Why does subban wear 76

Karl, having grown up in a Francophile neighborhood, has adored the Canadiens since arriving in Canada and dreamed of being Ken Dryden when he was playing pickup hockey as a kid. So even though the Subban children were raised in Toronto, they were always fans of the Habs. Subban thrived in Montreal as fans embraced him and he immersed himself in the culture. These feelings were strengthened as he excelled on the ice with a sixth-place finish in Calder Trophy voting his rookie year and a Norris Trophy win in He had one more top-three finish in Norris voting, two first-team all-star appearances, and finished in the top in points among defensemen four times with Montreal.

However, disputes with management, especially surrounding his contract, led to bitter feelings. It started with a disagreement regarding his second contract that led to him sitting out the first four games of the season before agreeing to a bridge deal rather than the long-term contract Subban sought.

Those contract disputes are ultimately what led to his departure from Montreal. Related: P. So when the Canadiens approached the Predators about a one-for-one trade involving Subban and Shea Weber, Predators general manager David Poile was more than happy to make that deal.

In Nashville, Subban continued his stellar play with one top-three Norris Trophy finish, one second-team all-star appearance, and once finished in the top in scoring for blueliners. He was also key in the Predators reaching the Stanley Cup Final. Throughout his professional career, Subban has been passionate about helping communities near and far. It was during that trip that he made a decision to be a difference-maker. As a result, he started P. In Sep. But despite being nearly 1, miles from Montreal, he continues to give back to the city.

In Feb. He followed that up in August by hosting a hockey camp in Montreal for children with the proceeds going to the hospital. He established the program to create unity between law enforcement and citizens in response to the recent distrust between the two groups. In March , the program had connected 66 police officers and children. He continued that organization in New Jersey following his trade to the Devils.

Maria instilled in her children the need to look out for each and take care of the less well off, lessons she learned in Montserrat. If you follow hockey or are familiar with Subban, you know that he is constantly tearing down walls that stand in his way.

Black players are a significant minority in the NHL and always have been. But Subban breaks down more than just the racial barrier. Montreal can be an intimidating place for an up-and-coming hockey player but surrounded by the right people can make the process a lot easier. And Subban had plenty of help, in different ways, from the veteran players who sat next to him in the Canadiens locker room, players like defenseman Hal Gill.

I didn't like to be at the rink long because at that point when I played the game, I didn't think much about the game. I went out and played off of instinct and had fun and, read the play and played with energy. If you think about Subban now, at 30 years old and the amount of energy he has at any given moment, moving his legs at a speedy pace during the national anthems in games to keep himself at the ready, imagine what he must have been like as a young up-and-comer.

It ended up being Gill, as the veteran, who had to strike the balance, once stunning Subban by suggesting the team be more like him. And our starts were terrible.

Like the teams would get up on us two to three, nothing like in the first couple minutes. We've got to get ready like that to play. Subban is more serious than most when talking about his first stall mates. If they were anything to Subban, it was impactful. He, for many years, was the backbone of the Canadiens defense and power play -- a player that Subban grew up watching. He's just so good. And everybody in the [Canadiens] organization just knew how good he was from players, ex-players, to new players.

Subban explains why he wears No. He gave Marky a huge hug the last time he saw him after a game. I wish I could have seen that with my own eyes! Below is a column I wrote about Subban and his dad shortly after the defenceman made his debut with the Canadiens:. So, where does that name come from?

It was the day after the Canadiens advanced to the Eastern Conference final with a Game 7 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Karl watched Game 7 at home with his wife, Maria, and P. Things have happened very quickly and it has been a little overwhelming. In nine playoff games since being called up from the Hamilton Bulldogs, P. But logging lots of ice time is nothing new for P. When P. After returning home from a long day of work, Karl would wake P. I did the night school, and P.

I really believe that if you want to be good at something, you have to work hard at it, and if you start young, which P. Karl, whose family moved from Jamaica to Sudbury, Ont.