All of Robinson’s Moves Seem Almost Pointless for Kings

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. —  King Coach Larry Robinson continues to tinker with his lineup, moving defensemen Marty McSorley and Rob Cowie up front. He has tried a variety of penalty killers, including Dimitri Khristich and Wayne Gretzky. And he offers the simplest of advice, telling his players to shoot the puck more.

All the effort has gone for naught.

Once again, the Kings played hard and came away with nothing to show for it, losing, 3-1, to New Jersey on Tuesday night. For Robinson, who was an assistant with the Stanley Cup champion Devils last season, it was his first game back at Meadowlands Arena.

The Kings (16-21-11) have not won since Jan. 6, going 0-5-2. All season, they have been almost helpless away from the Forum, winning once in their last 16 road games (1-13-2).

They were once a high-scoring team, but those days are long past. They have scored one goal in each of their last two games. Tuesday, Eric Lacroix scored his 11th of the season, unassisted at 2:29 of the third period. Gretzky, suffering from a cold, is pointless in two games.

Meanwhile, General Manager Sam McMaster says he is working the phones several hours a day, trying to make a trade. As for the attempt to acquire disgruntled center Kirk Muller, who went from the New York Islanders to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday in a three-team, seven-player deal, the Kings were not a factor in the end.

McMaster said he spoke to Islander General Manager and Coach Mike Milbury three or four times, most recently a week ago.

“We did pursue a trade, but there was no fit and we couldn’t make a deal,” McMaster said. “Mike Milbury, in his patience, made a good deal.”

He reiterated that the team is unwilling to part with rookie defenseman Aki Berg, rookie right wing Vitali Yachmenev and added goaltender Jamie Storr’s name to the list. Storr, who is with the Kings’ International Hockey League affiliate in Phoenix, won’t return to Los Angeles unless he is able to play often.

McMaster did not rule out trading a goaltender--either Byron Dafoe or Kelly Hrudey--and bringing Storr in as a backup. “That’s an option,” he said.

Hrudey played against the Devils--facing 31 shots--and gave up a soft goal 57 seconds into the game. New Jersey right wing John MacLean beat him with a shot from the top of the right circle after Khristich turned the puck over to Steve Thomas in the neutral zone.

“The first goal kind of set us back a lot,” Robinson said. “Kelly was back in his net a little too much. We wanted to get off to a quick start and then you let in a goal like that, it kind of takes the starch out of everybody.”

Said Hrudey: “For some reason, only on that side, I’ve been one step back from where I should be. I’ve been working on it, I’ve been better than I was two weeks ago. I just have to continue to take one step out. As the game went on, I got better at it.”

Robinson was not pleased with his power-play unit, either. The Kings were 0 for 3 with the man advantage and gave up a short-handed goal by left wing Brian Rolston at 15:41 of the second period, giving the Devils a 2-0 lead.

“You get down to this team 2-0, and that’s like the kiss of death,” Robinson said.

The Devils have had some recent controversy of their own, as veteran center Neal Broten was scratched against the Kings for having skipped a practice last week. But they seemed to make it a rallying point of sorts, showing more verve and creativity than they demonstrated before the All-Star break.

King Notes

The St. Louis Blues, mindful of the ever-present tampering issue, have stopped talking about how great it would be to have Wayne Gretzky and Brett Hull on their team. But the irrepressible Hull hasn’t stopped. “I hope he does come to St. Louis, but in the end, I want Wayne Gretzky to be happy,” Hull told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “The quicker he can get it resolved, whether he stays in L.A. or comes to St. Louis, or goes somewhere else, as long as he’s happy, the game is better off. If he’s not happy, the game suffers.”