenseman [dɪˋfɛnsmən] n.【体】（冰上曲棍球等运动中的）防守队员

drape [drep] v. 将(身体的某部位)随意搭在…上 cover as if with clothing

fluidity [fluˋɪdətɪ] n. 流动性；易变（性）the property of flowing easily

brutishness [ˋbrutɪʃnɪs] n. 粗野 a rough, unpleasant and often violent manner

non-stop (constant) 不间断的 continuous

end-to-end  从头到尾的 from first to last

 

 

 

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supremacy [səˋprɛməsɪ] n. 至高无上；最高地位 the leading or controlling position

downtrodden [ˋdaʊn͵trɑdn] adj. 被践踏的，受压迫的 badly and unfairly treated

garner [ˋgɑrnɚ] v. 获得; 得到 to collect something, usually after much work or with difficulty

jovial [ˋdʒovɪəl] adj. 天性快活的；愉快的 referring to a person who is friendly and in a good mood

a given 假定的事实；已知的事实（或情况）something that is certain to happen or to be ; something assumed or taken for granted

deft [dɛft] adj. 灵巧的，熟练的，机敏的 skillful, effective and quick

capitalize on 利用… to use something to your own advantage

 

 

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