Chicago Blackhawks: 3 keys to success for Malcolm Subban

Key 1: Take advantage of the opportunity

This is basically it. Malcolm Subban has been handed a chance to prove he can be a number starter, and against fairly weak competition. On his previous teams, he was backing up Tukka Rask and Marc-Andre Fleury, both of whom are still playing at the top of their respective games. Maybe slightly less Fleury, but he’s still a great goalie. Taking the net from either of these two wasn’t particularly likely.

Granted, Vegas probably wanted Subban to make things interesting and hoped that he’d be able to stay on as the starter for the Golden Knights. That didn’t happen. Missed opportunity? Hard to say, but Subban is in Chicago now and has been given a chance in the Windy City to be “the guy”.

Now that Bowman decided not to bring back Crawford, this is the chance any aspiring goalie would be after. If he’s ever going to have a chance to “the guy” in the net, this is it. If he blows this, then his chances at being a starting goalie could very well be over.

By contrast, if he’s up to the task, then he’s ready to take full advantage of the opportunity he’s been handed and will claim the starting spot as his own. This is something that he’ll need to have in the back of his mind all year.

Even if things don’t work out for him in Chicago, if Subban shows he’s a capable goaltender, he’ll have a place to play for years to come. Even if his role ends up being as a dedicated back-up, this year will be perhaps the best chance he’s ever had to showcase what’s he fully capable of. For Subban, 2020-2021 is where he proves that he has a future in the NHL.

Key 2: Be physically ready for the season

Subban has only ever played about 20 games, about a quarter of a season, as an NHLer. Even though 2020-2021 is going to be a shortened season at 56 games, he’ll need to be ready. Not just mentally, that’s a given, but physically as well. It’s going to be a grind, and it could very well be something he’s not really used to.

Ideally, he’ll be getting ready for that during the off-season, but a full season will wear down just about every player. In fact, it’s rare to see anyone go through a full season in the NHL without picking up some kind of injury. Goalies are no exception, and even the best feel the effects of piling up heavy minutes.

The full impact of having to stop pucks night after night, especially if the team starts relying on him over the other goalies is going to affect. He may need to get back into a game for an injured counterpart, even if he played a tough game the night before. He might need to play several games in a row, including a back-to-back. Whenever he’s called on, he’ll have to be ready, no matter how tired he might feel.

He’s almost certainly capable, but he’s never shown that he can do this. The problem is that this is one of those things that he can’t really train for in the off-season. I expect he’s taken the opportunity that’s been made available to him very seriously, and he’ll be ready to play for keeps on the first day of camp. Hopefully, he’s prepped himself enough to carry himself through the whole season.

Key 3: Learn as much and as quickly as possible

It doesn’t really matter what happens in the standings this year because no one really expects Chicago to be a very good team. There’s too much uncertainty all over the roster, and there are big question marks specifically in the net. Three of them to be precise, and this is a chance to learn for all three goalies., not just Subban

It’s going to take extreme focus and patience to make this season work. No matter what though, 2020-2021 will be a valuable experience for Chicago’s goalies. He has more experience than his counterparts, but only a little and none of it as a starter. Like the other two, Subban’s going to have to fail his way to success and learn as quickly as he can.

His career numbers predict a rough year for him, but he needs to commit to improving, regardless of what his stats have been. Every period of every game is going to be something to learn from. Every time he gets his skates on the ice he’ll need to have reflected on how he can improve from the last game.

There may be times where he’s expected to carry the team, and he’ll need to learn how to have the fortitude to do that. No team makes it to the Stanley Cup without goalies stealing games during the playoffs. This is Subban’s chance to really see what it takes to deal with that kind of pressure. This will be especially important because Chicago didn’t commit to making the postseason. Instead, they’ve publicly stated that the organization developing younger players.

Personally, I believe the starting position is probably Subban’s to lose. There isn’t much in the way of evidence that anyone could point to support that claim, but it was Subban who backed up Crawford against Edmonton and Vegas during the return to play for 2019-2020.

This fact alone says a lot about how they view the top three goalies in the organization. With no starter to play against and no expectations for pursuing a spot in the postseason, a lot of pressure has been removed from this season. There’s an open crease waiting to be filled, and it is likely Subban’s to lose.