OverDrive - Subban on his newest sports feature, the level of competitiveness in Olympic hockey, and his experience in Sochi 2014.

Episode Date: February 3, 2026

Former NHLer and ESPN Hockey Analyst P.K. Subban joins to preview his newest sports feature “RIVALS: The 4 Nations Face-Off”, the level of competitiveness that comes with Olympic hockey, and his experience representing Canada in 2014.

With corporate traveler, you get a dedicated travel expert and 24-7 support. So business travel feels effortless. Big meetings land. Business grows. With corporate traveler, the booking is just the start. Search corporate traveler today. Looking forward coming up on Thursday at 8 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem rivals the four nations faceoff. It's an original feature special about hockey, culture, politics, and the Canadian national identity told through.

the lens of the iconic 2025 four nations face off and who better to talk about it than the executive producer P.K. Suban, NHL superstar, Norris trophy winner, and he just had to add executive producer to his title. You're adding

titles by the day, my man. Thanks for joining us and congratulations on putting this feature together. Thank you. I appreciate it. Maybe the most important title, Philanthropist. That seems to be the one that I enjoy the most, but this was a pretty special project. And when I started my production company, I started it to be able to tell stories and tell

stories that are authentic and that I love. And this was definitely a story worth telling for sure. So take us through the process, PK. And obviously you know so much about what it means to represent Canadian hockey and what that rival of the Americans is like. what did you learn going through this process that maybe you didn't beforehand? Yeah, I mean, you know, to be able to do a sports feature and represent your country, I think that what makes it so special was to be a part of it, you know,

watching the whole thing happened, seeing the rivalry meet an all-time high, see the game hit highs that we've never seen before was pretty special. And to be able to tell a story like this and watch that doc, I'm still pinching myself, trying to make it seem real. But to be able to tell that story to Canadians and have them relive that moment the night before the Olympics kick off, I think, is a pretty special thing to be able to contribute to. So, P.K., one of the things that made the Four Nations so special was the pent-up demand for best-on-best hockey because we hadn't seen it since you were a member of Team Canada in 2014. You know, Mark and I were just talking about that 2014 gold medal team, coached by Mike Babcock that you played on.

Bring us inside that room, you know, in the big moments of that tournament, what made that team so special and what made it win? Oh, man, you know, when it comes down to it, the game has to be played hard. And when it has to be played hard, I don't think there's a better country that does it like us. And, you know, you can see that in four nations. You can see that in Sochi. And every time when we have to answer the bell, it's not about skill. It's about will.

And I feel like it's written in our DNA. We know what we have to do in those moments. And you looked at Four Nations. It wasn't the offensive plays that won Canada of that tournament. It was the defensive plays. It was Sydney Crosby against Finland. It was, you know, McKinnon and McDavid all buying in and being patient as Team USA came and droves and waiting for their opportunity.

So it's a chess match and you need to have smart players and players that understand the moment. And that's why they have so many winners on that team is they know what the moment is going to call for. And when you've got Stanley Cup champions and guys that have been there before, those things matter in those moments. You know, P.K., you've been in this situation that the players currently are in. And that's getting on a plane in a couple of days and going overseas and going to an

Olympics, is it, is it excitement? Is it anxiety? Describe the emotions that you're going through before the games are actually played. Oh, man, you know, it's, there's so much tension there. It's super competitive. I think that, you know, the Olympic stage is just, it's different, you know, when you're considering it, you've got so many other distractions and things that are around you, and there are great distractions, you know, you got families, you got all this other stuff, but you're representing your country and you're doing it amongst the world so it's just a different level of hockey

I think that it's going to be interesting this Olympics because we're coming off the backs of the four nations which reached heights in our game that we've never seen before so what does that mean for the Olympics? Is there another level that it's going to go to? And I think that's the anticipation of it is that there's more countries involved

but I don't know. We'll have to see history will be written again, right? Yeah, for sure. I mean, P.K., when you handicap it, I mean, obviously, Canada gets the upper hand in the four nations by the skin of their teeth on a great play. McDavid scoring the winner, this is a different type of tournament. Like, Canada and the U.S. aren't even guaranteed to play. I mean, God forbid, there's a scenario where they actually don't get to meet. But if they do meet again, I mean, you know, how do you, given the fact that you're not going to have three fights and nine seconds under Olympic rules, given the fact that it, you know,

double iHF rule book is slightly different and you're on a on a foreign soil i mean how do you expect those kind of factors to change the way these games are played or this game is played if indeed we do see canada usa well as far as canada goes that's why we're Canada you know it doesn't matter what the game dictates you know the players that you've selected can play all in different situations and different positions and they're capable of doing what you ask them to do and that's play winning hockey. So when you're selecting Team Canada, it's not just about putting the puck in the net. It's everything that goes

into building a team. And every country is prioritizing that. So, you know, like you said, you know, you can't just be thinking about Team USA. Sweden's good too. Finland's good. There's a lot of great countries. So, you know, for me, when you're building that team, you're going to know where you've got

to go through in terms of the tournament format. And like I said, it's not like you're playing on Olympic size rink either. So, you know, It's a lot of things to consider. I like the Four Nations format where the guys can fight. Maybe they'll change the rules, but I don't think that's happening. So it'll be a chess match.

There's no question. You know, there's always going to be curveballs and some adversities. So teams are going to have to make adjustments. But it's going to happen quickly. So, you know, you don't really have that much time to dwell on anything. You just have to play. And for these guys, I think that's where they're at their best. but it's so competitive.

You look at the NHL, the competitive balance. Well, these are all NHL players representing against their country. So, you know, it's, it'll be interesting to see. I'll be watching every game. Well, and guys have to buy in, obviously, to the team. And you're a guy who has a skill set that you could go out there in an NHL game and take risks. And you're one of the most entertaining players that we have seen over the last 25 years. And yet when you're on Team Canada, you're probably asked to play a little differently.

how long did it take in the process of the tournament for you to kind of really find your own game on Team Canada that differed from your game with the Montreal Canadiens or the National Predators? Oh, well, it's simple. It doesn't matter what's asked of you. When you enter that locker room and you see that jersey hanging in your stall, I mean, it's no longer about you. But, you know, I don't think that's ever been an issue

whenever I've been in Team Canada. It's like a known thing. It's like you just do what's asked of you. think, you know, as a player, you always want to do more, but when you're with Team Canada, less is more. And you got a lot of great players that you're playing with. So, um, the number one thing about going to the Olympics, no matter what anybody says, there's a lot of great things, a lot of distractions. What makes the whole experience fun is winning. You got to win. So you want to win. So at the end of the day, when you put your country's jersey on all that should matter is winning.

and whatever's asked of you, you go there and you do that. And P.K., you're a winner. You're an Olympic gold medalist. You are an executive producer. You're a philanthropist. And you're a great guy for coming on the show today. We appreciate this. Thank you, guys.

Thanks for having me. There you have it. There you go. I'm Dylan Playfair. And I'm Tyler Smith. We're putting loneliness in the penalty box by talking to some of our favorite athletes about the importance of friendship. This is bromance.

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