The Montreal Canadiens drafted Joshua Roy in the 5th round of the 2021 NHL Draft. If they thought he would be half as good as he has been this season, they would have taken him much earlier.
Roy was a highly skilled player all his life, and was taken first overall in the QMJHL Draft in 2019. He displayed his high skill level at times, but the Saint John Sea Dogs grew tired of his inconsistency after a season and a half and traded him to the Sherbrooke Phoenix.
This season, after being drafted late by the Habs, Roy really exploded offensively. He led the QMJHL in scoring with 119 points in 66 games, including 51 goals and 68 assists. His incredible play continued into the postseason.
The Phoenix went deep into the playoffs, defeating the Base-Comeau Drakkar and Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in short series before taking on the Charlottetown Islanders in round three. Roy was impressive in all three rounds, scoring 23 points in just 11 playoff games.
Even with Roy piling up just over two points per game, the Phoenix were eliminated from the playoffs by the Islanders last night. Charlottetown won the Best-of-5 series three games to one.
In total, Roy has played 77 QMJHL games since being drafted by the Canadiens, if we combine the regular season and playoffs. In that time he has piled up an incredible 59 goals, 83 assists and 142 points. That is as good as it gets in one year, especially for an 18 year old who is likely going to play another year of Junior next season.
Between now and then, we could see Roy suiting up for the Laval Rocket. The Canadiens AHL affiliate is about to begin the conference final on Friday night and already had Riley Kidney join the team after his QMJHL season ended. Kidney has not played a game yet, but is seeing up close what it takes to be successful at the pro level.
Could Roy be the next youngster to join the Rocket on their deep playoff run? With his QMJHL season over, it would make a lot of sense. And with his incredible play this season, the Rocket just might find a spot for him on their power play in the near future.
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