After a highly successful 2018–19 minor hockey season with the Lévis Chevaliers of the Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League (QMAAA), in which he led the league in scoring with 38 goals and 50 assists in 42 games, Roy was selected first overall in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) 2019 entry draft by the Saint John Sea Dogs.[1] Self-described as "not a physical guy really, more a skilled guy. Won't be making a lot of checks," Roy was compared to Sea Dogs alumni Jonathan Huberdeau by team management.[2] Conversely, The Hockey News faulted the former's performance, writing that "despite posting 11 points in 11 playoff games, Roy left a lot to be desired and wasn't as competitive shift-to-shift as you'd like to see."[3] Making his debut in the 2019–20 season, he appeared in 60 games before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic curtailing the remainder of the competitive calendar. At this juncture, Roy had 16 goals and 28 assists.[4]
At the beginning of the 2020–21 season, the NHL Central Scouting Bureau rated Roy as a B-grade prospect, making him a candidate for selection in the second or third round of the annual NHL entry draft.[5] He played 15 games with the Sea Dogs, registering 9 goals and 8 assists, prior to a shutdown of the team because of COVID-19 pandemic outbreaks in New Brunswick that would last for almost four months.[6][7] Roy struggled with the effects of the lockdown,[8] ultimately requesting a trade, and, in advance of the 2021 trade deadline, was dealt to the Sherbrooke Phoenix.[6][9] He appeared in 16 games with the Phoenix, posting nine goals and 5 assists, second on the team in that timeframe.[4] Despite the late change, NHL scouting assessments of Roy were negatively affected by his first two QMJHL seasons, and he was ultimately taken in the fifth round of the 2021 draft by the Montreal Canadiens.[8] Thereafter, Canadiens scouting director Trevor Timmins said that the team felt "he's going to be a late bloomer."[10]
In the 2021 offseason, the Phoenix and Canadiens development staff developed a program to address concerns about Roy's training and conditioning.[8] He enjoyed a breakout 2021–22 season, posting 51 goals and 68 assists for a league-best 119 points in 66 games. He won the Jean Béliveau Trophy as the QMJHL's top scorer and was named to the First All-Star Team.[11][12] The league also awarded him the Paul Dumont Trophy as the personality of the year, citing his status as "an important ambassador for the QMJHL" and "his positive impact in media circles."[13] He was likewise a finalist for both the Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy, awarded to the most sportsmanlike player, and the Michel Brière Memorial Trophy, awarded to the QMJHL's most valuable player.[14][15] In the 2022 QMJHL playoffs, the Phoenix reached the semi-finals, before being ousted by the Charlottetown Islanders.[16]
During his penultimate major junior campaign, Roy signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Canadiens on March 30, 2022.[17] Following the QMJHL playoffs, he was eligible to be called up to play for the Canadiens' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate Laval Rocket in the Calder Cup playoffs. He appeared in one game in the Eastern Conference Finals.[18]
Returning to the Phoenix for the 2022–23 season, Roy soon received advice from Canadiens player development director Adam Nicholas that emphasized how to "build NHL habits to be a good NHL player." This included greater emphasis on physical play and entering "high danger" areas for generating offense.[19] He appeared in only 55 regular season games for the Phoenix that season, as a result of participating in the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, registering 46 goals and 53 assists and tied for seventh in league scoring.[20] He received his second Dumont Trophy and second First All-Star Team designation, and was a finalist for the Brière Trophy for a second time.[21][22][23] Roy and the Phoenix reached the playoff semi-finals for the second consecutive season, but were defeated by the Halifax Mooseheads.[24]
Professional
After what was generally judged a successful time in the Canadiens' prospect camp, including leading the team in scoring at a rookie showcase tournament in Buffalo,[25][26] Roy was assigned to the AHL ranks for Laval's respective training camp in October 2023.[27] During his regular season debut with the Rocket, Roy registered a goal and an assist in a 7–3 loss to the Abbotsford Canucks.[28] He repeated this performance in the team's second game against the Canucks, attracting immediate positive commentary.[29] On October 20, he scored his first AHL hat-trick against the Rochester Americans, also managing two assists in the game.[30] For his efforts, Roy was subsequently named as the league's Rookie of the Month, having recorded five goals and seven assists through his first seven professional games.[31] He went on to record 12 goals and 18 assists through 34 AHL games played, before being called up to make his NHL debut with the Canadiens on January 13, 2024, following an injury to Josh Anderson.[32] Roy scored his first NHL goal thereafter on January 17, a 3–2 victory over the New Jersey Devils.[33] After six games, he returned to the AHL, having had a goal and an assist in that span.[34] He was recalled again on February 10 following an injury to Rafaël Harvey-Pinard.[35] Despite suffering an upper body injury in March, Roy returned in mid-April, and was one of four players reassigned to Laval to end the season.[36]
On October 7, Roy was again reassigned to the Rocket to begin the 2024–25 season[37] following what had been considered an underwhelming preseason performance with the Canadiens.[38] After posting 16 points through 17 games played with Laval, Roy was recalled by Montreal on November 25.[39] Following a four-game stint with the Canadiens, he was reassigned to Laval on December 2.[40] In January 2025, Roy was named to the AHL All-Star Classic for the first time in his career.[41]
Early in his junior career, Roy was part of Team Canada Red at the 2019 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, managing two goals and two assists in five games.[4]
Following his disappointing first two seasons in the QMJHL, Roy was not invited to the preliminary summer selection camps for the Canadian junior team in advance of the 2022 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. After showing his early improvements with the Phoenix, he was a late addition to the fall selection camps and one of the final players cut from the camp before the announcement of the roster.[8] Following suspension of the foregoing tournament as a result of the Omicron variant, Roy would be added to the team when the event was rescheduled for the summer of 2022.[42] He recorded three goals and five assists in seven games, winning a gold medal. Utilized primarily on a "shut down line", Roy indicated that he "was very happy with how I played."[43]
Roy rejoined Team Canada for the 2023 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, initially assigned to play with fellow QMJHL forwards Nathan Gaucher and Zach Dean on a line that proved very successful in exhibition play.[44] However, after the team opened the tournament with a loss to Czechia, the forward lines were reorganized, with Roy joining Logan Stankoven and Connor Bedard. The Bedard-Stankoven-Roy line became the backbone of the team through the rest of the tournament, and the three were named Team Canada's three best players following the semi-final victory over Team USA in which they scored four of Canada's six goals.[45][46] In the tournament final, Canada faced a rematch with Czechia, prevailing to win a second consecutive gold medal. Roy had the primary assist on Dylan Guenther's golden goal in overtime.[47]
