Canucks Player Autopsy: Derek Roy

Who's this guy?

Derek Roy

Position: Center

Shoots: Left

Height: 5'9"

Weight: 188 lbs.

Born: May 4, 1983 in Ottawa, ON

History: Drafted 32nd overall (2nd round) of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft by the Buffalo Sabres; acquired from the Dallas Stars on April 2, 2013 for Kevin Connauton and a 2nd Round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft

What'd he do?

Roy came to Vancouver at the trade deadline, having recorded 4 goals and 18 assists in 30 games with the Dallas Stars. Initially Roy brought some stability to the Canucks second line, which had been without Ryan Kesler for much of the year. Roy showed some flashes of speed and skill during his 12 regular season games with the Canucks, and put up a decent 3 goals and 3 assists. In the playoffs, however, Roy (like many Canucks) was virtually invisible. He recorded just a single assist, coming at the end of a blowout loss, as the Canucks were swept by the San Jose Sharks.

So was he any good?

As mentioned, Roy had some good moments in his dozen regular season games with the Canucks. He is a skilled player with good speed and hands - theoretically the type of player that was missing from the Canucks depth scoring. However, Roy failed to provide the Canucks with what they needed from him - namely, timely secondary offense in the playoffs. Roy's one playoff point came during a Game 3 blowout, when the Canucks were already trailing 5-1.

What'd we like?

I had very high hopes for Roy, and his early games suggested that he would bring an important level of offensive dynamism to the Canucks second line. Roy played a great first game for Vancouver and earned an assist in his debut. I liked his work on Higgins' goal so much that I gave it Play of the Week honours:

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As Roy's first goal as a Canuck, this highlight clip is pretty much obligatory. It was a nice effort and is thus a fitting summation of Roy's tenure in Vancouver, as it offers a tease of his potential that was never realized with a whale on his chest:

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As mentioned, Roy also chipped in a single assist as the Canucks got swept by the Sharks in the first round of the playoffs. Which important goal did Roy assist on, you ask? Oh, just Dan Hamhuis' third period goal in Game 3 to bring the score to 5-2 for San Jose. Clutch contributions!

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Cool. So what did we hate?

It's totally unfair to pin the playoff loss on Roy, as the sweep was the result of a number of less-than-adequate performances by Canucks players and some bad breaks. However, there is no question that some timely offense from Roy would have bolstered the Canucks chances to combat the Sharks and advance in the playoffs. Unfortunately the 2013 playoffs were a small sample size of 4 games, but they were all we have to judge him on - and in this judgement he does not come up looking good.

So what now?

It seems all but certain that Roy will hit the free agency market on July 1. I actually would not mind seeing Roy be given a second chance to be a contributor to the Canucks, but with Jordan Schroeder potentially ready for a bigger role nd the Canucks cap squeeze there is virtually no chance that Roy will be on the Canucks roster for the 2013-14 season. As such, he'll simply go down in Canucks history alongside other forgettable players as a disappointing rental player for the Blue and Green.