P.K. Subban on Nathan MacKinnon hit: 'I'd do it again next game'

DENVER — P.K. Subban is at the center of controversy and will be the focal point of Colorado fans’ nastiness during Wednesday’s critical Game 4 between the Predators and Avalanche.

So, nothing new. But this situation needs to be put in proper context, which is an overused crutch for professional athletes when they do and say stupid things. Subban is an adult and deserves criticism for punching the back of Nathan MacKinnon’s head in the Avs’ 5-3 win to cut Nashville’s series lead to 2-1.

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And he will get skewered for this response after Tuesday’s practice to this question: “That hit on MacKinnon, your thoughts on that, was it just a normal …”

“Yeah,” Subban said. “I’d do it again next game.”

Subban was visibly annoyed with the question and obviously doesn’t think the hit deserved the kind of scrutiny it has received. Also, he’s obviously fine being the villain. Also, he knows that the hit was never going to be seriously considered by the NHL for any kind of suspension.

It’s in that gray area that perhaps shouldn’t exist in hockey, but it’s there. Subban popped MacKinnon in the head; he should have been penalized for roughing (he got hit for holding instead in the ensuing grapple session); and that’s about it.

And if Avalanche fans disagree, they should listen to their coach. On Wednesday, several hours before Game 4, Jared Bednar was asked about the hit and Subban's comments. He said of the hit: "I think that play happens many times a night in different scenarios."

And he said, when asked about appropriate punishment, that Subban "maybe could have been called for roughing — maybe."

I’ve asked several media folks who have covered many more years of the NHL than I have if a play like that would even be looked at by the league, and the consensus response was to chuckle in my face and ask me how many years I’ve been covering the NHL.

I still think it's OK to not like that hit. I didn't. And Subban will be a target Wednesday, of hits clean and perhaps otherwise.

He never seems to mind that. He may be targeted by the officials as well, and that would not be ideal. He has been on both sides of this, as anyone who recalls Sidney Crosby bouncing his head on the ice during the last Stanley Cup Final can attest.

“If you’re in the playoffs, there’s things that are going to happen in games,” Subban said. “It just depends on the media and what they make of it. It’s up to you guys.”

The media won’t be forgetting it. Subban made sure of it. But Bednar threw some cold water on things a few hours before Game 4.

Reach Joe Rexrode at jrexrode@tennessean.com and follow him on Twitter @joerexrode.

Nashville Predators playoff schedule

GAME 4

WHEN: Wednesday, April 18 at 9 p.m. Central

WHERE: Pepsi Center, Denver

TV: Fox TN, NBC SN

RADIO: 102.5 The Game (Nashville), NHL app

STREAMING: NHL.tv, NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app, Fox Sports Go

GAME 5

WHEN: Friday, April 20, Time TBA

WHERE: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville

TV: Fox TN, NBC SN

RADIO: 102.5 The Game (Nashville), NHL app

STREAMING: NHL.tv, NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app, Fox Sports Go