Monday, December 19, 2005

Robinson Resigns!

It was Lou Lamoriello leading practice Monday morning, as head coach Larry Robinson took on the title of former head coach of the New Jersey Devils.

Robinson resigned his position with the NHL club Monday, two days after his team suffered it's seventh loss in nine games, this season had been a challenging one for Robinson who took over the reins of the squad when Pat Burns stepped down to once again battle cancer.

Robinson frequently had criticized the character of his underperforming team and did not seem to be able to get his message across to the likes of Alexander Mogilny and Scott Gomez, two player who he benched on Saturday night out of frustration with their play as the Devils suffered a 4-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. The play of Gomez thus far has had his name mentioned in frequent trade talks of late as the Devils look to shake things up, however with today's development perhaps Gomez is safe in New Jersey for a while yet.

During the morning workout Lamoriello had no explanation for Robinson's departure, though Fox Sports is reporting that he stepped down due to stress and horrible headaches. The Devils GM hasn't put forward any names for a potential replacement as of yet as he tries to figure out his next move. Whoever gets tapped to take over the Devils will have their work cut out for them, the Devils have been on auto pilot for a number of years now, willing to go through the motions but not returning to the level of play that led them to the Stanley Cup.

With a record of 14-13-5 the season is surely not lost, but somebody has to get them moving. Robinson apparently watching his health suffer with this squad, decided he wasn't that guy!

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