Kings’ Coach Bids Farewell to His Forum

Larry Robinson’s first visit here tonight as an NHL head coach with the Kings will be his last trip to hockey’s shrine, the Montreal Forum, which is being replaced later this season by a new Forum.

“It’s a loss to hockey,” said Robinson, who will be honored with a brief pregame ceremony celebrating his induction in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Robinson played with the Canadiens for 17 years, beginning his career in Montreal in their 1972-73 Stanley Cup season. He won four more Stanley Cups, two Norris Trophies and the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP in 1978.

“I have a lot of fond memories of the things that happened in the Forum,” he said. “It’s a great feeling you get when you go in there and it’s empty. You get goose bumps.”

He said coming back to Montreal now is different.

“As a coach or a head coach, it’s in the hands of the people on the ice,” said Robinson. “You don’t have much control.”

Is he planning to grab a souvenir tonight?

“I wouldn’t mind getting the ’86 [Stanley Cup] banner, but I think they’re taking that to the new building,” he said, laughing.