As the NHL’s coaching carousel spins on, an old face wants back on: Patrick Roy is hoping for another shot at hockey’s top level.
Fresh off winning the Memorial Cup with the Quebec Remparts as general manager and head coach, Roy struck a contrite tone in an interview with NHL.com’s Dave Stubbs as he laid out his case for why he should be called up to the bigs.
“A person I know very well one day said to me, ‘Hockey is not your passion, hockey is your life,’ and that’s pretty much right. It would be an honour for me if I have a chance to be back in the NHL,” Roy said.
“I know I made some bad choices. I know the way I left [Colorado], everything I did, could have an effect on today’s perspective on myself. I have to live with that. I know that I’ve learned from my mistakes. The past is the past but sometimes, you have to live with your past. I understand the situation.”
Roy resigned as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche in 2016 without warning, citing philosophical differences with the organization after his third season with the team.
He had won the Jack Adams Award in his first season, leading Colorado to the playoffs with a 52-22-8 record, before missing the playoffs the next two years.
Roy, a legendary figure between the pipes for the Montreal Canadiens and later Colorado, has a reputation for his hot temper. Fans of the Canadiens will remember the way Roy demanded a trade after being left out to dry by coach Mario Tremblay for nine goals in a night.
This Memorial Cup was Roy’s second with the Remparts, after he took them to the championship in his first season behind their bench back in 2005-2006. Roy has said that he will not return to the team after this win.
“There’s no better ending than that, that’s for sure.”
