Is this Roy a new heir to the throne?
NHL Draft 2009: Small-town goaltender another 'keeper from La Belle Province
Don McGowan, Canwest News Service
Published: Monday, June 15, 2009The claim to fame of Amqui, a town of 6,200 in the Gaspé region, is that in 2008, it became the first Quebec community to ban retail stores from handing out single-use plastic bags.
Olivier Roy of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, in action during the CHL Top Prospects Game, heads into the June 26-27 NHL draft in Montreal ranked No. 2 among North American goaltending prospects.
Photograph by : Claus Andersen, Getty Images
If Olivier Roy has his way, it will be known for another reason.
Roy, 17, who plays for the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, would like nothing more than to make Amqui the hometown of the next great French-Canadian goaltender.
"I would be proud to hear my name when you talk about good goalies from the 'Q' drafted into the NHL," said Roy, who heads into the June 26-27 NHL draft in Montreal ranked No. 2 among North American goaltending prospects.
"There have been a lot of good goalies who have come out of the 'Q' and played in the NHL, but all the leagues in the Canadian Hockey League, and even in the States, they have good goalies now."
Roy's ascension to the No. 1 role in Cape Breton was quick, thanks in part to an injury to 18-year-old Marek Benda, the Screaming Eagles' incumbent. As a 16-year-old rookie in 2007-08, Roy was thrust into the role, and he never relinquished it.
He posted a 27-15-0 record, setting a QMJHL record for victories by a 16-year-old rookie. He recorded four shutouts -- another rookie record -- a 2.87 goals-against average and .896 save percentage. At one point, Roy went 167 minutes 51 seconds without allowing a goal, the fourth-longest shutout streak in QMJHL history. His stellar play earned him the Raymond Lagace Trophy as the league's defensive rookie of the year and the RDS Cup as its top overall rookie.
Last season, he had a chance to show his stuff during all-star play, putting in a fine performance at the 2009 CHL Top Prospects Game and he was named player of the game for Team Quebec
in the 2008 Canada-Russia Challenge on Nov. 17.
In 2008-09, Roy posted a
35-13-0 record, 3.04 average and .906 save percentage in 54 games, helping lead the Screaming Eagles to second place in the Atlantic Division.
As well, he did not allow a goal in four shootout games, stopping all 14 shots he faced.
"That just shows he likes to play under pressure," Screaming Eagles coach Mario Durocher said. "When he's challenging, this is when he's good. When he's doing this, he reminds me a bit of (Pittsburgh Penguins star and former Screaming Eagle) Marc-André Fleury. He likes to go out and challenge the shooter. He's got good hands, good legs and he's pretty quick."
Roy agrees. "When I play my best game, it's when I'm aggressive. I like to challenge the shooter, make him make the first move, then try to take up the most space in my net."
Roy's brightest moment came in Game 1 of the Screaming Eagles' QMJHL quarterfinals against the Quebec Remparts. Playing before a crowd of 12,331 at the Colisée Pepsi, Roy made 65 saves as the Screaming Eagles won 3-2 in quadruple overtime. At 132:57, the game stands as the second-longest in QMJHL history.
"All the fans of Quebec were calling his name, but he stayed focused and we won the game in the fourth overtime," Durocher said. "That just shows you the character and focus he's got."
Roy, who made 17 saves in the third overtime, described the game as "probably one of the greatest experiences I've had in my career so far."
"Playing in front of 12,000 people, we were not used to that," Roy said. "The fact we won in overtime, it showed the character of our team.
"You had to stay on top of your game and stay focused all the time. The next shot can be the winning goal, so you don't want to give a bad goal. You want to give your team a chance to get the next goal."
