Players hit back at rumors of discontent with Patrick Roy, calling claims of fatigue over Stanley Cup stories "completely ridiculous."
ELMONT, NY -- On Wednesday afternoon, NHL insider Frank Seravalli reported that some New York Islanders players were getting "fed up" with Patrick Roy bringing up his Stanley Cup wins.
"There's so much talk about his Stanley Cups and the Stanley Cups he won," Seravalli said on 'Frankly Hockey'. 'Players are really tired of hearing that. It's a great relic to hang onto, and it's a nice flex to have on your resume, but you haven't won as a coach. And you're not a goaltender anymore, even though you're in the Hall of Fame. You're just a head coach, and you have to be able to park that. Players told me that they were tired of hearing that from Patrick Roy."
Seravalli has not been in the Islanders' locker room once this season nor attended a game.
"That couldn't be more untrue," Islanders forward Mathew Barzal said. "If anything, we love hearing stories about the teams that he was on that won the cups, especially his team in Montreal. He'd always bring up just how they were underdogs all year, and that kind of stuff fueled us.
"So that report is just, it's completely ridiculous.”
The Hockey News asked team captain Anders Lee for a comment on the report:
"I don't even know what to say," a dumbfounded Lee said. "We're definitely not frustrated with Patty talking about that kind of thing. When he did, it was very relevant to the situation, and only him trying to help and tell a story.
"No one was walking away with those feelings.”
Roy's time on the island came to a close on Sunday when he was relieved of his duties after four straight losses, with the Islanders falling out of a playoff spot.
General manager Mathieu Darche and the players made it clear that Roy never lost the room, with the first-year general manager citing that the hiring of Pete DeBoer was about what was best for the team going forward.
The Islanders continue their push for the playoffs on Thursday night againt the Toronto Maple Leafs, with puck drop at 6:45 PM ET.