Stanley Cup Notebook : Kings Won’t Decide on New Coach Until After the Playoffs

The Kings have made it very clear that they will not name a new coach until after this Stanley Cup final series between the Calgary Flames and the Montreal Canadiens. So, there will be at least another week, probably more, for the rumors to rattle around.

Colin Campbell, an assistant with the Detroit Red Wings, is still the best guess. King General Manager Rogie Vachon has already discussed with Detroit officials what kind of compensation the Kings would owe the Red Wings if Campbell makes the move to the Kings. Campbell was even rumored to be in Los Angeles last week exploring the housing market.

However, there is a school of thought that says the Kings are waiting until after the playoffs because they are interested in Calgary assistant Doug Risebrough.

Risebrough isn’t saying if he is interested in the Kings, though. “I’m not really thinking about anything now except winning this series,” he said.

Risebrough, who played for the Canadiens and the Flames during his 13-year National Hockey League career, made the move from player to coach in June of 1987. He says he has enjoyed coaching as much as playing. He calls himself a “people person” and says he’s ready to progress in his career.

So he seems to fit the description of “fresh blood” that King owner Bruce McNall is looking for.

There is also talk that Risebrough might be scheduled to move to the Flames’ front office or take over as head coach if Terry Crisp is moved up.

Asked if Flame President and General Manager Cliff Fletcher has made him an offer, Risebrough said: “It’s a delicate situation for a GM to say, in two years you’ll be doing this. . . . Cliff has said to me that there are opportunities for me here.”

Whether the Kings asked Fletcher for permission to talk with him, Risebrough couldn’t say. “The way the branches go and the way it works, I’ll probably be the last to hear about it if it happens,” Risebrough said.

You’ve heard the one about the guy who went to a fight and a hockey game broke out? Well, Monday afternoon a bunch of guys went to hockey practice and a basketball game broke out.

When the Flames returned from their practice at Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, they found a basketball court on top of the ice at the Saddledome. So, they picked up a basketball and started shooting in the general direction of the net. There were more airballs than bricks, and there were precious few baskets.

But it made for some great pictures, all those guys in their big, bulky hockey pants and pads, some even still wearing their shoulder pads, moving around the court in a wide array of sneakers and slippers.

Practice for both the Flames and the Canadiens had to be moved to the ice at the Southern Alberta Institute so that the Saddledome could be readied for Monday night’s and tonight’s games of the Calgary 88s of the World Basketball League (a league for players under 6-foot-5).

The basketball schedule also explains why Game 2 of this series is being played Wednesday night instead of tonight, making both teams sit around in Calgary for two days instead of one. That means there will be only one travel day between Game 3 in Calgary Wednesday and Game 4 in Montreal Friday.

Calgary goalie Mike Vernon did not practice Monday, by his own choice. Coach Terry Crisp said that he and goalie coach Glenn Hall left the decision up to Vernon.

“We just told him that we wanted him ready, mentally and physically,” Crisp said. “If he thought he should practice, fine. If he thought he shouldn’t, fine. I have faith in Mike Vernon.”

Vernon, who has a 2.13 goals-against average in the playoffs, is finally starting to get a little respect. Why was he so maligned the last few years? “It’s been unfair,” Crisp said. “It’s probably just that when you don’t win the Stanley Cup, the goaltender is the first one you look to. . . . That’s why he hasn’t been considered with (Grant) Fuhr, (Ron) Hextall, (Kelly) Hrudey and (Patrick) Roy. In all fairness to Michael, he’s been coming of age.”

The Canadiens were not being too hard on themselves after Game 1.

Said Roy: “I think everybody’s happy with the game and the way we played, but not the result.”

In the opinion of veteran player Larry Robinson: “We played all right, but it wasn’t our best effort. We’ve got some work to do. Calgary plays a great transition game. . . . We’ve got to try to get them out of that rhythm. . . . (Vernon) was outstanding, but I don’t think we were going to the net enough. Sometimes, it’s a game of inches and we were that much off.”

Stanley Cup Notes

Theoren Fleury of Calgary and Mike Keane of Montreal, two of the smallest players in the league, are meeting again in the Stanley Cup finals after playing together in Moose Jaw. Fleury is 5-foot-6, 155 pounds. Keane is 5-10, 175. . . . A year ago, ESPN sent the Stanley Cup final series into 47 million homes. This year, SportsChannel America is reaching 8.5 million. . . . Calgary defenseman Gary Suter “was flying around” at practice Monday, according to Crisp, who said that Suter has good days and bad days coping with his broken jaw wired shut. Suter keeps saying that he hopes to get back in time to play in this series, but no one is making any promises.

Al MacInnis’ goals Sunday night stretched his point-scoring streak to 12 consecutive games, the longest streak of the playoffs. The record of 18 straight was set by the New York Islanders’ Bryan Trottier in the 1981 playoffs. . . . Capacity at the Saddledome includes 60 seats more than during the regular season. Flame officials had to find a way to add space to meet their league commitment for playoff tickets. So special risers were brought in on the concourse level and still more seats were added in a booth next to the organ that was built for the operators of a special replay score clock that was never installed.