It's been a few years since Karl Subban made the trip north to Sudbury, but at the end of this month, he will be in the city that helped shape the future of his three sons.
The father of five (two daughters, three sons) recently released his first book, "How We Did It" and he will be holding a book signing at Chapters in Sudbury on Nov. 30.
The Subban name is one that is not unfamiliar to hockey fans, as Karl's three sons PK, Malcolm, and Jordan have all been drafted by NHL teams.
The eldest, PK plays for the Nashville Predators, Malcolm suits up for the Vegas Golden Knights, and the youngest of the three, Jordan, plays for Vancouver Canucks AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets.
While all three boys got their start in hockey in the Greater Toronto Area, with each playing for the Belleville Bulls in the OHL, Sudbury perhaps can take a little bit of credit for the success of the Subban boys.
Karl moved to Sudbury from Jamaica at just 12 years of age and had never seen or played a game of hockey in his life. Moving to a Northern Ontario city however, it's almost impossible to avoid Canada's game, and it wasn't long before Karl was hooked on hockey.
"Sudbury certainly gets credit, it's where I discovered hockey," said Karl. "I was really drawn to the goalies because I was a soccer goalie when I played in Jamaica, so that was really the only connection I had to the sport. I always played goalie when we played road hockey and my favourite player was Ken Dryden when I was growing up."
Karl's father and uncle worked at Falconbridge Mine, and while his parents worked their hardest to provide for Karl and his three brothers, they weren't able to afford to put their son in hockey as a child.
Instead, Karl decided to pursue basketball and he played for Sudbury Secondary School before heading to Lakehead University where he played on the men's basketball team.
"I've always felt like I've held each game in one hand," said Subban. "In one hand is hockey and in the other is basketball and I've always had passion for both sports."
Subban's book details his journey from Jamaica to Sudbury to Lakehead to his eventual career as an educator, while keeping a clear focus on the book's subtitle "The Subban plan for success in hockey, school, and life."
Though he is perhaps best-known as a hockey dad, Subban says that this book is for everyone who is involved in the lives of children in one way or another.
"It's for parents, teachers, coaches, anyone who works with children or has children really," he said. "A big word that the book focuses on is 'potential' and how all children have potential in them that's waiting to be unlocked," said Subban.
"Everywhere I go I get I asked, 'how did we do it?' and I think it makes for an interesting story about having five children and three boys in hockey."
Watching his children realize their own potential has been a joy for Subban, with his three sons playing professional hockey and his two daughters, one a university basketball star and the other a talented visual artist.
Karl still has family and friends in Sudbury and the excitement in his voice is obvious when asked about his memories of the city and the opportunity to visit once again.
"I was fortunate that the boys all played in the OHL and their games in Sudbury were always ones that were circled on the calendar. I grew up watching and cheering for the Sudbury Wolves so those were always special games," said Subban.
"I'm really looking forward to coming back and seeing old friends and family. I have grandsons now who are starting out in hockey so maybe in the future I'll be making more trips up to watch them play."
Karl Subban's book, "How We Did It" can be purchased online at Indigo and is also available in stores.
Subban will be at Indigo in Sudbury on Nov. 30 at 7 p.m.
