Patrick Roy shocked the hockey world by announcing his resignation as head coach and VP of Hockey Operations with the Colorado Avalanche. Roy issued a blunt statement in which he essentially indicated that he wasn’t pleased with how much say he had over the final roster. Roy’s resignation, a move which might be a blessing in disguise for the Avalanche, might have been partially caused over how the team handled one familiar name – Alexander Radulov.
A report from TVASports.com reveals that Roy and the Avalanche might have had two very different views on Radulov and it may have been a contributing factor in Roy stepping down. It’s believed that Roy wanted the club to recruit the Russian forward, but the team wasn’t as interested. Radulov ultimately signed a one-year, $5.75 million contract with the Montreal Canadiens.
Here’s one of Roy’s statements which suggests he wasn’t happy with how the Avs handled player management:
“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.”
If the Radulov report is accurate, it was likely just one example of several in which Roy’s views weren’t shared by the club or were ignored by the rest of the front office.
Can we also point out how ironic it is that Radulov is reportedly once again a source of issues for an NHL team? At least this time he wasn’t even directly involved.
