San Jose Sharks: Breaking Down Top Prospect Jeremy Roy
The San Jose Sharks organization has struggled to develop a top-flight defensive prospect since Marc-Edouard Vlasic made his debut for San Jose during the 2006-07 season. While the Sharks have had some nice defensemen such as Christian Ehrhoff and Jason Demers, nobody has been at the level of Vlasic.
However, the organization might have found their best bet to follow in Vlasic’s footsteps: Jeremy Roy, the San Jose Sharks 2015 second-round pick.
General manager Doug Wilson was aggressive in targeting Roy, as he moved up eight spots to the top of the second round (31st overall). In doing so, San Jose swapped second-round picks with the Colorado Avalanche along with sending a second-round pick in 2016 and a sixth rounder in 2017 that were both formerly Colorado’s.
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Roy, 18, stands six-feet tall and 185 pounds, resembles former San Jose Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle due to his size and offensive ability. While not being the biggest of prospects, Roy is the kind of player who can control the game from the blue line, just as Boyle used to in San Jose.
Also, another comparison that should have Sharks fans excited about Roy’s potential is to a three-time Stanley Cup winner: Duncan Keith. Here’s a breakdown from Elite Prospects about Roy in comparison to the Chicago star:
"When talking to scouts about Jeremy Roy, the name Duncan Keith often shows up in the same sentence; the offensive and defensive traits embodied by the Chicago Blackhawks star defenseman seem to be akin to what the young Roy aspires to."
That’s some pretty high praise for the 18-year-old as Keith has developed into one of the premier defensemen throughout the entire NHL.
While it’s still way too early to expect Roy to be at the level of Keith, it appears that he has all the requisite skills to develop into a top-flight blue liner.
Roy has played well in his first two seasons with Sherbrooke of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). In 100 career games, Roy has registered 19 goals and 68 assists to go along with 60 penalty minutes. The only concerning statistic with Roy is that he’s a combined minus-31, although he was only a minus-two last season.
In all likelihood, Roy will return to Sherbrooke for one last season in the QMJHL to see if he can continue to build upon his strong start. Then, it will be interesting to see if Roy can push for a spot on the Sharks blue line or if he will be with the Barracuda instead.
Regardless, if Roy can live up to the potential that many scouts see, the San Jose Sharks will finally have the right-handed defensive prospect they’ve long coveted.
Next: San Jose Sharks: Top 10 Prospects