Montreal Canadiens

Canadiens Prospect Watch: Joshua Roy Is Dominating Again

Published

2 years ago

October 16, 2022

It was an exciting week for many Montreal Canadiens prospects, as both Owen Beck and Joshua Roy made their mark in their respective leagues.

There was also some news from Europe, which indicates the prospect watch is about to get a lot busier. Without further ado, let’s jump right into it.

Beck At It

The Mississauga Steelheads centre didn’t start the year on a particularly strong note, failing to score in his first two games of the season last week, but seeing as he was one of the busiest prospects over the course of the summer, a grace period is more than reasonable.

Beck quickly returned to his scoring ways, finding the back of the net twice on Friday night against Owen Sound.

It was scored in classic Beckian fashion, with a great shot that followed a perfect controlled entry into the offensive zone.

Owen Beck wastes no time scoring 24 seconds into the power play to record his first goal and point of the season! 🥳 #MadeofSteel pic.twitter.com/3CRuirlPDM

— Mississauga Steelheads (@OHLSteelheads) October 14, 2022

Beck followed up his power play goal with a game-winning goal, not only setting up the play, but finishing it as well by instinctively making his way to the front of the net for a rebound. Beck finished the game with 5 shots on net.

Owen Beck (@CanadiensMTL) scores his second of the night to win it in overtime for the Steelheads 🥳 #MadeofSteel

🚨: Beck
🍎: Hardie
🍏🍏: Del Mastro pic.twitter.com/xuNKDH00w2

— Mississauga Steelheads (@OHLSteelheads) October 15, 2022

European Vocation

7th-round pick Miguël Tourigny has found work in Europe, signing a contract with HK Dukla Trencin of the Slovak league. It’s too early to get a sense of his play, but if he’s provided with a healthy dose of minutes, it may be quite a boon for his development.

3rd-round pick Adam Engström, a smooth-skating defenceman from Sweden, is one of the most interesting prospects the Canadiens selected in the previous drafts. He’s currently playing for Rögle BK in the SHL, where he recently earned a great assists due to some fancy footwork.

Adam Engström with some sweet moves on the blue line to set up the go ahead goal for Rögle. #Habs #GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/H1xrHsUmp7

— Patrik Bexell (@Zeb_Habs) October 15, 2022

Roy Domination

Joshua Roy was expected to dominate the QMJHL this season, especially given he finished first in scoring the previous year.

And that’s exactly what he’s doing.

In seven games with the Sherbrooke Phoenix, Roy has scored six goals and added 11 assists, good for 17 points and the second-most production in the entire league, trailing teammate Justin Gill, who has played 3 more games, by four points.

Pas son but le plus spectaculaire mais c'est un but! #JoshuaRoy pic.twitter.com/STsUP5O1qM

— Phœnix de Sherbrooke (@PhoenixSherbroo) October 15, 2022

It’s unlikely Roy can maintain his torrid pace over the course of the entire season and it’s worth noting he missed some time due to his presence at Montreal Canadiens training camp, but his current 2.4 points per game pace projects to a 160-point, 66-game season.

Sometimes it’s worth taking a gamble on a skilled player in the fifth round. Joshua Roy is the living embodiment of the importance of placing an onus on talent when drafting.

Weaknesses can be addressed, but god-given talent is impossible to reproduce.