Luc Robitaille interview: 'Lucky' has everything to do with Kings successes both on and off the ice

March 31, 9:58 AMLos Angeles Kings ExaminerJonathan Moncrief

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(Photo courtesy L.A. Kings) - Luc Robitaille is all business

When the Hockey Hall of Fame announces their inductees this fall for the class of 2009, one local name figures to be a shoe-in for selection in his first year of eligibility. Certainly any goaltender still having nightmares of him flying down the left side and snapping that quick wrister will attest to it.

Yet as silky smooth and poetically graceful as he was during 19 National Hockey League seasons, it has been the transition of Luc Robitaille into the business side of the sport of hockey that should come as no surprise to those that know him or interact with him. Many a business representative, community group, and season ticket holder, will be impressed with the warm and confident method with which he runs the business operations of the team with whom he spent three tours of duty over 14 seasons.

‘Lucky’ maybe his nickname, but luck has nothing to do with the successful franchise the Los Angeles Kings are becoming both on and off the ice. Whether it’s a corporate officer of a potential sponsor, a season ticket holder sitting on the fence about renewing for next year, community leaders interested in having Kings players past and present help promote their causes, or the lowly beat writer initially star-struck in his presence, everyone comes away from meeting and talking with Robitaille excited for the future of the franchise knowing he’s one of those pointing the way.

“It’s my job to make sure the business end of things runs smoothly,” Robitaille told me recently in the team’s office in El Segundo. “We’ve become much more streamlined within the organization the last two years, and (team owner Philip) Anschutz has really allowed us to do our thing, which in turn has made us much more efficient as an organization.”

When you first meet him in person, he appears physically as if Kings head coach Terry Murray could still double-shift him at the end of games. He chuckled when I mentioned that the Kings drafted two future Hall-of-Famers when they selected him in the ninth round of the 1984 draft (the other being baseball pitcher Tom Glavine). He recalled a quiet confidence about being drafted by the club as he approached his first training camp.

“It’s hard to believe that was 25 years ago,” Robitaille remembered, “I mean, I couldn’t even speak English yet… but I remember thinking I was glad to be going to the Kings because I thought I might have a chance to play right away… I was just happy to be on the list of players.” Robitaille also spoke of his father’s special interest in his son’s first attempt at making the squad.

“That first camp was in Victoria (in British Columbia), and my dad came and hid in the upper corner of the stands,” Robitaille recalled fondly. “He just wanted to see if I had what it took to make it in the NHL. Even though I got cut that first year (and returned to junior hockey), he said to me, ‘after watching you out there, I know now you can definitely make it in the NHL.' That gave me a lot of confidence.”

After a stellar career in which he became the all-time leading goal scorer in league history for left wingers, the Kings immediately offered him a position in the front office. He spent his first season as an Assistant to the Governor of the Kings, where he began to delve into the day-to-day business operations of the club like he would dive into a scrum in the corner, hoping to come out of the pack with the puck. For the last two seasons, his official title has been President of Business Operations, which suits him well. He handles a lot of the communications vehicles for the club involving player appearances, media connectivity, fan base development and continuity, and many of the club’s community outreach programs.

“I wear many hats, but I enjoy being involved in contributing to the character and the pride and passion of our players in the community,” Robitaille confided. He told me that his experience as a player helps him to manage the appearances of the Kings’ players with the same confidence with which he’d pop a one-timer past a frustrated goaltender.

“We’ve increased the number of appearances from about 25 per year to more than 300. So that takes working with the players and the hockey staff to make sure that we maximize their time without over-extending them. Because I played and I know how much time the players have during the season, it’s my responsibility to make sure that we are always putting our best face forward.”

This means a concerted effort is needed between Robitaille and his hockey operations counterpart, Dean Lombardi. When I asked him about his involvement in that end, he was quick to let me know there was no crossing of the streams.

“If Dean or Ron (Hextall, the Assistant General Manager) want to talk with me and solicit my opinion,” Robitaille stated, “I will give them my opinion. But it’s his (Lombardi’s) team. He runs it. He has a vision for what he wants and I totally support him with what he is doing. There is a lot of communication between us because of the public side of the players involvement in various off-ice activities, but we work together to protect the integrity of the players and the team.”

And considering the growing efforts of community outreach and fan involvement, it’s easy to see that Robitaille’s commitment to his role on the business side is affecting the Kings growing presence within greater Los Angeles. When I began to ask him about this summer’s inaugural ‘Kings Hockey Fest’, his eyes lit up like he took a lead pass on a breakaway.

“I am really excited about that event and all of the things that will be involved in it,” Robitaille expressed, “and I feel we have a responsibility to grow the game in this area and in the United States, as well as to be good neighbors in this community.”

“Hockey Fest is going to have a lot of activities for fans to get involved in,” he continued. “We are going to have a lot of interactive activities where fans can measure their skill level, and get a feel for what it’s like to be in an NHL game. There will be plenty of autograph sessions with players. We hope to develop a series of question-and-answer type groups with current players and players from our past. We plan on having a street hockey tournament that will run throughout the weekend. We envision a ‘Kids Only’ press conference with players and coaches, and allow for us to showcase the greatest game on earth to a fan base that I have a lot of respect for.”

