The New Jersey Devils officially introduced their new superstar P.K. Subban to the fans and media on Thursday. He literally said everything we would hope he would.
Have you ever heard someone say the right thing at the right time? We’ve seen it before, and we might have done it ourselves. You say something that gets the perfect reaction and you know it couldn’t go any better. That feels exactly what happened when P.K. Subban had his first introductory press conference with the New Jersey Devils.
Reporters asked him about anything under the sun, from his role on this hockey team to how he feels going into training camp. One time after another he said what we wanted to hear. Maybe he’s doing it because he just got good at interviews after all these years. However, it would be hard for even the most astute interviewee to hit the nail on the head as well as Subban.
Subban said he hasn’t been this excited for training camp since his first one. That’s crazy to think a player who turned 30 is excited to learn a new system and to play with new teammates. He’s coming into this situation blind, but he’s actually happy about that.
Then, he literally said the perfect thing when someone asked how happy he is to be near New York City. It’s not a question that’s looking to stump him. It’s fair to ask one of the most marketable stars in the NHL, one who’s dating a star Olympic Champion in Lindsey Vonn, whether he’s happy to be near the media capital of the world. We wouldn’t even be mad if he said he was excited for the opportunity. However, he said this:
"“People mention New York a lot, but I don’t play for New York, I play for New Jersey.”"
Wow. Have we ever had a player embrace playing for New Jersey like this? This seems like a team that’s been on his radar for a long time.
Then, they ask him about the young guys. There are a ton of players with half of the experience P.K. has, and Ty Smith will likely join the team for his first NHL experience. Will Butcher could grow from the leadership that Subban provides, and even Sami Vatanen could learn a lot from playing with someone as good as number 76.
"“Any way that I can be a mentor to the young guys, I’m going to. I’m going to be there for them anyway I can.”"
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This shouldn’t be surprising, since Subban seemed more excited about coming to New Jersey than any star player in recent memory. Taylor Hall seems to like it here now, but he was so shocked by getting traded from Edmonton that it seemed his focus was what happened with his old team rather than the new team.
We are excited to welcome Subban as a fanbase. DO NOT let people disparage this guy with unfounded rumors until there’s something to talk about. He visits kids in hospitals, donates A TON of money, and does everything he can to be a positive presence in the community. This Devils team and Subban could be a match made in heaven.