PK Subban - what went wrong and can he recover?

[JianYang]

This is correct. If you are devils fan you know it too. A lot of the issues I have with his play last year have more to do with puck decisions Than defensive coverage (although yeah... he was pretty awful there too)

He was legit doing spin moves at the point and turning the puck over regularly for the first 10 games of the year. Clearly overconfident and didn’t respect the NJ team or buy in. Went in with the “I’m the best player here so I’m just gonna do me” mentality.

Subban always did that stuff in Montreal, and it worked. It doesn't work anymore.

 

[Oneiro]

Most people are sheep and this thread is no exception.

His last year in Nashville, where he was mediocre, he still scored about .5 PPG (31 pts in 63 games) with a CF 53%. That's not a "bad" year. Last year is the first "bad" year of his career on a young team with a guy that I think is one of the worst coaches in the NHL, especially on the defensive end. He is not a player who insulates his partner, he is a player who needs to be insulated which is why the swap for Weber worked beautifully those first two years and also why Shero was somewhat silly in thinking he would stabilize the young NJ squad. Put him in a silly system with no protection and he's not going to give you much. But he wasn't terrible defensively relative to his other teammates.

I agree that he has lost a step and some of it is probably from bulking too much. If he bounces back to even a modest degree - which is no guarantee - some are going to look silly here.

For Santini, Davies and a 2nd, once again, you do that swap all day long. Santini has already been bought out. Nashville fans can speak to whether or not Davies is living up to his promise in the AHL.

 

[70Stang]

Im sure once his contract is done he will try and come to Mtl. Will all depend if he has anything left in the tank. Not so sure there is room for him in Mtl anymore. Who knows what he will be asking $$. I absolutely loved how Josh Gorges said I refuse to play in Toronto lol. Now PK?? thats a totally different animal and he would probably go to Toronto. This will be a big year for PK, he could find himself playing in Europe if he keeps trending the way he is.

 

[Corky]

I remember arguing until blue in the face that the Weber-Subban trade was a good one for the Habs as Subban was clearly on a decline. You could see it in his play during his last season with the Habs, he clearly had lost a step, seemed slow on the ice. Weber, i could see declining slowly and playing into his late 30’s similar to Chara.

Nashville did get one good season out of him...

 

[Price is Wright]

He needs to drop weight. Get to under 200lbs so he's lighter on his skates. Watching him in NJ he was carrying way too much weight. The muscle looks great in photos but it's just weighing him down.

 

[JoeCool16]

I hope he doesn't retire once his contract comes up. I think he's still got something to offer - he just needs to be deployed the right way, on the right team, for the right salary. He's got some work to do in changing his game, but right now he's stuck in a bad situation. In a more sheltered role, I think he becomes a useful, if limited, 4-5 dman.

 

[HabsDood]

Eh, he was just as good in his first two years in Nashville.

He was just venting, he belongs here. His name is on the wall at the children's hospital.

 

[HockeyWooot]

As some have mentioned I think he needs to drop weight, and to an extent reinvent his game.

He’s lost a step of explosiveness. Without it he simply doesn’t move quickly enough.

I don’t think he can play the style of game that made him successful anymore, but I think with a few tweaks he can still be a useful player.

Eg play smart, low-event hockey+ use his bomb from the point during ozone time and PP.

 

[lawrence]

I remember arguing until blue in the face that the Weber-Subban trade was a good one for the Habs as Subban was clearly on a decline.

same. I'm not sure why everyone was on the habs so bad, I always though they won the trade easily. The only hard thing was the long contract. I take Weber over Subban any day of the week.

 

[Machinehead]

He was never a great skater and those guys don't age well.

I think he can still be effective but he's going to have to adjust his game and maybe be more of a defensive guy.

 

[crowi]

He aged like normal people do. Sadly it means you lose stuff.

 

[Walrus26]

Will PK's ego let him attempt the transition into "reliable stay at home D" after all those years of being able to swashbuckle his way to success?

I think the first thing PK needs to overcome if he wants to keep playing at a fair level is PK.

