Les enfants terrible

Mario and PK. I love the comparisons and the potential. Balotelli and Subban have proven a lot already, but have a lot more to prove. Yes they are from different worlds european football and north american hockey, Italy and Canada, but they are joined at the hip because they are considered as enfants terrible by their peers and by the sports establishment.

Pk Subban is 15 months older than Mario Balotelli. His parents migrated from the Caribbean and settled in Canada. Pk's father was a long-time hab's fan even though he lived in leaf-land. Pk had a wide smile when he was drafted by the habs. I remember Pk being interviewed during the draft and to say he was ecstatic was an understatement. Even then he was brimming with confidence and told any journalist within earshot that he was ready to play for the Habs the next season.

What to say about Pk Subban's year? His flamboyant skating combined with precision passing and missile like shot have led to murmurs of a Norris. He is superb in the defensive zone as well with his shifty dekes and perfectly timed crunching checks.

One could argue PK is already proving to be one of the all-time great defenceman for the Habs and their storied history. Can any Habs defenceman from the past skate as well as Pk? Guy Lapointe and Chris Chelios come to mind but neither could do what Pk does night in night out. Unlike Doug Harvey or Larry Robinson, PK is not blessed with an all star cast of teammates. Andrei Markov is a very skillful defenceman but age and injuries have slowed down his mobility. Pk has to almost play the role of coverman for Markov besides leading the attack.

PK's exuberance has been attacked by the likes of Don Cherry and the antichambre gang. Yes Pk goes overboard when he scores or even when a teammate does. He seems to be naturally jubilant at every positive thing that happens on the ice, and even his low five has been stifled by his coach. For some reason people have taken PK's enthusiasm as a negative and have distorted his actions as mocking the opposition. Even substitute coach Randy Cunneyworth thought it was appropriate to berate PK, his best defenceman, in an enemy arena in front of his teammates and a tv audience.

There still seems to be a lack of respect for PK among the media. I tweeted he should be considered for the Hart and it seemed even his fans would not concede he had an MVP season. Sure Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews et al have had stellar years but I would argue if you take them out of the line-up, their teams still make the playoffs maybe a few notches lower than where they finished. You take out PK from the habs line-up and no they don't make the playoffs and conversely would probably have been in contention for the first pick overall again. As for the Norris, PK dominated at his position and even though it can be argued Ryan Suter turned around the Wild as well, PK's team finished first, Suter's team finished eighth.

Mario Balotelli was born in Palermo Sicily to parents that had migrated from Ghana to Italy. Mario was beset with stomach operations when he was a kid. His parents being poor and living in cramped quarters decided to make Mario available for foster care. His foster parents were an upper class Jewish Italian couple. Soon Mario was living permanently with his foster parents and took their name Balotelli.

Balotelli has often said his favourite team growing up was AC Milan. Unfortunately, he was signed by the crosstown rivals Inter Milan. He learned his craft as a teenager under the tutelage of arguably the best manager of the past two decades, Jose Mourinho. He also watched many games and played second fiddle to great strikers at Inter like Zlatan Ibrahamovic, Diego Milito, and Samuel Eto. As well, Marco Matrix Materazzi took him under his wing which may not have been the best mentor for Mario.

Even though Mario was surrounded by these great players, it seemed Mario was always in the spotlight. There was the numerous red cards and his lack of celebration after scoring a goal. In fact most times he seemed to sulk after scoring or make an obscene gesture to taunting fans. As a teenager with Inter he had to endure racist chants in opposition stadiums. He was famously kicked in the face by the legendary Francesco Totti who was red-carded. Totti claimed Balotelli had called him gramps all game long. Balotelli is no angel. He seems to enjoy being the enfant terrible with his adolescent hairdos and in your face attitude. Even Italy's perrenial bad boy Antonio Cassano was wondering if Balotelli was nuts.

Subban has just about proven he is the real thing. Balotelli is very close. Mario Balotelli brings many skills to the soccer field. He is almost as strong as Ibrahimovic and much more mobile. He does not have the foot work of a Messi or Ronaldo yet, but he does seem to be able to make moves for a big man. He has an extremely hard precise strike, and his passing skills are underrated. In hockey terms he is a power forward with soft hands. His soft feet have made him infallible so far in taking penalty kicks.

At 22, Mario has achieved a lot. He has won the Seria A championship and the European champion's cup with Inter Milan. He won the premiership with Manchester City. He also led Italy to the final of Euro 2012.

One could argue that Euro 2012 was Mario's coming out party. He was frustrated in the preliminary round even though he dominated with his speed and power. I remember him throwing aside a Spanish defender like a pesky mosquito. He was dominant again against England but was frustrated until the final penalty shoot-out. I also recall discussing with someone Italy's chances against Germany and I said that if Balotelli would only convert his numerous chances we had a chance. Mario's game against Germany was magical as he finally broke through and his myriad of skills were magnified with his highlight reel goals. Maybe only Roberto Baggio or Christian Vieri have dominated an Azzurri game as Balotelli did that day. He finally celebrated his goals jumping for joy like a little kid after the first goal and disrobing and doing his hulk pose after the second. Mario Balotelli had a much better tournament than Cristiano Ronaldo.

Other than Euro 2012 Mario has not been a leader on his team either with Inter or Manchester City. His time at Man-city was tarnished by his numerous run-ins with manager Roberto Mancini an ex-star of the game. Since Man-city was laden with established stars, Balotelli again played second fiddle to the likes of Tevez and Aguero. At times Balotelli has not produced and with a team like Man-city this means time to watch from the bench. Living in a foreign land and with a language he barely spoke did not help matters.

Finally, Mario is with the team he grew up with as he was transferred to AC Milan at the beginning of the year. There should be no stopping Mario's potential. He is the leader of a young team. It is time to produce as Mario enters the most formative years as an athlete. In 2013 Mario has had some virtuoso performances with Milan and Italy. There is incredible pressure on him to succeed. He could easily wilt or finally make it to the iconic levels of soccer greats.

For both PK and Mario the only thing that may stop them is injury or their own egos. Their unconventional behaviour and antics on the ice and soccer pitch will lead to more controversy no doubt. As they mature their spotlight may become brighter and may lead to unimaginable heights. Mario has already made Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world list. Time will tell for both of them.