The Montreal Canadiens have had mixed results with their drafting, especially in the Marc Bergevin-Trevor Timmins era. Even though some of their early picks have been hit or miss, they have selected some talented players in the later rounds, including Cayden Primeau, Rafael Harvey-Pinard, and Michael Pezzetta, to name a few. One player who could be the best of all the late-round picks is Joshua Roy, drafted in the fifth round, 150th overall, in 20221, the last draft conducted by Bergevin and Timmins. If Roy continues his current scoring pace, he will have been a hidden gem for the Canadiens.
Low Expectations for Roy at Draft
When Roy was selected, expectations weren’t high; most thought he was that francophone player that the Canadiens pick every year. He split his draft year between the St. John Sea Dogs and the Sherbrooke Phoenix of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL); he was a point-per-game (P/G) player with 35 points in 35 games. He didn’t show any star power or anything to suggest he would be a top player and dropped to the fifth round, where Montreal scooped him up. Many fans thought they had added another bottom-six player with top-six potential if everything went well.
Roy took being drafted seriously and stepped up his game in 2021-22; he led the QMJHL in scoring with 119 points and was selected to play for Team Canada at the World Junior Championships (WJC), where he scored eight points in seven games and helped Canada win gold. He followed that up with a tremendous playoff run, scoring 23 points in 11 games with Sherbrooke, ending the season as the league’s top scorer, second in most valuable player (MVP) votes in the QMJHL, and winning the best personality award.
His success didn’t stop there as he again played for Team Canada at the WJC in 2022-23, scoring 11 points in seven games and being one of the top players in the tournament while also surpassing Jonathan Huberdeau as the highest-scoring Quebec-born player in the tournament; he again won the top personality award in the QMJHL and was selected as a First Team All-Star for the second year in a row.
Roy Shines at Canadiens Rookie Camp and Pre-Season
Roy was invited to the Canadiens Rookie Camp and didn’t disappoint with four points in three games. He dominated most shifts and gave the team one offensive chance after the other. His play was so dominant that it was easy to see that he would be critical to the Laval Rockets’ success in the American Hockey League (AHL). Not only were the media and fans talking about him playing for the Rocket, but there was even talk that he could make the NHL roster.
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Roy started the pre-season with the Canadiens and played reasonably well. He established his tremendous 200-foot game that could make him a catalyst on any line he plays on. When Roy is in the offensive zone, there is always at least one scoring chance due to his ability to feed his linemates or generate open space for a scoring opportunity. He is rarely in the wrong place and adapted to the speed of the NHL fairly quickly – granted, it was the pre-season when most teams don’t ice their full NHL roster. Roy proved to the coaches, management and fans that he has at least NHL-level skill, and the organization made the right call to send him to Laval to develop appropriately. There is no question he will get at least a cup of coffee this season with Montreal.
Canadiens Roy Dominating the AHL Early On
Everyone knew that Roy had talent, but no one expected him to explode like this with the Rocket in 2023-24. In five games, he has 11 points – including a hat trick – to lead the league in goals (five) and points. The team has no issue with offensive production, as they have three players in the top 10 in league scoring – Lias Andersson also has five goals and seven overall points. Laval is third in the league in goals with 23 but last in goals against with 25, and they are off to a 1-3-1 record to start the season. Rocket head coach Jean-Francois Houle isn’t worried about the slow start and expects the team to rebound.
Roy is a huge reason the Rocket are off to such a strong start offensively, and he is also one of the few players playing well defensively, showing that his 200-foot game will be a massive asset when he gets to Montreal. It’s easy to say he will be a hidden star, but it is still very early in his pro career; players get hot, and players get cold. Right now, Roy is very hot. If he can keep this pace for the season, it will be a huge boost for his future with the organization, and if he cools off substantially, then management will see exactly where he fits in, whether it be in the bottom-six role or in a top-six role. If his history of success tells us anything, he won’t cool off to the point where there is a debate about whether he’s NHL material, but his pace will realistically slow down, considering he’s on a 158-point pace.
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Roy looks like he will be a dynamic player at the NHL level, possibly even be the answer to fill the hole on the Cole Caufield/Nick Suzuki wing. We must wait and see where Roy is at Christmas time; if he’s still around a P/G player, that will tell us more about what type of NHL player he will be. Until then, there is no need to call him to Montreal, even with all the injuries.