Glad we won the Weber trade, but anyone describing peak PK as "overrated" or "not very good" etc isn't being objective in the slightest.

 

[PaulD]

Subban made a poor decision to bulk up and as a result lost his straight away speed. In junior and during his first several years in the NHL, he was a dynamic skater who could avoid the first forechecker and with his superior skating ability was able to easily gain entry into the offensive zone. He was dynamic player who could control the flow of play. Then he bulked up and lost one of his greatest assets: on ice speed. It was apparent to any watching that he was quickly regressing to the his now almost immobile self. It was laughable that so many fans blamed coaching from holding him back. Frankly, Montreal traded him almost two years too late.

Same thing happened to Elvis

 

[PaulD]

Will PK's ego let him attempt the transition into "reliable stay at home D" after all those years of being able to swashbuckle his way to success?

I think the first thing PK needs to overcome if he wants to keep playing at a fair level is PK.

Glad we won the Weber trade, but anyone describing peak PK as "overrated" or "not very good" etc isn't being objective in the slightest.

Subban peaked in 014 play offs against Bruins.

Gradual decline ever since that series. Landed large in Jersey with a SPLAT !

 

[PaulD]

He aged like normal people do. Sadly it means you lose stuff.

Most great Dman are in their prime at PKs age.

But you are right he is no Brady or Chara.

 

[Riddum]

It's okay, he has a good future off ice

 

[Habby4Life]

same. I'm not sure why everyone was on the habs so bad, I always though they won the trade easily. The only hard thing was the long contract. I take Weber over Subban any day of the week.

And time has proven such to be true!

 

[SlapshotTheMovie]

He probably can figure out a way to be useful in the NHL again but not on this contract or a team like the devils. He essentially needs what happened with shatty. A chance to play bottom pair and work his way back up. Shatty was playing top pair by the end of the playoffs and now has a new contract with his buyout payment he is making like 9m this year. If PK can get a chance to not have to live up to his contract and play down the lineup to figure out how to play at this level again i think he is young enough and creative enough to do it. But the the devils dont have the d depth to let him play those minutes and if they trade him (which should be possible with some money coming back if they really wanted to) he has too big of a contract for a team that has the d depth to go "this 9m defender is in the 5-6 spot"

 

[BlueOil]

if you pair him with a good shutdown partner, he could be a decent offensive defenseman again with his shot. he got hot then faded into mediocrity so everyone thinks they know, but nhl players still treat him like a threat for a reason

 

[Filthy Dangles]

He was challenged fram beginning with an uneconomic skating style. He is among the worst skaters ever. Barry Long-level. Then his hockey IQ is low. Then he set him self before team. What made him good some years was his esteem/confidence.

lol.

 

[PaulD]

Interesting. I'd like to read some posts of yours just after the Weber-Subban trade.

all my posts from day one called "the trade a wash"
" A number one D for a number one D. They may as well have traded Price for Rinne".

I was wrong. Habs ended up winning the trade in the long run .........the opposite of what Nash hoped and most predicted.

 

[PaulD]

if you pair him with a good shutdown partner, he could be a decent offensive defenseman again with his shot. he got hot then faded into mediocrity so everyone thinks they know, but nhl players still treat him like a threat for a reason

I doubt that. Awkward, slow Dmen, have young fast forwards salivating.

 

[Paperbagofglory]

Subban is the prime example of the modern athlete. Great wheels, in great shape, but they over train and get injured a lot. Also once their athleticism that they thrive on is gone they don't have any other bag of tricks to reach into to prolong their career and be effective.

 

[PaulD]

I don't believe his training matched the new NHL, he can still make a comeback but size and strength slowed him down a little too much. He needs to get the need, need for speed!

Hockey fans been saying that in 018, 019, 020 about "The Suba-Nator"............ too bad he doesn't (or cant) do it.

 

[Jason MacIsaac]

Hockey fans been saying that in 018, 019, 020 about "The Suba-Nator"............ too bad he doesn't (or cant) do it.

He can do it, it requires cutting 20 pounds and training differently.