In an unexpected move, Patrick Roy announced his resignation as head coach and VP of hockey operations of the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday.
In a statement, Roy basically admitted he didn’t have enough power over roster control, which forced his resignation.
“I have thought long and hard over the course of the summer about how I might improve this team to give it the depth it needs and bring it to a higher level. To achieve this, the vision of the coach and VP-Hockey Operations needs to be perfectly aligned with that of the organization. He must also have a say in the decisions that impact the team’s performance. These conditions are not currently met.”
The blunt statement personifies Roy’s salty personality.
The Hall of Famer is one of the greatest goalies to ever play the game, guiding the Montreal Canadiens and Avalanche to four Stanley Cup titles. Off the ice, he’s smug and unhinged.
Roy joined the Quebec Remparts of the QMJHL as coach and manager upon retiring. In 2012 he joined the Avalanche as head coach after a long courting process. Fans in Colorado were justifiably excited to see the best goalie in team history guide his former club to greatness and things started with a bang.
The Avalanche surprised everybody under Roy in his first season, winning 52 games and the Central Division. The 50-year-old was seen as a savior, returning to his roots to fix a floundering team. Roy’s win/loss record, however, told a different story. The Avalanche posted putrid defensive numbers, finishing 24th with 31.2 shots against per sixty, 24th in Corsi for percentage, and third with a 101.8 PDO (ES shooting percentage + ES save percentage), a stat which is a good indicator of luck.
Roy was simply overmatched behind the bench, as his old school approach didn’t gel with the changing game. He favored grit and toughness over skill and possession. Colorado was bumped out of the first round of the playoffs in seven games. The media, especially locally, still threw heaps of praise at Roy. The rookie coach won the Jack Adams Trophy in his first season.
Roy’s rookie success proved to be a mirage.
The Avalanche had similar struggles in 2014-15, but weren’t getting the same kind of luck. Despite posting a relatively high 101.3 PDO, the Avalanche continued to give up way too many shots and play laughable defensive hockey. Colorado missed the playoffs, finishing seventh in the Central with 90 points. In 2015-16, the Avs bottomed out, finishing with the worst shots against per sixty minutes (32.0) in the NHL. Once again, Roy’s squad missed the playoffs, finishing with just 82 points.
Roy lucked into a winning record in his first season and when expectations were placed upon him, his teams fell apart and his true colors showed. The Avalanche were loaded with talented players like Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, Tyson Barrie, Ryan O’Reilly, and Nathan MacKinnon. He entered a fantastic situation, but his temper, arrogance, and disbelief in analytics made him one of the worst coaches in the NHL. He was hard-headed and unwilling to adapt. This is the man who pulled his goalie on multiple occasions with more than ten minutes left in a game. Strategy was never Roy’s forte.
If Roy wanted more roster control, kudos to Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic for not giving into his demands. If his decision-making with player personnel is as brutal as his coaching ability, Colorado would have been depleted with Roy making moves. He didn’t deserve more power – in fact, he deserved less.
Avalanche fans might not see Roy’s departure as a positive, but it is. Colorado played awful, often unwatchable hockey under him despite a talented roster. If he wasn’t a Colorado Avalanche legend, he would have been fired long ago. With Roy’s resignation, no blood ends up on Sakic’s hands. It wouldn’t have been easy to ax him considering his status. Ultimately, Roy, like he did with the Montreal Canadiens in the mid-90’s, quit because he didn’t get what he wanted.
His departure gives the Avalanche new life and a brighter future. Sakic needs to hire a veteran coach willing to try new strategies while knowing the X’s and O’s of the game. With a semi-competent coach, Colorado might be a decent team. For Avs fans, the impending doom under Roy is now over.
