December 19, 2005
Another One Bites the Dust
They’re starting to drop like flies now:
Larry Robinson has resigned as head coach of the Devils, The Star-Ledger has learned.
No replacement has been named. Team president and general manager Lou Lamoriello led the team at practice this morning.
The Devils have been struggling all season in the new-look NHL. They currently have a 14-13-5 record, good for 33 points. If the playoffs started today, the Devils would not qualify.
Robinson openly questioned the team's character earlier this season. On Saturday, he benched two of the team's stars, Alexander Mogilny and Scott Gomez for much of the team's 4-1 loss to Carolina.
Oh, and remember how Patrick Lalime was by far the most recognizable player in the AHL as of his demotion a few weeks ago? He now has some company:
Defenseman Dan McGillis, who cleared waivers Saturday, is expected to be assigned to Albany of the AHL today. Tommy Albelin, who has been practicing with the team and remaining in shape all season, could be signed if the Devils do not want to recall David Hale from the minors.
Things are getting ugly in Jersey. Eric and I have talked about how an efficient power play is absolutely vital in today’s game, and the Devils are dying on the vine in that respect. They’ve scored just three goals with the man advantage in their last ten games.
The question now is who is going to replace Robinson at the helm? It’s interesting to note that the Devils re-hired Robinson as head coach last season, after firing him in 2002, when Pat Burns was diagnosed with cancer. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them call on another former coach, at least in the interim, while they search for a more suitable replacement.
POSTSCRIPT: For those of you interested, Patrick Lalime’s first AHL game didn’t turn out the way he had hoped.
POSTSCRIPT #2: As Ben Wright noted in the comments thread, Dan McGillis will not have to report to Albany in the wake of Vladimir Malakhov's sudden retirement. It's too bad, as I was hoping the Devils would call up Brad Ference.
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Isn't Tommy Albelin approximately 206 years old?
Posted by:
at December 19, 2005 01:59 PM
McGillis is back with New Jersey. He's replacing Malakhov who has either quit or retired, depending on who you're reading.
Posted by:
at December 19, 2005 03:34 PM
They said in the Daily News this morning that they're not really considering Ftorek as a possible replacement. Since this is hockey, and not furniture hurling, I tend to agree.
Couple of other choice bits: Robinson said that he was feeling so poorly that he was seriously worried for his health (but apparently it's just stress), and Lamoriello wore out his voice at the first practice yelling at the players.
Posted by:
at December 20, 2005 09:34 AM
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