Larry Robinson is one of the few people in hockey who has an aura as bright as that of Mark Messier’s.
And now it appears that the Rangers will have their shot at bringing the eight-time Stanley Cup winner to Broadway, as their next head coach.
“After meeting with Lou [Lamoriello], as far as I know I have permission to speak with Glen [Sather] if I want to, and I most definitely want to,” Robinson told The Post yesterday. “I’ll be very honest, I don’t know if the job as Rangers head coach is the right one for me, but I certainly am intrigued by the possibility that it is.
“It’s kind of nice to be in charge of your own destiny,” Robinson said, adding that he wouldn’t seek “just any” job that would give him back the title of head coach.
Robinson, a teammate of Sather’s in Montreal in 1974-75, was in charge of New Jersey’s destiny for 141 regular-season games – before being scapegoated on Jan. 28. With Robinson calling the shots, the Devils won one Stanley Cup and went to the seventh game of the Finals.
“I think that with a little more patience, we would have finished in the same position in the standings without a coaching change and would have done better in the playoffs,” said Robinson, who just underwent his second root canal in five days.
Robinson is one of the great teachers of defense – and along with Jacques Lemaire, he transformed the Devils from an undisciplined squad into one of the league’s powerhouses. There is no limit to the impact he could have on Brian Leetch, Tom Poti, Tomas Kloucek and the rest of a needy Ranger defense.
If there’s been one criticism leveled against Robinson, it’s that he has refused play the part of the bad cop, as head coaches must. It’s a criticism Robinson accepts.
“That’s not going to be an issue in my next job,” Robinson said. “From stars to key players, straight through the lineup, everyone will be held accountable for their mistakes.”