A related area with which Robitaille spoke passionately about was next season, both from the standpoint of the Kings potential as well as the 2010 Olympic tournament in February in Vancouver.

“I’m glad we (the NHL) are still involved in the Olympics,” Robitaille beamed. “It’s very important because, it’s the best tournament in the world, we have the best athletes in the world, and they should play on the biggest stage in the world. It’s such a great model to help us market the game. Plus, unlike a lot of the other sports out there at the elite level, there are legitimately five or six teams that can win the tournament every year. The fact that it is here (in North America) should make for less of an issue with the league clubs in terms of the length of the tournament. I hope we continue to do it.”

It’s that understanding of always trying to sell the game of hockey to the non-hockey fan that keeps Robitaille focused on the task at hand. It even means occasionally putting the gear back on and skating circles around wanna-be players/actors. Case in point was the FOX television series Bones, where Robitaille made a cameo appearance earlier this season during a dream sequence of series star and good friend David Boreanaz.

“Yeah David asked me to do that, and it was fun, but it’s also a lot of hurry-up-and-waiting too,” Robitaille chuckled, “but it was fun. They made it a great experience for me, and they gave me a few good lines that I didn’t trip on. I’ve know David for a long time, and I’ve acted before, so it was fun to do.”

But as much fun as the acting was for Robitaille, he also gets a lot of enjoyment out of the further development of the Kings within the community. One of the seemingly endless lists of things that get him energized is talking about the ‘Hero of the Game’ program. Before the opening face-off of each game, and then again during the contest, the Kings show their appreciation to the men and women serving in our armed forces by honoring a member of the military as the ‘Hero of the Game’.

“We’ve had an amazing reception for that from the fans,” Robitaille recounted, “and this past year, Chevron talked to us about wanting to get involved in it from a sponsorship angle, which has been great. We’d like to possibly expand it next year to include first responders, such as police, firefighters, and medical personnel. I think it’s important we recognize the significant contributions of these people who put their lives on the line everyday to help serve and protect our community.”

“That’s the thing I get the most satisfaction from is continuing to show our support for a variety of causes. Whether it’s the Tip-A-King promotion, the upcoming 5K run that Daryl Evans is involved with, the Kings Care Foundation, and the numerous other endeavors we are actively involved in, I take tremendous pride in knowing that everyone in our organization, players and coaches, and all of our staff, give so much of themselves to these various causes.”

Of course, Robitaille also knows that there is an excitement level being created by what the players are doing on the ice these days, and he spoke of the need for a team that is the youngest in the league (in terms of average age per player) to learn from being in the playoff chase this season. He also knows that the fans are anxious to see the Kings return to post-season play.

“I have so much respect for a fan base and for our season ticket holders because they believe in what we are doing,” Robitaille said. “And it’s really important for us as a team to play these games this year and chase for a spot in the playoffs. You want your young guys to play in these types of games because; you don’t know how difficult it is to win in this league until you go through it.”

“So I know that Dean and the staff are watching to see how our young players are playing,” he continued, “and whether they are lifting their game to match the intensity of the moment, taking it to the next level. I’m seeing that more and more from our younger players, which is very encouraging. We want to be in the playoffs this year, but we know either way it turns out that next year, we have to be in the playoffs. Guys like (Anze) Kopitar and (Dustin) Brown, they are picking up their game, and they will need to pick it up even more next year. It’s good to have that kind of pressure, to show that you can deliver when it counts.”

Robitaille wants the fans to know that the franchise in position to return to the glory days of the ‘Gretzky Era’ when the Kings were part of the Stanley Cup discussion every year.

“If you’ve been a fan of us for the past few years, my message to you is: this is it,” Robitaille reiterated. “We’ve built up our base of young guys into a solid core group. We know there might be a couple of holes that need to be plugged this summer, but Dean and his group are committed to doing just that. We’re ready to go to another level as a hockey team, and it’s an exciting time to be here.”

When talking about players raising their games to another level, the conversation ended with a quick thought on the best players that he played with. If given a chance to play one game with a group of former teammates in a game of significance, Robitaille chose Dominik Hasek, Niklas Lidstrom, and Steve Yzerman from his Detroit days, and of course Rob Blake and Wayne Gretzky from his Kings days.

“You know, Yzerman was a prolific scorer his first 10 years, but the remainder of his career he was much more of a leader, willing to do anything necessary to ensure victory,” Robitaille reflected. “The thing about Gretz was that I’ve never seen anyone make that little curl at the offensive blue line and accelerate in the turn. Everybody else decelerates but he seemed to pick up speed while maintaining that control and incredible vision. Plus, Gretz always raised his game when the stakes were the highest – the more under pressure he was, the better he seemed to play.”

For 14 of his 19 seasons, the Kings benefited on the ice from Robitaille’s ability to do the same thing; his ability to raise his level of play every night. The future of the franchise looks bright on the ice, and it also looks bright off of it because of Robitaille’s ability to transform himself into someone who understands the need to further develop the franchise’s involvement within the community.

If only those old goaltenders could just get those Robitaille-rush-filled nightmares out of their heads.