P.K. Subban
*P.K. Subban was born on this date in 1989. He is a Black Canadian former professional ice hockey defenseman.
Pernell-Karl Sylvester Subban was born in Toronto, Canada. In the 1970's, his father immigrated to Ontario from Jamaica to Sudbury, and his mother, Maria, came from Montserrat to Hamilton. His father (Karl) is a retired school principal. Subban has four siblings, and two he and two brothers played for the Belleville Bulls during their junior career. The Canadiens selected Subban in the second round, 43rd overall, of the 2007 NHLEntry Draft.
In 2013, he won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's top defenseman and tied with Kris Letang as the season's leading scorer among defensemen. After the 2015–16 season, Subban was traded to the Nashville Predators, where he spent three seasons before being traded to New Jersey in 2019. In the summer of 2014, he signed an eight-year, $72 million contract with the Canadiens, running through the 2021–22 season. Between 2009 and 2022, he played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators, and New Jersey Devils.
In 2015, Subban raised $10 million for the Montreal Children's Hospital by 2022. The hospital called it "the biggest philanthropic commitment by a sports figure in Canadian history." After his donation, Subban continued his commitment as spokesman and organized the "Winter Wonderland" with Air Canada at the hospital before the holidays. In 2017, he was awarded the Meritorious Service Cross (Civil Division) in recognition of how his "generous gift stands as an example of how professional athletes can positively change lives in their communities." He was also added to the Google.org Impact Challenge judge panel in Canada to help choose which organizations should receive money to help Canada.
After his trade to Nashville, Subban continued his philanthropy. The "P.K.'s Blue Line Buddies" focused on building better relations between law enforcement and inner-city youths by treating a police officer, a youth, and their guests to a Predators home game with autographs and dinner in the Arena's Patron Platinum Club. After being traded to the New Jersey Devils, Subban continued his Blue Line Buddies initiative in New Jersey to reach somewhere other than Nashville.
In 2018, Subban appeared on The Daily Show to discuss his philanthropy efforts with the children's hospital and his Blue Line Buddies program. In June 2020, Subban donated US$50,000 to the GoFundMe effort to raise money for Gianna Floyd, the daughter of the late George Floyd. He is now a broadcast analyst for the NHL on ESPN.
