P.K. Subban was holding court after practice with a large crowd of reporters, his equipment strewn about on the bench behind him. It was maybe 10 years ago at the Montreal Canadiens training facility and Subban was basking in his element.
Slowly from the back came veteran defenseman Andrei Markov, ambling slowly to his seat. The Russia native looked down at Subban's discarded jersey, maybe two inches of a sleeve overlapping Markov's bench, his mischief quietly brewing as he tried to wipe off his tight smile.
Drawing his shoulders back and taking a deep breath, Markov put on his best look of indignation, bent down, moved his arm to Subban's bench and swept everything onto the floor.
After the gasp, silence.
Markov looked the interrupted Subban squarely in the eye, pointed his finger into the latter's chest and in his heavily accented English, announced loudly, "Respect my space," then turned and walked away.
Naturally, there was a firestorm in parts of the Montreal media, Markov and Subban reportedly in a bitter, angry feud.
Nothing, of course, could be farther from the truth, the departing Markov's grin unseen by most as he left the dressing room.
On Tuesday, at age 33, Subban announced his retirement from the NHL after a 13-season career. The 2013 Norris Trophy winner as the League's top defenseman played 834 games for the Canadiens, Nashville Predators and New Jersey Devils, scoring 115 goals with 352 assists.
Six of his 13 seasons were as a teammate and often the defense partner of Markov.
"To me, P.K. is a good hockey player, a great hockey player," Markov said from Kazan, Russia, laughing at the memory of his dressing-room sweep. "He's also a good friend of mine. We had good times, a lot of fun on the ice and off the ice.
"I'm surprised to hear that he's retired. He's pretty young, but he knows better than anyone his body and himself. To me, he's a good hockey player, a great hockey player, and he's also a good friend of mine.
"We had good times, a lot of fun on the ice, off the ice. He's a positive person, always smiling. Full of energy all the time, no matter what. It's fun to see that. He brought a lot of energy to the dressing room. I enjoy that kind of team."
At times, Markov and Subban were almost a comedy act, clowning with each other, playing straight man for one another. During the Canadiens' 2015-16 home opener, Markov took the team's ceremonial torch from Subban, but only after skating a few circles around him, pointing at his friend who stood beaming at center ice.
Their bond was cemented in 2017 when Subban, by then with the Predators, flew to Moscow to attend Markov's wedding.
"That was very special for me, for my wife and for my friends," said Markov, now an assistant coach for Spartak of the Kontinental Hockey League. "That showed what kind of person he is. I respect that a lot and it was a big moment for me. I texted P.K. when I found out he had retired."
Pause.
"I haven't heard back. We'll see. I'm sure he's pretty busy with you (media) guys. Maybe one day I'll talk to him."
Subban's career took him from the Canadiens to the Predators in a blockbusting June 2016 trade for fellow defenseman Shea Weber, whose career also appears to be over, then finally to the Devils.
He announced his retirement on social media Tuesday morning, as he has broadcast many things in his life, saying that other challenges lay ahead. Almost surely they will include television, Subban having proven a natural during various guest spots in and beyond hockey.
He has delighted countless fans with his megawatt smile and larger-than-life personality, improved the lives of many with his own foundation and his commitment to myriad charities, helping to raise millions for good causes.
Still, he has dismayed others who have believed that his mind is in a dozen places at once, his core business of hockey about No. 11 on that list. To some, he often seemed more a brand than a member of his team.
At times, Subban appeared to be laser-focused on the game, then he was like the shopping mall Santa Claus, literally everywhere you looked.
Brian Gionta, a 2003 Stanley Cup champion with the Devils, was Subban's captain in Montreal from 2010-14. As such, he had an up-close look at a player who inhaled a great deal of oxygen in the dressing room.
"He had a [heck] of a career," Gionta said from Buffalo. "Looking back on it, he was a dynamic defenseman. He really got people out of their seats in games. He was electric, charismatic. Early on, he came in and had to learn some things. I give him credit in that he did. He came in and he learned how to handle himself in a different manner so as not to rub teammates, fans and the media the wrong way.
"You can't knock what he's done as far as being able to promote himself. For sure, it's a different mindset from what I grew up with, Lou Lamoriello as my GM in New Jersey. What P.K. has done has been great for him. I didn't think it was bad for himself or for his game, but when it was happening, people took notice of him.
"Social media was starting to come around, people were starting to use it to connect with people. I think his growth and maturity as his career progressed was great for me to see. Maybe our leadership group in Montreal had a little hand in that."
From Florida, legendary Canadiens defenseman and former Devils coach Larry Robinson has viewed in Subban both great talent and untapped potential.
"I was very impressed not only by his shot, but also his skating ability," Robinson said. "I kind of look back and wish that I had the opportunity to work with him when he was in Montreal. It would have been a fun thing to do. I think he only touched the surface of what he was capable of doing, mostly because he got involved more in promoting himself in all different areas, whether it was charities or doing stuff away from the game, which I think took away from his true ability to play the game.
"Sometimes you can spread yourself a little thin and you lose your perspective of what it takes and what you're really supposed to be doing. I think that hockey kind of took a back seat to some of the other things that he was doing, but he certainly was a very animated character, a very gifted athlete. I don't think he's been given enough credit for being as good an athlete as he was."
Through his entire career, Subban never really cared much for how others viewed him, for better or worse. He was too busy having a good time, going in many directions at once, unfailingly true to himself.
Almost surely, hockey has not seen the last of him, and that's a good thing.
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