Roland Melanson

Roland Joseph "Rollie the Goalie" Melanson (born June 28, 1960) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former goaltender in the National Hockey League (NHL). After a lengthy career in the NHL with the New York Islanders, Minnesota North Stars, Los Angeles Kings, New Jersey Devils, and Montreal Canadiens, Melanson began working as a goaltending coach.

While playing for the Indianapolis Checkers in 1981, Melanson won the Ken McKenzie Trophy as rookie of the year of the Central Hockey League. Along with Billy Smith, Melanson won the William M. Jennings Trophy in the 1982–83 season, and he was also named to the NHL All-Star Second Team. He also won three consecutive Stanley Cups in 1981, 1982 and 1983.

Early life Melanson was born on June 28, 1960, in Shediac, New Brunswick group=notes to parents Alphe and Albertine (née Maillet) Melanson. Although he started skating in Moncton, Melanson only joined an organized hockey team as a goaltender when his family moved to Waltham, Massachusetts. He spent four years in the United States before his family moved back to New Brunswick. He also posted a shutout in the final game of the 1976 Moncton Invitational Midget Hockey Tournament to help the Flyers beat Fredericton 3–0. In the same season, he also competed with the Flyers in the 1977 Wrigley Cup midget hockey championships. While the Flyers finished in fourth place, Melanson was named Wrigley Cup MVP for maintaining a 2.33 goals against average (GAA). Due to his play during the tournament, Melanson earned the attention of Windsor Spitfires coach Wayne Maxner. He subsequently signed a contract with the Spitfires to play with them in the Ontario Junior Hockey League.

Professional

After participating in the Islanders' training camp, Melanson was reassigned to their minor league affiliate, the Indianapolis Checkers, to start the 1980–81 season. Upon joining the Checkers, Melanson played in their first nine games and led them to a 7–1–1 start while also maintaining a league-leading 2.40 GAA. After being called up to the NHL on November 4, 1980, Melanson made his NHL debut the following night against Detroit Red Wings. He stopped 29 of 33 shots to lead the Islanders to a 6–4 win. He remained unbeaten through his next five games, becoming the first NHL rookie goaltender of the season to maintain an unbeaten streak. Melanson also received praise from teammates and opposing coaches during this stretch and was repeatedly named the First Star of the Game. However, he was returned to the CHL on November 16 after veteran goaltender Chico Resch recovered from his injury. As neither of the Islanders veteran goaltenders were eligible to be reassigned to the CHL, the team was forced to return Melanson once they both recovered.

Personal life Melanson married Janice LeBlanc in July 1981. They had two children together before divorcing.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV% 1976–77 Moncton Flyers NBAHA 70 — — — 4198 147 14 2.09 — 6 4 1 1 360 14 0 2.33 — 1977–78 Windsor Spitfires OMJHL 44 — — — 2592 195 1 4.51 — 5 1 2 1 258 13 1 3.02 — 1978–79 Windsor Spitfires OMJHL 62 — — — 3461 254 1 4.40 — 7 — — — 392 31 0 4.74 — 1979–80 Windsor Spitfires OMJHL 22 11 8 0 1099 90 0 4.91 — — — — — — — — — — 1979–80 Oshawa Generals OMJHL 38 26 12 0 2240 136 3 3.64 — 7 3 4 0 420 32 0 4.57 — 1980–81 New York Islanders NHL 11 8 1 1 620 32 0 3.10 .895 3 1 0 — 92 6 0 3.91 .882 1980–81 Indianapolis Checkers CHL 52 31 16 3 3056 131 2 2.57 — — — — — — — — — — 1981–82 New York Islanders NHL 36 22 7 6 2115 114 0 3.23 .896 3 0 1 — 64 5 0 4.69 .828 1982–83 New York Islanders NHL 44 24 12 5 2460 109 1 2.66 .910 5 2 2 — 238 10 0 2.52 .913 1983–84 New York Islanders NHL 37 20 11 2 2019 110 0 3.27 .903 6 0 1 — 87 5 0 3.45 .844 1984–85 New York Islanders NHL 8 3 3 0 425 35 0 4.94 .864 — — — — — — — — — 1984–85 Minnesota North Stars NHL 20 5 10 3 1142 78 0 4.10 .867 — — — — — — — — — 1985–86 Minnesota North Stars NHL 6 2 1 2 325 24 0 4.43 .863 — — — — — — — — — 1985–86 Los Angeles Kings NHL 22 4 16 1 1246 87 0 4.19 .867 — — — — — — — — — 1985–86 New Haven Nighthawks AHL 3 1 2 0 179 13 0 4.36 .882 — — — — — — — — — 1986–87 Los Angeles Kings NHL 46 18 21 6 2734 168 1 3.69 .882 5 1 4 — 260 24 0 5.54 .844 1987–88 Los Angeles Kings NHL 47 17 20 7 2675 195 2 4.37 .860 1 0 1 — 60 9 0 9.00 .820 1988–89 Los Angeles Kings NHL 4 1 1 0 178 19 0 6.42 .826 — — — — — — — — — 1988–89 New Haven Nighthawks AHL 29 11 15 3 1734 106 1 3.67 .887 17 9 8 — 1019 74 1 4.36 — 1989–90 Utica Devils AHL 48 24 19 3 2737 167 1 3.66 .875 5 1 4 — 298 20 0 4.03 — 1990–91 New Jersey Devils NHL 1 0 0 0 20 2 0 6.00 .714 — — — — — — — — — 1990–91 Utica Devils AHL 54 23 28 1 3058 208 0 4.08 .868 — — — — — — — — — 1991–92 Montreal Canadiens NHL 9 5 3 0 492 22 2 2.68 .887 — — — — — — — — — 1992–93 Brantford Smoke ColHL 14 10 4 0 811 54 1 4.00 — 15 11 3 — 844 50 0 3.55 — 1993–94 Saint John Flames AHL 7 1 2 0 270 20 0 4.44 .800 — — — — — — — — — NHL totals 291 129 106 33 16,450 995 6 3.63 .883 23 4 9 — 801 59 0 4.42 .863