Tasked with charting the Montreal Canadiens‘ path back to contention, Jeff Gorton’s first decisions in his new role as executive vice president of hockey operations will have an undeniable impact on how long the road back to the Cup Final is — starting with choosing the franchise’s next general manager.
The search itself began days after Montreal parted ways with Marc Bergevin, who’d served as general manager of the club for nine-and-a-half years, and it didn’t take long for high-profile names to start emerging as candidates. Among that list, the person with the most profound and polarizing ties to the organization was Patrick Roy, who mused about the possibility of a reunion following Bergevin’s departure.
Though Gorton is not interested in rushing the hiring process, saying that a new general manager likely wouldn’t be named until after Christmas, Roy’s declaration of interest didn’t go unnoticed.
“I have a tremendous amount of respect for him for what he’s done in hockey, and I know he’s an emotional guy who speaks his mind,” Gorton said on Friday in his first-ever public comments with the Canadiens. “We’ll look at everyone.”
Roy’s tenure with Montreal included two Stanley Cups, cementing his place as one of the greatest goalies to ever play for the team, but his breakup with the organization is as much a part of their storied lore as any champagne-soaked celebration.
Back in 1995, playing for the 22nd time in 24 games, Roy was in net for the worst home game in franchise history, an 11-1 loss to the Detroit Red Wings. He allowed nine goals on 26 shots — and wasn’t pulled until the middle of the second period, at which point fans had already begun mockingly applauding whenever he made a save.
In those days, the Canadiens owners sat immediately behind the team’s bench. On that historically bad night against Detroit, as an enraged Roy headed off the ice, he told then-Canadiens president Ronald Corey it would be his last game in Montreal. Roy was suspended the next day and never played for the team again.
“Since 1993, the team has been running in circles,” Roy said on Tuesday when speaking to Le Journal de Québec. “What do they have to lose by giving me the chance to see what I can do with this club? At the same time, I understand the situation. The club is owned by Geoff Molson and he’s the one pulling the strings. It’s his team and at the end of the day I might not be the guy for him. I accept that.”
