Michel Therrien breaks the silence once and for all on his relationship with P.K. Subban

« First of all, I want to make one thing clear to everyone. A lot of people thought we didn't have a good relationship, but I loved coaching P.K. Subban. It's like a racehorse, you have to lead it, but you know you can win the Kentucky Derby. I like that as much as having an old "pecker" like we see in Old Montreal that you have to kick to get it going. He was a natural talent and was exciting to watch play. »

« The thing I remember about P.K. Subban is that he played his best field hockey in Montreal. He was excited about the Montreal market. You had to calm him down sometimes. You had to make sure he got back in line often. As a coach, it was my job to make sure P.K. was focused on performing. I asked the players to make sure they earned the respect of their teammates. That was the most important thing to me. You have to do the right thing on the ice, off the ice and in the dressing room. Without respect for others, you're not much.

"When I first came to Montreal, P.K. was on strike because of his contract. I knew what he was like before. I knew the veterans on the team were trying to get P.K. back in line. I got the veteran group together and I knew they were tough on P.K. I told the guys I was going to handle it personally. It was my responsibility as a coach and as a leader. I wanted to do the dirty work so they could focus on field hockey. It was a bit of a controversial approach, but I was able to get the best out of P.K. down the line. »