Return to Montreal tough, but P.K. grins and bears it
Getting two points in the standings helps make up for a so-so game from former Hab
As P.K. Subban was being interviewed outside the Nashville Predators’ locker-room following Saturday night’s 3-2 shootout win over the Canadiens at the Bell Centre, his former teammates Carey Price and Alex Galchenyuk were standing in the background waiting to talk with him.
Not surprisingly, Brendan Gallagher wasn’t there.
“You know what, I miss those two guys the most. … Pricey and Chucky are guys that I keep in touch with pretty regularly since I’ve been (in Nashville),” Subban said. “I’m happy they came over to see me. Last time it was a little bit of a mess, so I can’t wait to finish up with you guys … so let’s keep it short.”
Almost two years after the Canadiens traded Subban to the Predators in exchange for Shea Weber it has become pretty obvious Gallagher and Subban don’t like each other.
They had a couple of shoving matches during the first period and early in the second Gallagher tried to take a run at Subban, but bounced off him, fell hard to the ice and had to leave for a few shifts to have a cut over his right eye repaired.
After Gallagher returned, he scored the first goal of the game after Subban blocked his shot and he picked up the rebound before beating goalie Pekka Rinne. During his goal celebration, Gallagher skated by the Predators bench and appeared to say something to Subban.
“I don’t think he said anything to me after the goal,” Subban said. “But some guys from the bench were saying stuff. But I couldn’t hear it. It’s so loud in this building … you know the way it is. But I’m sure it’s pretty quiet over there right now with two points on our side.”
Ouch!
When asked what it was like to see Gallagher’s smiling face as an opponent while battling in front of the net, Subban said: “I didn’t see a smile from him tonight, to be honest with you. I just saw the blood dripping down his face after he tried to hit me and fell down. That’s what I saw. … I didn’t see anything else.”
Double ouch!
Subban did not have a good game. He looked nervous at times and battled the puck. Galchenyuk went around him once and Max Pacioretty beat him with an inside-out move that had Subban shouting at the Canadiens captain afterward. In the third period, Subban made a brutal giveaway on the power play that resulted in a scoring chance that Paul Byron couldn’t finish.
Subban finished the night minus-1 with no points while logging 26:51 of ice time. The 28-year-old from Toronto had one shot, two hits, four blocked shots and four giveaways.
“Not very good,” Subban said when asked to rate his performance. “It’s tough … there were some good points to the game for me, but it wasn’t my all-around best game. Some bounces didn’t go my way, but for me the most important thing is getting the two points. I knew it was going to be a tough game for me like it always is coming here. There’s a lot going on and it’s tough. I just try to keep my game simple …
“Not much rhythm out there for me personally, but we got it done.”
The Predators, one of the best teams in the NHL, did not play very well against the Canadiens, one of the worst. Montreal outshot the Predators 49-32, including 10-2 in overtime when Rinne was superb. Canadiens centre Jonathan Drouin sent the game into OT when he scored with 14 seconds left in the third period. Rinne stopped Byron, Drouin and Pacioretty in the shootout, while Hamilton-born defenceman Ryan Ellis scored the winner for the Predators.
This was only Subban’s second game at the Bell Centre since
The Trade and the Predators lost 2-1 last season, so this victory was very sweet for him and his post-game smile was very bright.
As for his battles with Gallagher, Subban said: “I just battle against everybody, not in particular anybody on the other team. I try to win all my battles, so if guys are going to compete against me I’m going to compete back and win my battles. It’s a mental game and it’s a physical game. You got to compete hard and I’ve always played that way. I didn’t think anything was too different tonight.”
As for having a target on his back, Subban said: “When you’re a guy that plays a lot of minutes and you’re one of the better players on the ice, I’m used to having a target on my back, so it doesn’t faze me. At the end of the day, I’m smiling now because we got two points. That’s all that matters.”
With that, the interview was over and Subban walked over to meet his buddies Price and Galchenyuk. You know Gallagher wasn’t smiling.
I couldn’t hear it. It’s so loud in this building … you know the way it is. But I’m sure it’s pretty quiet over there right now with two points on our side.