What This Means
Head coach Patrick Roy has joked a few times about playing Monopoly, but I bet he’s a mean chess player. I think he’s also part chemist, part psychologist.
Coach Roy looks at his lineup — including scratches and prospects down in San Antonio — for what’s going to fulfill his vision.
I remarked in a previous post that GM Joe Sakic and coach Roy are the architects of the current Colorado Avalanche. And you can’t have architects without blueprints.
Coach Roy has blueprints for what he wants to see on the ice. As he said to the Fan, “Sometimes you’re looking at the fit.” He’s gotten into the specifics more than once, such as remarking you can’t have two shooters or three passers on the same line.
This is where chemistry comes into play. First of all, a solid line or defensive pairing must have players who display solid chemistry with each other. This could be because they have a similar style of play and have worked out how to use that to their advantage — as in the case of Beauchemin and Johnson. That could be because of a mentor-youngster relationship, as in the case of Tanguay and MacKinnon.
Next comes psychology — specifically that compete level and hockey IQ. Players have to come ready to give even more than they think they have. And they have to be disciplined enough to implement their roles. This aspect of Roy’s blueprint led to both the rise and downfall of Brandon Gormley and, especially, Nate Guenin.
From there, it’s a matter of implementing the moving pieces that fulfill the roles of Patrick Roy’s vision for the team. So, it sounds like coach Roy probably looks at his roster and mentally gives pluses or minuses to players based on their compete level and hockey IQ. He then considers the moving system of passers, shooters and energy players he needs to implement Avalanche-style hockey — in all situations (even strength, power play, penalty kill, overtime).
From there, he slots players into their spots based on all these factors. Ever a mastermind — or chess master — coach Roy isn’t afraid to make a change mid-game if something needs adjustment to make Avalanche hockey go the way he wants it to.
This is why a Nate Guenin might have gotten into the lineup over a Nikita Zadorov — because at the time Guenin had a higher hockey IQ and filled a stay-at-home role. The need for spark and rush play is why Zadorov eventually wound up back in the lineup over Guenin.
Next: Avs Control Their Own Destiny
In the end, this is why head coach Patrick Roy doesn’t need to “see the light” that advanced stats or other metrics tell laypeople. Patrick Roy’s eyes are the light — we just need to look in the same direction to figure out what’s going on.