Subban big fan of Predators coach
As for Therrien, defenceman offers a diplomatic reply
When P.K. Subban’s hockey career is over he could easily become a politician. He seems to always say the right thing.
Like Wednesday, when Subban was asked about the Canadiens’ recent decision to fire head coach Michel Therrien, a man who played a key role in him getting traded to Nashville last summer.
“It’s a part of the business,” Subban said during a news conference at the Bell Centre ahead of his first game against the Canadiens on Thursday night (7:30 p.m., SN, RDS, TSN Radio 690). “Probably the toughest job and position in the National Hockey League — outside of what (goalie) Carey Price does — is being the coach of the Montreal Canadiens. It’s tough.
“I’ve been lucky enough to have Jacques Martin, Randy Cunneyworth, Michel Therrien … I’ve had some great coaches,” Subban added.
“You know what, they’re all different experiences. People always ask me: ‘Do you like (Predators coach Peter) Laviolette better than Michel?’ They’re different. I just take those experiences and I’m sure I’m going to have many more coaches in my career. At the end of it you ask me who the best one is.”
Subban pretty much answered that question Wednesday about the coaches he’s had so far.
“Lavy has a really positive attitude,” Subban said. “The first thing he said to me when I came was: ‘P.K., I want you to be yourself. I don’t want you to change. We have 22 guys on this team and all 22 guys are different and we want you to be the player that you are and the person that you are,’ and that’s all I needed to hear.
“I think he has more energy than me,” Subban added about Laviolette. “It’s crazy. He gets really fired up and for someone who’s been around that long, who’s won a Stanley Cup (with Carolina), his ability to adjust and understand players, a different generation of players, he’s been able to do it seamlessly .”
As for Therrien, Subban said: “He taught me a lot about the game and about being a professional and I wish him the best.”