The Islanders’ season has been over for a few days now. Normally, this wouldn’t be big news in Quebec… but considering that Patrick Roy is the club’s coach, it changes things.
Let’s just say it attracts a bit more of the Quebec spotlight than usual.
Even so, the fact remains that the Islanders were no match for the (much more powerful) Hurricanes. Carolina’s strike force is superior to Long Island’s, and despite the coach‘s best efforts, it wasn’t enough.
In Roy’s defense, he arrived in the middle of the season, so he may not have been able to install his system as he would have liked.
But next year will be different, when he’ll have the whole season to install his vision. And that will start in camp, where the players are expecting a tough training camp, as Bo Horvat told the press.
Obviously, Horvat knows it won’t be easy for him and his team-mates… but he’s also aware that it won’t be a bad thing either. He knows the guys are going to face some adversity at camp, and he thinks that’s going to help them come out of it stronger.
Maybe it’ll help them avoid crashing out at the end of the game, too. That’s been a problem for the Islanders this season, and it was also the case in Game 2 of the series against the Hurricanes.
Let’s not forget, however, that in his end-of-season review, Roy was quite positive about his club’s performance. He liked to see his boys fighting to get into the playoffs, and he felt his boys deserved better against the Hurricanes.
But obviously, a first-round defeat is not satisfactory for a team (and a coach) whose goal is to win the Stanley Cup.
We’ll see what Roy has in store for his boys in the fall to prepare them properly.
In brief
– His name will be the talk of the town this summer.
– It’s safe to assume that Marc Bergevin won’t be replacing him this summer.
– Read more about the Coyotes.
– For once the Athletics have something good in recent years, we’re already thinking about trading him.
– A spectacular win.
More must-reads: