It's a Roynderful life: Colorado's Patrick Roy doesn't need a guardian angel to tell him that after four Stanley Cups, three Conn Smythes, three Vezinas, and a host of NHL records … - Cover Story

MICHEL ROY REMEMBERS THE first time he saw his son Patrick put on a glove. It wasn't to protect Patrick's hands from the frigid Quebec City winters, though. And it wasn't his son could crouch down and catch some heaters from dad, either.

It was the glove hockey goaltenders use to catch pucks.

"It was a Christmas gift, and you could tell right away that he really liked it and felt comfortable wearing it," Michel says.

Uh, yeah, one might say Roy has been comfortable wearing one ever since. He's won four Stanley Cups, three Vezina Trophies as the game's best goalie, three Conn Smythes as the Stanley Cup Playoffs MVP, and more regular-season and playoff games than any other goalie in NHL history.

Not even Michael Jackson has produced as much magic wearing one glove as the Colorado Avalanche's living legend.

But eventually the King of Pop lost his relevance. (When was the last time you really tapped your toes to something he sang? It's been a while, hasn't it?) Roy, on the other hand, just keeps on topping the NHL charts. At age 36, he says his youthful passion for the game is as strong as it ever was.

"I've gotten a chance to touch the Stanley Cup four times," Roy says, "and I'd like to touch it a fifth time."

Greedy? You bet. Roy is the Gordon Gekko of the NHL. When Roy looks at the Cup, his name is engraved all over the place, at least one time for each decade he's played. When he looks at the Conn Smythe Trophy, he sees his name engraved more than anybody's who has ever played.

And still, Roy speaks as if he's still the same nervous rookie he was back in 1985, when former Montreal Canadiens coach Jacques Lemaire derisively yelled out, "You want a pillow," after he saw Roy flopping around in the net during training camp.

Fear of failure is a great trait to have as a pro athlete, especially for one who has accomplished as much as Roy. Lots of great players have gotten complacent after winning it all or getting a fat contract, but not Roy. For whatever reason, there always is another goal to attain. And, more goals to prevent.

"The thing is, I still love to play the game," Roy says. "And there are some things that I'd like to accomplish. I'd like to win 500 games and play in 1,000 games. Nobody has ever done that. But the main thing that I'll always play the game for is to win the Stanley Cup."

Roy will get at least two more chances to win it again, after signing a two-year, $17 million contract extension with Colorado over the summer, with a club option for a third year. There was speculation that Roy might do what his good friend Ray Bourque did, which was retire on top of the hockey world after Colorado's victory over New Jersey in the Finals. About three years ago, Roy hinted that he might play only three more years, so when the Avs won it all for the second time in six seasons, people wondered if he had had enough. But, apart from getting another fat contract, Roy realized he just wasn't ready to quit.

He still thrives on the competition of it all, and realized it was too soon to indulge full-time in his other athletic love: golf. Roy is best pals with PGA pros such as Fred Couples and Craig Stadler, and has just as much of a fiery desire to win on the links as on the ice.

But that can wait.

"My family and I also love it too much in Colorado," Roy says. "It's been such a great place to play, and why would I want to quit playing for such a great organization such as this one? Really, it was an easy decision to want to come back. This organization is the best to play for."

Roy is coming off perhaps the most pressure-packed season of his career, one that had some skeptics wondering if he'd make it out in one piece. Not only were the Avalanche under intense pressure to win the Cup--partly because of it being Bourque's last season--but Roy had some tough personal problems to deal with as well.

There was a well-publicized domestic dispute with his wife, when she called 911 from the couple's new suburban Denver home after Roy tore a door from its hinges during an argument. Roy was charged with criminal mischief, and there was the danger that he would be deported from the United States if convicted.

The media glare was intense during that time, and Roy saw his popularity sink some with Avalanche fans, particularly because he had just had a street named after him in Denver after breaking Terry Sawchuk's all-time NHL victory mark of 447.

But Roy maintained his composure through it all, somehow managing to compartmentalize his off-ice troubles when he put on the uniform. He refused to let it destroy the Avs' locker-room chemistry or his play, The Avs went on to post the league's best regular-season record, and eventually the charges against him were, dropped.

But the pressure that was the toughest for Roy to deal with came after the Avs were beaten in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Los Angeles Kings. Roy was shaky all night in the overtime loss, and hadn't looked very good in the first round against the Vancouver Canucks, despite an Avalanche sweep.