(Laval) A young hockey player has the right to have ambition and to dream. Maybe it’s even a duty. And that seems to be part of Joshua Roy’s personality. Otherwise, he would not have believed in his chances of securing a position with the Montreal Canadiens this season.
Some 48 hours after being informed that his professional journey would first take him to the American League, Roy met with a handful of journalists in the Laval Rocket locker room Monday afternoon, where he gave a positive assessment of his time with the Habs in recent days.
“It went really well, I gave it my all. I had a great summer of training to get ready, and I think that helped me a lot. I had an excellent camp and I’m very happy with myself,” analyzed the young striker after the first day of the Rocket training camp at Place Bell.
It was when he was asked to clarify the objectives he had set for himself and his personal expectations when starting camp with the Canadian that Roy recognized that he had aimed high.
“Of course the final objective was perhaps to make the team, to confuse the issue. Leave a great impression of myself and give it my all, I think that’s what I did and I’m super happy,” said Roy, who scored a goal in two outings during the preseason schedule, against the Devils of New Jersey.
” I believed it. It was going well, he added, not without adding words tinged with realism. Of course you believe in it, but at the same time you look at the line-up, the guys have contracts, they are excellent, they are super good players. It’s extremely hard, but I think I did well, and I’m very happy,” he continued.
The fact remains that Roy has only played one career game in the American League, during the 2022 spring playoffs. As a result, he is aware that the season which will begin on October 13 could be one of transition before an extended, permanent stay in “the big leagues.”
“I’m still young, I’m 20 years old. I think it’s going to be a big year for me, getting used to the pro game, developing,” he remarked.
Roy also seems to realize that this first professional season risks being marked by highs, but also lows in terms of offensive production.
“I know it’s a big league where the guys work. There is a lot of talent. By working hard and paying attention to the small details, I will definitely be able to be successful,” he believes.
Roy is not the only player to have returned to Laval in a good state of mind after experiencing the excitement of the Canadian camp. This is also the case for young defender William Trudeau.
Like Roy, Trudeau had time to participate in two matches and collect a point during the preparatory schedule. In his case, it was an assist on a goal by Juraj Slafkovsky against the Ottawa Senators last Wednesday.
“I think I had a great camp. I had expectations. I think the way the camp went, I achieved them. I don’t really have any regrets. There are always little moments in a match where you say to yourself “I should have done that instead”. I’m super happy with the mark I left. »
Trudeau, who also participated in Saturday’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, met Martin St-Louis, Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton.
They gave him good grades, but also some missions to complete over the coming months.
“They told me I did really well, that they were super happy with my camp. They pointed out a couple of things to me that they wanted me to work on in Laval,” said the athlete from Varennes.
“I’m still an aggressive defender. It’s part of my identity, but when you’re in a league like the National League, it’s about limiting those risks, taking more calculated risks,” said the defender.
Trudeau also explained the expectations he set for himself before the start of camp. Expectations, all in all, quite simple.
“Over the last year, people have started talking about me more. I wanted to leave a good mark for people to say, ‘this guy has a chance of playing in the National League one day.’ This is what I did on the ice. I worked hard this summer in Brossard. The more the camp progressed, I gained confidence, I became more comfortable over time. »
