Islanders' Patrick Roy on return to Montreal: 'I don't want it to be about me'

Patrick Roy will be the centre of attention at the Bell Centre on Thursday, whether the new coach of the New York Islanders likes it or not.

But that doesn't mean Roy is going to totally embrace the spotlight.

Hired on Saturday by the Islanders, Roy has cancelled Thursday's morning skate for the Islanders ahead of their game against the Canadiens.

Roy, of course, is a legendary Canadiens goaltender and is wildly popular in Quebec. He coached the QMJHL's Quebec Remparts to the Memorial Cup title last season.

"I don't want it to be about me. I want it to be about the Islanders," Roy said Wednesday after practice in New York.

"We're going there to win a hockey game. We're not going there to win for the coach. It's for our team. That's the reason why I don't want us to go to that morning skate.

"They're going to ask questions about me. They're going to say this and that. I don't need this and they don't need that."

The Islanders have split their first two games under Roy, who was out of the NHL for seven years after his controversial departure from the Colorado Avalanche following three seasons as coach.

Roy replaced Lane Lambert with the Islanders after the fifth firing of a head coach in the NHL this season.

"We all admire him and idolize him. He meant a lot to me and for the rest of the kids growing up here, he was kind of the backbone of the franchise for a long time," Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said.

St. Louis recalled a memory of playing in the Quebec Peewee Tournament, where Roy was a special guest on the ice for a drill. St. Louis flipped a backhand over Roy and scored.

"I did score on him, but I can't remember if (he also did so) in the NHL," St. Louis said with a smile.

Canadiens forward Brendan Gallagher expects the fans to rise to the occasion.

"I think it's going to be fun. There's going to be a lot of energy in the building," he said.