Joshua Roy is out, and Martin St-Louis won't have to force the fit any longer in Montreal.
The Canadiens completed an official trade with the Utah Mammoth on Sunday, ending a run that never turned into a real NHL foothold for Roy.
That part matters more than the name on the board.
Montreal just kept clearing space around the edges of the roster, and Roy was one of the clearest bubble players in the organization.
He played only 3 NHL games in 2025-26 and didn't record a point. That's not a small dip. That's a player losing ground in a hurry.
Career-wise, Roy leaves Montreal with 38 NHL games and 11 points. For a winger once viewed as a legit scoring bet, that's a thin return on a long runway.
-
The bigger read is organizational. Kent Hughes has spent the last few days chipping away at depth pieces, and Roy became another move instead of another promise.
Montreal drafted Roy 150th overall in 2021, and there was real value there for a while. The hands were obvious. The offensive touch was never the question.
Why this says more about Montreal than Roy
What changed was the trust level. St-Louis never looked fully convinced Roy could hold a regular job in a top six, and there wasn't much room to hide him lower in the lineup.
That's where this trade hits. It's less about one prospect getting another chance and more about the Canadiens deciding they were done waiting for the full package.
Roy had 9 points in 23 games in 2023-24, which gave Montreal a reason to believe. He followed that with 2 points in 12 games in 2024-25, and the push stalled.
Utah can sell this as a buy-low swing on skill. The Mammoth have room to bet on upside and see if a fresh room unlocks a winger who clearly needed a reset.
For the Canadiens, this looks like a clean decision. They didn't just move Joshua Roy. They closed the door on a fit that never became dependable NHL depth.
Did the Canadiens give up on Joshua Roy too early?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Confirmation of a substantial trade sending Matthew Knies out of Toronto: Insider reveals a failed deal
