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Patrick Roy won the 1986 Stanley Cup when he was a rookie with the Montreal Canadiens.

Now, 20 years later, the most winning goaltender in National Hockey League history has an opportunity to capture the 2006 Memorial Cup in his first season as the Quebec Remparts head coach in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

"When I won my first Stanley Cup, I said `Oh, it's not that tough,"' he said. "Then it took a bit of time to win my second one. That's when I realized how lucky I was to win the Stanley Cup.

"I guess I feel the same way now as a coach because I know I'm fortunate to be here for the Memorial Cup. You have to appreciate it because you never know when it's going to happen again."

Quebec will face the Ontario Hockey League champion Peterborough Petes in the opening game of the 2006 Memorial Cup tomorrow at 8 p.m. at the Moncton Coliseum.

The four-team, 10-day tournament will continue when the Moncton Wildcats meet the Western Hockey League champion Vancouver Giants on Saturday at 8 p.m.

All four teams will have a practice today at the Moncton Coliseum.

Roy played 18 seasons in the NHL and captured four Stanley Cups, two each with Montreal and the Colorado Avalanche. He retired in 2003 and returned home to Quebec City to begin focusing on a new career as part owner and general manager of Quebec's franchise in the QMJHL.

The 40-year-old took on a third title as head coach this season. He fired Eric Lavigne and then replaced him after the Remparts got off to a 1-4-0-0 start.

"No, absolutely not," said Roy when asked if he had planned to go into a coaching career after NHL retirement.

"When I was in Colorado I kind of helped the coaches for practices. I loved doing it and helping younger players.

"I decided to try coaching in bantam last season and I enjoyed it. We lost in the Quebec final. Then I started coaching again this season. I had it on my mind that if our team didn't have the start that we expected I would give it a try."

Roy's club lost in the Quebec bantam AA final last season. His Remparts lost 4-2 to Moncton in the best-of-seven QMJHL championship series this campaign.

"I'm just honest by saying that I've been coaching good players and good teams," he replied when it's suggested he's had a fair amount of success early in his coaching career.

"I deserve no credit for these two teams going to the league final.

"These guys were good players and all I did was support them and teach them the things I knew."

Quebec, 52-16-1-1, wound up second overall in the QMJHL. It was No. 2 in the final Canadian Hockey League rankings.

Roy never won a single playoff game during his three-year QMJHL career with the Granby Bisons in the early 1980s. He admits that makes going to the QMJHL final and Memorial Cup this season all the more meaningful for him personally.

"I would have to say yes because I never experienced it as a player in junior," he said.

"For the Quebec Remparts organization, we've been working for 10 years now since we bought the team.

"We realize how tough it is to get to the Memorial Cup tournament. We were there once as a host team (in 2003), but it's different this year because we had to earn our way by making it to the league final against Moncton."

What kind of coach is Roy? What does he consider his strengths?

"I think I'm still in the learning process to be honest with you," he said. "I'm using a lot of things that I got from my past coaches. I don't want to be too strict and at the same time I don't want to be too friendly.

"I just try to find the middle with a balance in everything. I think there's times where you have to be strict and there's times when you have to ease up with the guys."

Quebec left winger Mathieu Melanson offered this insight into Roy.

"He's a very intense coach, but at the same time he's fair," said the 20-year-old Shediac native. "Everyone knows what he was like as a player and he has that same attitude as a coach.

"He wants the guys to be intense and he likes to see that fire in people. If you have a lot of fire, you're going to have a lot of respect from him. He really hates to lose. If you hate to lose and you want to win as bad as he does, you'll never have problems with him."

Does Roy bring out the best in players?

"I don't know if he brings out the most in everybody," said Melanson. "That's a question of opinion. But in my case I think he brought out the most in me.

"Our characters resemble each other in certain ways, especially in terms of hating to lose. I'm a sore loser so he understands me. It was the best thing that happened to me getting the chance to play for him."

Roy has been known to get in the face of players if he doesn't think they're giving an honest effort.

"He's not shy to say the truth and I think that's good," said Melanson. "I think it builds character. At first, for young guys I can see that it could be intimidating maybe because it's Patrick Roy and you look at who he is and everything he's done."