NHL Players

What Happened To PK Subban, Why Did He Retire From Hockey?

By Usha Shrestha / 5 June 2023 02:38 AM

Subban well-groomed look on casuals for a photoshoot on November 7, 2022
Source : instagram

What happened to PK Subban? PK Subban announced his retirement on September 20, 2022, due to a lack of an offer he liked.

The former Devils defenseman decided to hang up his skates and sticks with the hope of a new beginning and opportunities ahead.

"I remember my dreams of playing in the NHL and winning a Stanley Cup," the former player wrote on September 20, 2022. With the post, he announced his decision with the end of the chapter after 13 years in the National Hockey League. 

Eventually, in November 2022, he signed a multiyear contract with ESPN to cover the NHL regular-season games as a studio analyst. He was in the studio during the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

At the time of recruitment, Subban stated he was excited to bring his unique insights from being recently on the ice and his off-ice perspective.

PK Subban Hockey Career And Contracts

PK Subban hockey career in the NHL started after the Montreal Canadiens picked him in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Subban signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Montreal Canadiens in 2009.

After playing 13 NHL seasons, seven with the Montreal Canadiens, three with the Predators, and three with the New Jersey Devils, Subban announced his retirement last September.

Now, he serves as a broadcast analyst for the NHL on ESPN. For the 2023 playoffs, Subban joined the crew along with Mark Messier as a studio analyst.

He shared his perception in playoff round one, game six, between his former team, the Devils, and the New York Rangers.

Keeping his current professional status aside, let's go back to the time when his playing career started:

Junior Career

Subban's junior career started with the Belleville Bulls in the Ontario Hockey League. He began playing ice hockey in his teens.

In OHL, he scored 12 points in the 2005-2006 season. He embraced himself and recorded 56 points in 68 games the next season.

At the time, the Canadiens picked him in the Entry Draft, he was participating in the OHL with the team for the third season.

Before debuting in an NHL match, the Toronto native played with the Hamilton Bulldogs in the American Hockey League in the 2009–2010 season.

Montreal Canadiens

Montreal Canadiens is the debut team for Subban to enter the NHL. Subban's 2014 contract with the Habs, worth $72 million, made him the highest-paid defenseman in the NHL at the time.

The Habs signed Subban with $72 million contract in 2014 for eight years
Source : twitter

On February 12, 2010, Subban played his first match with the Habs against the Philadelphia Flyers. Even though he didn't score a goal, he registered his debut NHL point with an assist.

Later, on April 30, 2010, he scored his first goal against the Penguins. The team was competing in the second-round series of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The same year, the AHL honored him with the First All-Star Team.

In his second season with the franchise in the NHL, PK scored 14 goals with 24 assists and made 38 points collectively. He was listed on the NHL All-Rookie Team in 2011.

Overall, the 34-year-old scored 63 goals and had 215 assists with the team until he was traded to Nashville in June 2016. Till then, he received the Jame Norris Memorial Trophy in 2013 and the NHL's first All-Star Team in 2023 and 2015.

The Norris Trophy is awarded to the top NHL defenseman with the finest all-around ability at the position throughout the season each year. He played seven seasons with the team until 2015–2016.

Nashville Predators

Nashville Predators had a great defenseman from the 2016–2017 season to the 2018–2019 season. They signed him with a $2 million signing bonus at the start of the year.

Subban inaugurated his journey with 10 goals and 40 points in his first season. He played 66 games. The following year, he qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs as a wild-card entry in the Western Conference.

With the team, he was chosen as the King Clancy Memorial Trophy candidate in 2018. However, ice skaters from the Canucks, Daniel Sedin, and Henrik Sedin, took the trophy home.

Subban played 63 games in the 2018–2019 season with the Predators. He scored nine goals and 22 assists, which became his final stats for the team, as he was traded to the Devils in June 2019.

New Jersey Devils

New Jersey Devils is the final NHL franchise for Subban, for whom he played for three seasons. After joining New Jersey, he competed with his former club, the Habs, for the first time in November 2019.

The Devils won with a 4-3 score. A few days later, he faced the Predators, who celebrated the victory with a 6-4 win. Nonetheless, the Predators fans applauded him with a standing ovation.

The former defenseman won the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in 2022 with the Devils
Source : instagram

Subban's debut season with the New Jersey Devils became the worst season for him throughout his NHL journey. He struggled, scoring just 18 points in 68 games.

The number couldn't rise more, and he settled for 22 points in 77 games played in the 2021–2022 season. Nonetheless, he received the King Clancy Memorial Trophy the same year.

Besides the NHL, he has played in some international games as well. He represented Team Canada at the 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. Likewise, he played for the team at the 2009 World Juniors in Ottawa.

PK Subban Salary On Yearly Basis

PK Subban salary on yearly basis counts as an average of $73,000. Subban recently works as a studio analyst for ESPN.

According to ZipRecruiter, the average hourly wage of an ESPN sports analyst is thirty-five dollars. That means he makes around six thousand dollars a month.

Even though the Canadian former ice hockey defenceman had a dream to hold the Silver Cup since his inception year in the NHL, he hung down his gloves and skates.

Later, the sports network, ESPN, recruited him for the NHL coverage. In November 2022, he signed a three-year contract with the network as a full-time broadcast analyst.

Subban debuted his new career during the coverage of last season's Stanley Cup playoff. Regarding the job, he said he was excited to cover the game. For a long time, he sat in the locker room with his mates and wondered what it was to be on the next side as an analyst.

For the 2023 Stanley Cup playoff season, he shared his opinion on the Rangers and the Devils players and their performances. Co-analyst Mark Messier joined him on game sic of the first round.

Subban signed a three-year full-time contract with ESPN in November 2022
Source : instagram

Moreover, Subban is all set to host "P.K's Places" Places Universe expansion on the network thus years. The program will be related to the NHL itself and its history. The host plans to visit his favorite places and people in the sport.

PK Subban NHL Salary

P.K. Subban salary as an NHL athlete was $9 million with the Montreal. He signed eights year deal worth $72 million with a $25,500,000 signing bonus.

Following the Haps, he played for the New Jersey Devils and Nashville Predators after being traded to the clubs. During his final NHL journey, his wage was an average of two million dollars with the Devils.

The 34-year-old was traded to the team on the second day of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. He dealt with New Jersey, including a signing bonus worth six million dollars. At the time, his cap hit remained nine million dollars.

According to Spotrac, the following is the list of Subban's base salary in the NHL:

TeamAverage Yearly Salary (in dollars)
Montreal Canadiens (2014-15)2 million
Montreal Canadiens (2015-16)2.5 million
Montreal Canadiens (2016-2018)19 million
Nashville Predators(2018-2019)10 million
New Jersey Devils (2020-2022)2 million

Collectively, after seven seasons with the Haps, his estimated total earning was roughly $20 million, making $32 million with the Predators and $26 million with the Devils. He played three seasons with the latter franchises.

PK Subban Net Worth

PK Subban net worth is $35 million dollars. The worth is calculated based on his athletic career alone.

During his NHL career, PK played with the Devils, Nashville Predators, and Montreal Canadiens. The latter is the debut franchise for the former player.

An eight-year contract worth $72 million with the Habs made him the highest-paid defenseman in the NHL. Moreover, he won the Norris Trophy as the top defenseman in 2013 while playing with the franchise.

Furthermore, P.K. and his former fiancee Lindsey bought a $6.75 million home in Beverly Hills in April 2020. In October, they became members of the Angel City FC ownership group.

The Los Angeles-based team planned to play in the National Women's Soccer League in 2022.

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