Predators' P.K. Subban slowly approaching return from injury
EDMONTON, Alberta — Durability has been a trademark of P.K. Subban’s high-profile NHL career.
In the Predators defenseman's six full seasons with the Canadiens, he appeared in 432 of the team’s 458 regular-season games. Of those 26 missed games, 14 were because of injury, which came consecutively at the end of last season.
Sitting out of one game, let alone 16 in a row before returning Friday in the Predators’ 3-2 shootout win against the Oilers, wasn't a familiar position for Subban.
"You just grind through it, and usually that’s what I’ve been able to do for my career pretty much until that point,” said Subban, who suffered from an upper-body injury believed to be a herniated disc. "So that’s why for me it was tough to accept the fact that I had to come out and be out for an extended period of time.
“But at the same token, I think I probably took it a lot better than most guys would because I haven’t had, knock on wood, too many instances where I’ve had to sit out for an extended period of time in my career so far. So I just hope that that continues.”
Subban's return was relatively quiet, no surprise after a month-long layoff. His irreplaceable dynamic presence, though, contributed to Nashville controlling play at even strength, outshooting Edmonton by 15 in that category.
Nashville tied for 24th in the 30-team NHL with 36 goals within the span of games that Subban missed, and the team’s puck possession suffered without him, plummeting from third-best in his 29 games to fourth-worst in the following 16. That should improve with Subban back.
Predators coach Peter Laviolette intended to limit Subban's ice time to around 20 minutes Friday, but handed the defenseman, who finished with nearly 23 minutes, more responsibility as the tight and contentious game progressed.
“We had told him that if the game was on the line and it was late in the game that we would see how it was going with him and assess the situation," Laviolette said. "He responded well with everything.”
There isn't a need for Subban to immediately rediscover his pre-injury form. The Predators have won five of six, their most successful stretch this season, lifting them into a third-place tie with the Blues in the Central Division as of Saturday.
“I felt pretty comfortable out there,” Subban said. “I think sometimes I probably could’ve done a little bit more, but just wanted to keep the game simple and get my feet under me and just build slowly.
"When our team is playing as well as they are, there’s no need for anybody to do anything special."
Reach Adam Vingan at avingan@tennessean.com and on Twitter @AdamVingan.
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