EXPLANATION’
The trade has made it more complicated for Subban to raise money for the foundation, but he assured them he wasn’t about to waver in his support.
“One of his first phone calls (after the trade) was to our president to say, ‘I’m still in’,” says Valerie Frost, director of donor relations for the foundation. “So his commitment never waned but we have to recognize that it’s challenging.”
And his contributions go beyond the money he raises, Frost notes.
“The unquantifiable in all this is when P.K. visits the kids,” she says.
“He used to visit as often as was possible with his busy schedule. That’s something you can’t put a price tag on.
“When you see him walk into a room with a sick patient, the impact he has on those guys … it really is magic. These kids, they light up.
“Even if they’re not hockey fans. He has such a wonderful rapport with them. He makes them feel comfortable. He doesn’t treat them like sick kids. He treats them like one of his friends. And he’s developed these relationships with these kids and they just so look forward to these visits.”
P.K.’s father, Karl, remembers like it was yesterday the day he heard his son was traded. He was just about to go for a walk near his home in Toronto when daughter Natasha called with the news.
“P.K. is a prankster so I didn’t know if I should take it seriously,” Karl Subban says. “I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry. So you know what I did? You know what we do today — I Googled it. And it said, yes, P.K. Subban has been traded to the Nashville Predators for their captain, Shea Weber.
“I cannot lie — it was disbelief. I was stressed. Because I love this city and I love the Canadiens. I’ve been a fan for 47 years. But I knew that in time I would love Nashville and P.K. would love Nashville. He would love his new team because that’s the way we must be ... So you get over the mourning. But it wasn’t the next morning.”
As for what caused Molson and Bergevin to pull the trigger on the deal, Subban Sr. says: “It’s not even so much why to me. Being a Habs fan … they have traded some of my heroes. When I saw Larry Robinson in another jersey, I was saddened by it. When I saw Guy Lafleur in a New York Ranger jersey, I was saddened by it. When I saw Rod Langway playing for Washington and winning a Norris Trophy, I was saddened. The same thing with Chris Chelios. So you know what? I’ve had a lot of practice dealing with loss.
“Plus I also knew that he was going to a team that wanted him and he was also going to a team that was very competitive, as we saw. The emotions kick in and then common sense takes over and common sense told me, ‘he’s going to a great place and a very competitive team.’
“I didn’t expect them to make it to the Stanley Cup final and challenge the Pittsburgh Penguins and Sidney Crosby. He left a great situation in Montreal to go to another great situation.”
Among those who were surprised by the trade was Subban’s close friend Garber, who heads Caesars Interactive Entertainment and is chairman of the Cirque du Soleil.
“My reaction to the trade was personal,” Garber says. “I am first and foremost a supporter and fan of the city of Montreal. And so leaving the hockey aside, having P.K. Subban in Montreal is much better for Montreal than not having P.K. Subban here. P.K. was an asset to the city of Montreal. So I viewed it with sadness, much less on the hockey side than on the civic-pride side.”
Another friend, restaurant owner Antonio Park, suggests we may never figure out why Subban was shipped out of Montreal. Park notes he was traded at the end of the Canadiens’ disastrous 2015-16 season, and the poor results almost certainly intensified the rumours about discord in the dressing room.
“Nobody knows why” he was traded, Park says. “It’s a hidden secret and that secret will never be revealed ... One of the things I always say to P.K. is, ‘Everything happens for a reason and this thing that happened to you happened for a good reason. So stay positive. Never turn back. Never regret.’”
Subban is indeed an upbeat guy. It’s clear he’s still smarting about the trade, but at the same time he’s only too happy to point out his new team made it to Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals — a place the Canadiens haven’t been in 24 years.
“At the end of the day I chose to look at everything in a positive way,” Subban says. “When I got to Nashville, I said, ‘I think we have a legitimate chance to win a Stanley Cup’ and I got as close as I’ve ever gotten to winning one. One bounce here or one bounce there and maybe I have a ring on my finger and there’s a different kind of banner in the rafters here at (the) Bridgestone (Arena).”