Joshua Roy’s Impact in 2024-25 Season

Hypothesizing the Role Joshua Roy Will Have for the Canadiens Next Season

The Montreal Canadiens are among the more fortunate teams in the NHL with their exceptional group of prospects. The Canadiens rank third in the most recent prospect pool rankings, with the likes of Joshua Roy being one of the remarkable names of the youthful generation of Habs.

Roy played in 23 games last season for the Canadiens, amassing four goals and nine points during that span. His AHL stats were a bit better with 13 goals and 32 points through 41 games. It’s fair to say that Roy won’t be the definitive scorer the Habs are searching for, used to bolster the lineup’s offence, but it’s also fair to say that Roy has surpassed his 150th overall draft pick ceiling.

In March, The Hockey Writers projected Roy to play on the second line next season, alongside Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook. Roy looked good on the second line last campaign, but it’s the dynamic that he and Dach would demonstrate that makes Habs fans excited.

The way both Dach and Roy play off of their teammates to find scoring is applaudable. Dach and Roy are both players that can seemingly build chemistry no matter who they are lined up with. When you throw in the incredible skating ability of Newhook, it will be hard for the trio to relinquish the puck. The hope is that Dach and Newhook stay healthy next season, not just for the team’s sake, but for the tandem as competitive professional athletes.

Not every outlet is as high on Roy as described, however. The Daily Hive listed Roy outside the starting 12 forwards in their most recent projections, saying that both he and Michael Pezzetta will fight for a spot come training camp. It’s a good estimate saying Roy will have to fight for his spot. Training camp will prove to be the early portion of the season where we see how far the soon-to-be-21-year-old has developed over the Summer.

Roy won’t have a sophomore season a la Juraj Slafkovský—that being a 50 point campaign—and even if he is recalled from the AHL at some point in the season, the odds of Roy being able to contribute for the Habs are strong.