SUBBAN SURGING INTO SECOND HALF OF SEASON
Jan 12, 2023By Suzie Cool
Rochester Americans goaltender Malcolm Subban had yet another stellar outing between the pipes last night against the Laval Rocket.
“Subban stole that game for us,” said Amerks head coach Seth Appert following last night’s 3-1 win over the Rocket, who made their first trip back to Rochester since eliminating the Amerks in Game of the North Division Finals this past spring.
“They (Laval) play a very frantic style. They compete extremely hard. Their forward speed is very fast. I thought they were outstanding. We were on our heels too much and ‘Subby’ made a lot of really good saves early. He also made some big saves, obviously, but he also allowed us to have some calmness as the game went on. So, he was outstanding.”
Subban, who made his 11th appearance of the season last night, extended his win streak to seven games, the longest of his professional career. The Toronto, Ontario, native boasts a 9-1-0 record over his last 10 appearances and has topped the 40-save mark on three occasions over that span, including in back-to-back games. Subban is the first Amerks netminder to post a winning streak of seven or more games since former netminder Jonas Johansson won nine consecutive contests during the 2019-20 campaign.
Here are three reasons why Appert feels we’re all seeing Subban peak right now.
SUBBAN IS FINALLY GETTING THE REPS
“I do think reps have been a big part of it,” Appert commented when asked how important repetition has been for Subban’s trajectory this season. “He is a little bit more of an instinct based goaltender than a blocking goalie, so it's (reps) even more for him and that was something he talked to me about at the beginning of year. He really wanted to get back to trusting his instincts and trusting his reads and playing more instinctual and less robotic.”
SUBBAN IS AN UNBELIEVEABLE HUMAN BEING
Subban is just never going to get down on himself, no matter the adversity that he faces.
“He's not going to get down, he's not going to get to the point where years of injuries and being back in the American League and where, you know, some guys can wear that and it's hard to get out of those things when you're feeling sorry for yourself or you're down. He just doesn't have that in his DNA. Then you combine that with an elite work ethic.”
SUBBAN IS AN UNBELIEVEABLE TEAMMATE
“He's such a great teammate,” continued Appert. “I'm a big believer and I think it's an underestimated attribute of a goalie. Do the guys want to play in front of you? Do you feel good with that guy behind you? Do you know he's going to battle for you? And some goalies have that about them, and he has that. He drips with that.”
This is the first time in four years where Subban is finally getting that consistency between the pipes. With the COVID-19 pandemic halting the 2019-20 campaign and forcing a condensed campaign in 2020-21, the goaltender was then faced with a bout of adversity when an injury put a premature end to his 2021-22 season in just his fourth game with the Buffalo Sabres.
Subban split last season between the Sabres and Rockford IceHogs, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks, where he combined to go 2-4-2 in nine appearances with the two clubs. Subban originally began the season with the IceHogs before being acquired by Buffalo on Dec. 2 for future considerations and then went on to re-sign a one-year contract with the Sabres in July.
So, for the first time in four years, Subban is just able to relax in the crease, get back to his game and regain that infectious confident swagger her exudes.
“I think I’m just relaxing in there,” commented Subban when asked what’s helped him over this seven-game stretch. “I think it’s getting the feel back and the timing back, that's the biggest thing. I just feel like finding the puck and seeing the puck…that helps the guys on the team and box outs and blocked shots and playing with a lead every game. It's fun to play with the lead and it helps a lot, gives me a lot of confidence.”