Will Montreal give Roy a chance as GM?

POTTAWA, ONTARIO» atrick Roy has long been popular in Montreal, my last stop on this five-game Avalanche road trip, and the first-ballot Hall of Fame goalie was back in the Quebec headlines before and after Colorado defeated the Canadiens 4-1 at the Bell Centre on Thursday.

Roy, the Avs’ goalie from 1995 to 2003 and head coach for three seasons from 2013-16, threw his name in the hat to become the Canadiens’ next French-speaking general manager on Tuesday. Days after Montreal fired GM Marc Bergevin and hired

Jeff Gorton — who is not fluent in French — as executive vice president of hockey operations, Roy said the following to Le Journal de Quebec:

“Since 1993, the team has been running in circles. 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.”

My take: Roy, who won the Stanley Cup twice with the Canadiens before coming to Colorado and winning two more times, was stirring the pot, trying to get public consensus on his side. But under those same headlines are stories that suggest he won’t get the job and Gorton will hire a more experienced Frenchspeaking NHL executive.

“And whoever the next GM will be, (Roy) can say: “See, I told you they should have given me a chance,” the Montreal Gazette wrote.

In 1995, Roy said he would never again play for the Canadiens, a statement that led to his blockbuster trade to the Avalanche. But he’s always called Quebec home and he’s back coaching the Quebec Remparts, the junior team he owns. When he abruptly resigned as the Avs’ coach in 2016, he went back to Quebec but didn’t return as the Remparts’ head coach until 2018.

It would be good to have Roy back in the NHL, said defenseman Erik Johnson, who is one of four current Avs players to have worked under Roy in his final season as head coach in Colorado.

“I loved him. I think it would be great for the league to have him back again. I really enjoyed playing for him,” Johnson said. “Only a couple guys left (with the Avs) that did play for him, but I really liked him as a coach and a person and I think it would be great for him to be back in any capacity in the league.”

In charge at 20. You have to feel for Avs rookie defenseman Bo Byram, who recently sustained at least his third head injury of 2021. Byram, 20, gallantly returned from a six-game absence last week in a 6-2 win against Nashville, scoring the game-winning goal and logging 22:00.

He didn’t feel well enough to play on Thursday at Montreal, but watched the game in a suit and tie in the press box. I was pleased to see him at Saturday’s morning skate in Ottawa — in a regular (full-contact and cleared to play) jersey.

What a roller coaster for an affable youngster who brightens up a room when he walks into it. Avs coach Jared Bednar said Byram — the first defenseman selected in the 2019 draft (fourth overall) — has the green light to return when he feels up to it.

“You can just see his personality coming back, even off the ice here,” Bednar said Saturday morning, still not knowing if his youngest player would play against the Senators.

Here’s hoping Byram can continue what potentially could become a fantastic NHL career.