As flamboyant as he was, PK Subban had humble beginnings in hockey at a young age, which never affected his joy in life.
We found out about this in a conversation with his father Karl.
He just released his second children’s book called Hockey Skates, starring his three boys.
“PK is the main character, but Malcom and Jordan are also there because we mainly talk about everything they had to learn to become professional players,” Mr. Subban explains via video conference.
With this book, Father Subban wanted to talk about perseverance and optimism. It tells the fictional story of young PK, who is impatiently waiting for a new pair of ice skates, but they never arrive.
Courtesy little man
patience
“My sons in particular learned to be patient when they were little. They had no new equipment, you just had to wait for assembled skates, pants and sticks.
With three boys playing hockey, the Subban family had to make decisions.
“PK’s first skates when he was very small were his sister’s figure skates, then he had Daoust skates. It didn’t matter to his feet that his skates were worn out.
“We were looking for free skating as a family, it didn’t cost anything, we went skating outside when it was freezing cold,” says the father, who is just as friendly as his son.
Know how to wait
The book is obviously a metaphor for the importance of understanding that sometimes you have to wait to get what you want in life.
“Waiting is like playing sports, you don’t automatically become a great skater, you have to wait and be patient.
“Waiting is really an everyday thing. We want instant success and quick gratification. But that doesn’t happen without sacrifice. »
Luckily for Papa Subban, young PK was just as enthusiastic as the one we knew during his years in Montreal.
“PK was easily excited, he had to wait, but that didn’t affect his attitude. He waited. He started wearing used skates and it didn’t matter because it didn’t stop him. After a while the equipment no longer mattered. »
Karl Subban loves hockey for many reasons. VAT SPORTS/QMI AGENCY
Reduce costs
In this time when the cost of everything is rising, hockey equipment can quickly become a luxury item for many families.
By the way, his book deals with the topic because Karl Subban experienced it with his boys when they were young.
“It doesn’t matter if the equipment is used. We talk a lot about costs in hockey, but giving equipment a second life is one way to reduce costs.
“It’s a wonderful sport, it’s a great opportunity for young people to get involved and we don’t want young people to hold back because of money.” »
integration
Karl Subban also mentioned that hockey is important to his sons in their social life.
“Hockey helped my boys define their identity. I didn’t play, but it helped me integrate. »
And he tells how our national sport allowed him to fit into the social fabric of a French-speaking neighborhood in Sudbury when his family arrived from Jamaica in the early 1970s.
“I arrived in 1971, it was the year Ken Dryden arrived in Montreal and I fell in love. But I lived on a street where no child looked like me, the children didn’t speak the same language as me, they spoke French.
“Those kids on Peter Street [rebaptisée Mountain depuis, NDLR]They invited me to play hockey with them and that changed my life. They could have insulted me, they could have turned their backs on me, but they decided to help me. That is the power of hockey. »