Chinese University Hockey League Pre-Season Game: Peking University vs. Beijing Northstars

Peking University vs. Beijing Northstars

Chinese University Hockey League Pre-Season Game: Peking University vs. Beijing Northstars
by Alex Sherr

This past Saturday night, the Beijing Northstars faced off against the Peking University Hockey Team at the Fangfei Ice Center in Beijing. Beyond spending an evening playing our favorite sport, this particular game had a special significance for both teams.

For many of the Peking University players, it was their first real hockey game. Ice hockey is quickly gaining popularity on the Chinese mainland, due in large part to government support after China’s successful bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics. Youth leagues are thriving – yet when the government decided to establish the Chinese University Hockey League (CUHL) this past summer, coaches were hard-pressed to find college-age students who had skated before, let alone played hockey. The majority of students who ended up joining the team were absolute beginners; over the past few months, they’ve attended hours of extracurricular theory classes, endured grueling off-ice conditioning three to four times per week, and accumulated thirty hours of on-ice experience. On Saturday night, their excitement was palpable.

In contrast, the Northstars are battle-hardened road warriors; we win tournaments around the globe, even though the team rarely gets the chance to play together at home in Beijing. Additionally, tournament rosters are ever-changing, as expats are transient in nature, and tournament organizers don’t usually schedule games to accommodate Chinese holiday schedules. Saturday night was a unique chance to build chemistry between teammates both on and off the ice, help coach some new players, and watch the game we all know and love grow right before our eyes. The Northstars acted as natural role models for the university players, yet by the end of the game, we unexpectedly had new role models of our own.

The Northstars won, 7-3.

上周六晚上,北京北极星队与北京大学冰球队在万域芳菲冰上中心展开了一场激烈的冰球比赛。除了享受打冰球所带来的乐趣,这场比赛对于两个球队都有着很特别的意义。

对于很多北京大学冰球队的队员来说,这次比赛是他们人生中第一次正式和社会上业余冰球队的比赛。冰球运动在中国大陆正迅速地发展并提升着知名度。中国成功拿下2022年冬奥会的资格使得政府加大对冰雪项目的支持,也因此冰球知名度在大陆大幅提升。最近,青年联赛欣欣向荣,而今年夏天,政府部门选择建立中国大学冰球联赛(CUHL)时,教练肩负了寻找高校中有滑冰基础的同学并指导其打冰球的重任(事实上最终招募的学生中不乏连滑冰基础都没有的)。于是大部分入队球员均为初学者,仅在过去的两个月内,同学们在繁重课余时间参加着冰球训练,忍受着每周5-6次严格的冰上和冰下陆地训练和宿舍半夜冷水澡;但冰上训练仅累计了30小时。 在周六的晚上,同学们的对于比赛的兴奋度是显而易见的。

相反的是,北极星的队员则是身经百战的客场战士——球队在各个国家都拿过好几次联赛冠军,尽管如此,北极星队的队员很少能有一起在北京训练的机会。并且,球队的球员名单也是多变的,因在中国居住的外国人在京时间不确定以及国外联赛组织者不会按照中国的假期安排来组织比赛。周六晚场不仅促进队友之间产生化学反应,给北大的队员提出了训练指导,同时让北极星的队员亲眼见证了冰球运动在中国的发展。在比赛中,北极星队员在技术上为北京大学的冰球队员们做出了示范,而就在比赛结束时,北极星的球员也出乎意料地被北京大学队员们团结精神所感染。

最终7比3,北极星队赢得了比赛。

译: Asian Zang

Chinese University Hockey League Pre-Season Game: Peking University vs. Beijing Northstars

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