Patrick Roy

Patrick Jacques Roy was born October 5, 1965 in Quebec City, Quebec. As a young kid, Patrick was very energetic and loved to play around. At age 8, he asked for goalie pads for Christmas, and from there, the legend began.

Patrick making a butterfly save. (http://nhl.speedera.net/photos/r/roy_down_tall.jpg)

Patrick was very superstitious when it came to preparing for a game. He always dressed the same way and ate the same thing before each game (steak with potatoes and peas). When he had children, he always wrote their names on his stick before each game. When he played he was very competitive and even sometimes cocky. A good example of his competitiveness is when he said, “I have the love to win. I hate to lose. Maybe it's more the hate to lose than the love to win.” Patrick retired from the NHL July 9, 2003.

Throughout his career he earned himself many nicknames. He was called St. Patrick, Casseau and the King. He earned the name Casseau in his rookie year as starting goalie for the Montreal Canadiens. He was a young bachelor and wasn’t very fond of cooking so he mostly ate at restaurants. He loved to eat French fries and ate them all the time. So his teammates gave him the name of Casseau, which is the square cardboard container that is for “to go” orders. The nickname the King comes from his last name Roy, which means King in the French language.

At age 17, Patrick entered the QMJHL in 1982-83. He played for the Granby Bisons where he earned the starting job before being drafted in the 3rd round by the Montreal Canadiens in 1984. During his time in the QMJHL, he played against some of the NHL’s future stars such as Mario Lemieux.

Roy sliding across to make the save. (http://www.sportsecyclopedia.com/nhl/montreal/Royhabs.jpg)

Patrick Roy has won 4 Stanley Cups in his entire career, two with the Montreal Canadiens and two with the Colorado Avalanche. He has broken many records in the NHL for goaltenders; most notably Patrick has broken the record for most regular season games played (1029), most playoff wins (151) and most of all he has broken the record for most regular season wins (551) passing Terry Sawchuck in all three categories. Patrick currently resides in Lac Beauport, Quebec, Canada, which is not too far from Quebec City. He now is a part owner GM/Coach for the local QMJHL team called the Quebec Remparts.

Patrick Roy is my hero because when I was a young hockey player playing house league hockey I would play every position except goalie and I didn’t really know what position I wanted to play. I remember the first time I watched Roy play. I was about 8 at the time and I was watching the Toronto Maple Leafs vs. the Montreal Canadiens on Hockey Night in Canada. The Leafs were dominating the game, but Roy kept making save after save. When I watched this, I thought to myself, “I want to play goalie." It looked like a very exciting position to play and just seeing the saves he made and his determination to stop the puck inspired me to try the position. I asked my coach if I could try the position and I stuck with it ever since.