Colorado Avalanche goalie Patrick Roy has lost some of his flamboyant flair in recent seasons.

His words and actions might have become unobtrusive, but his goaltending is as good as ever.

Roy has more playoff victories than any goalie in NHL history, and he now has more Conn Smythe trophies than any other player.

He was named the most valuable player of the playoffs Saturday night after he recorded 25 saves in Colorado's 3-1 Game 7 victory against the New Jersey Devils at the Pepsi Center.

Since it first was awarded in 1965, 31 players have won the Conn Smythe, including five two-time winners. Roy, 35, added 2001 to Conn Smythe trophies he won in 1986 and 1993 with the Montreal Canadiens. He has won the Stanley Cup in three decades, two with Montreal, in 1986 and 1993, and two with the Avalanche, in 1996 and this season.

``Well, for a little boy from Quebec, I never thought that would happen,'' Roy said. ``But to be honest with you, it (winning the Conn Smythe) is not as special as seeing Ray (Bourque) raising that Cup in the middle of ice and seeing in his eyes how special it was. Individual honors are always fun to get, don't get me wrong, but there is nothing better than winning the Stanley Cup.

``In 1996, Joe (Sakic) won it (Conn Smythe) and I was a runner-up. This year it was my turn, and Joe was probably runner-up. He played very well for us this year, as well. There's 20 guys on this team that could have won that trophy.''

Roy, who will become an unrestricted free agent July 1, went 16-7 in the playoffs with a 1.70 goals-against average, a .934 saves percentage and four shutouts. He held the opposition to one goal or fewer in 13 of those 23 games.

And this was a player skeptics were roasting in the early playoff rounds after a couple of subpar performances.

``I knew I was going in the right direction,'' Roy said. ``It is hard to express and have the press understand that.''

Roy went 4-3 in the Stanley Cup Finals against the Devils, with a 1.58 goals-against average, two shutouts and a .938 saves percentage. In the seven-game Western Conference semifinal series against Los Angeles, he posted a shutout streak of 110 minutes, 35 seconds.

``He put himself on a mission, and in that L.A. series, the real Patrick Roy stood up,'' coach Bob Hartley said. ``Patrick, game after game, kept coming, kept giving us a chance, kept giving us a reason to believe we could win that Stanley Cup.

``Hey, that Conn Smythe, he deserves it. In my mind, he was the only one that could win it.''

In Game 7 of the Finals, Roy won his 137th career playoff game to cap a remarkable individual season that also had its low moments.

He became the NHL's all-time winningest regular-season goaltender when, on Oct. 17 at Washington, he won his 448th game. But less than a week later he was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of mischief connected to domestic violence after an argument with his wife. Roy admitted tearing two doors off their hinges. The charges were dropped.

Roy went on to record career bests with 40 wins and a 2.21 goals-against average during the regular season.

CONN JOB

NHL players who have won the Conn Smythe Trophy multiple times as Most Valuable Player of the Stanley Cup Finals:

No. ... Player .......... Team(s) .............. Years

3 .... Patrick Roy ..... Montreal, Colorado ... 1986, 1993, 2001

2 .... Wayne Gretzky ... Edmonton ............. 1985, 1988

2 .... Mario Lemieux ... Pittsburgh ........... 1991, 1992

2 .... Bobby Orr ....... Boston ............... 1970, 1972

2 .... Bernie Parent ... Philadelphia ......... 1974, 1975