In an entirely unexpected trade the Nashville Predators have traded away captain Shea Weber to the Montreal Canadiens for P.K. Subban.
Seriously.
I had thought Nick Kypreos had been hacked.
Talk of @Canadiens moving PK as early as today. Stay tuned. @Sportsnet.
— Nick Kypreos (@RealKyper) June 29, 2016
#Blockbuster @CanadiensMTL trade PK Subban to @PredsNHL for Shea Weber #wow @Sportsnet @NHL.
— Nick Kypreos (@RealKyper) June 29, 2016
Subban is 27-years-old and carries a cap-hit of $ 9 million through the 2021-22 season while Weber is 30-years-old and carries a $7.857 million cap-hit through the 2025-26 season.
The @PredsNHL have acquired @PKSubban1 from Montreal for Shea Weber. Release shortly at https://t.co/cQmDYtKTvA
— KWilsonPreds (@KWilsonPreds) June 29, 2016
Nashville is now looking at a top pairing of P.K. Subban and Roman Josi.
More to come on this.
Unbelievable.
UPDATE:
Here is the official release from the Predators:
Nashville, Tenn. (June 29, 2016) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Wednesday that the club has acquired Norris Trophy winner P.K. Subban from the Montreal Canadiens for defenseman Shea Weber.
“P.K. Subban is an elite offensive defenseman with tremendous skill and contagious energy that makes the Nashville Predators a better team now and into the future,” Poile said. “Superstar defensemen of his caliber are a rare commodity, and we are thrilled to add him to the organization.”
Subban, 27 (5/13/89), is among the most decorated defensemen in the game today. Individually, he won the 2013 Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenseman, was a finalist for the award in 2015, is a two-time First-Team NHL All-Star (2013 and 2015) and a 2011 All-Rookie Team selection. He has helped teams win a gold medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics and a pair of World Junior Championships (2008 and 2009). Over the past four seasons – dating back to 2012-13 – the 6-foot, 210-pound blueliner has amassed 203 points (42g-160a) in 274 regular-season games, third most among all NHL defensemen. He has surpassed the 50-point mark in each of the past three seasons, highlighted by a career-high 60 points (15g-45a) in 2014-15. He has advanced past the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in each of his last two appearances in the postseason, ranking fourth among NHL blueliners in points (5g-9a-14pts) in 2014, helping Montreal reach the Eastern Conference Final.
A native of Toronto, Subban started his professional career in 2009-10, being named to the AHL All-Rookie Team and an AHL First-Team All-Star after leading all league blueliners in goals (18) and ranking third in points. The 43rd overall selection in the 2007 NHL Draft (second round) played four seasons with the OHL’s Belleville Bulls from 2005-09, posting 190 points (42g-148a) in 234 games and being named a 2009 First-Team OHL All-Star.
Subban has also become renowned for his charitable contributions, and recently received the 2016 NHL Foundation Award which is presented to “an NHL player who applies the core values of hockey – commitment, perseverance and teamwork – to enrich the lives of people in his community.” In September 2015, he announced a $10 million pledge over a seven-year period to the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation (MCHF), and often employs various initiatives to engage the community and raise awareness about those causes nearest to him.