Canadiens Prospect Ready to Make Big Statement

TVA Sports Nicolas Cloutier had a brilliant and insightful interview with Roy recently, who said that he lost 15 pounds over the offseason, while adding tremendous strength in his lower body. Roy's goal is obvious: to become faster and more explosive.

It has been anything but rosy for the Canadiens' 2019 fifth-round (150th overall) selection, who slid down the draft board due to question marks about his commitment and overall conditioning.

While he has taken significant strides since draft day and shown that he has all of the tools to become a top-nine NHL forward talent, his effort and footspeed have limited him to just 45 games since he turned pro in 2023-24. The majority of time has been spent in the American Hockey League with the Canadiens' farm team, the Laval Rocket.

Down in Laval, Roy has looked like the team's best forward, demonstrating a fantastic two-way game, which allows him to exploit unsuspecting opposing forwards with his deft defensive skills. Roy's compete and speed in the NHL haven't quite translated, but he has hung around the middle of the pack in the Canadiens' prospect depth chart thanks to his great defensive instincts and anticipation.

Given the way that John Chaimberg, a trainer local to Montreal, known for working with Kristopher Letang of the Pittsburgh Penguins, and Canadian UFC Legend Georges St-Pierre, has spoken about Roy's work ethic in the gym and mental toughness, Canadiens fans should be encouraged.

“Josh was the MVP of our summer,” enthused Chaimberg in an exclusive interview with TVA Sports Nicolas Cloutier.

Though Roy had trained regularly, he never quite trained at the level that Chaimberg pushed him; however, though it was a change in pace, Roy never complained, but instead put his head down and pushed himself as hard as he could through each training session.

It was never a question of whether Roy was skilled enough to be a forward who would make a difference in the NHL, but whether he was quick enough and could play with consistency. Cloutier's article revealed that Roy has done his all to ensure that he reaches his high potential.

Roy's offensive skills, paired with his strong defensive instincts, should be a must-watch at Canadiens training camp, and fans should expect nothing less than him giving it his all.