Hockey Hall of Famer speaks at Acadia Axemen Celebrity Hockey DinnerPublished Jun 24, 2025Last updated 3 hours ago5 minute readRetired Montreal Canadiens defenceman Larry Robinson, right, shares a laugh with emcee Len Hawley during the Acadia Axemen Celebrity Hockey Dinner on June 19. Photo by Jason Malloy /Annapolis Valley RegisterArticle contentMessage received.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentLarry Robinson was an aspiring young hockey player who had just driven from Ontario to Halifax in a 1964 Pontiac Parisienne with his wife and 11-month-old son.Article contentArticle contentAt the Montreal Canadiens farm team’s training camp in 1971, the skinny six-foot-four defenceman was called into Nova Scotia Voyageurs head coach Al MacNeil’s office.Article content“You play too soft,” Robinson recalled the Sydney native saying.Article contentArticle content“You have to be mean. They have to respect you. The more room you get, the more time you’re going to have with the puck, the easier it is going to be for you. It’s either that or we have to send you to Muskegon.”Article contentRobinson didn’t know where the Michigan city was, but knew he didn’t want to move again. He said he became a hockey player during his next game.Article content“I got in two fights the next night and had a goal and an assist and my career just kind of took off after that,” Robinson said, crediting MacNeil for turning his career around.Article contentRobinson, the Hockey Hall of Famer who had a decorated 20-year playing career in the NHL, was the guest speaker during the 25th Acadia Axemen Celebrity Hockey Dinner June 19 in Wolfville. The 74-year-old Marvelville, Ont., native said you can tell people from the East Coast by how friendly and sincere they are.Article contentArticle content“That’s what I liked most about being here.”Article content Hockey Hall of Famer Larry Robinson, left, signs a Montreal Canadiens jersey for Canaan’s Brett Kinney at the Acadia Axemen Celebrity Hockey Dinner. The 25th fundraiser was held June 19 in Wolfville. Photo by Jason Malloy /Annapolis Valley RegisterArticle contentArticle contentArticle contentKentvilleArticle contentRobinson played 1.5 seasons with the Voyageurs, winning the Calder Cup in his rookie campaign in 1971-72.Article contentHe was in the Annapolis Valley in 1972 and 1973 when the Canadiens held their training camp at Kentville Centennial Arena.Article contentEmcee Len Hawley wondered why the NHL team had come to the region. He enlisted the help of TSN’s Gord Miller, a friend of Acadia.Article content Len Hawley, left, says Yvan Cournoyer tossed this broken stick into the stands at Kentville Centennial Arena during the Montreal Canadens’ training camp in the early 1970s. He explained the Habs’ visit during a session with Hockey Hall of Famer Larry Robinson, who was at those training camps, June 19 in Wolfville. Photo by Jason Malloy /Annapolis Valley RegisterArticle contentMiller forwarded a letter he received from legendary coach Scotty Bowman. He noted the Voyageurs’ presence and Canadiens general manager Sam Pollock, who had family roots in Newfoundland, loved the Maritime provinces and was friends with then-premier Gerald Regan.Article content“It was a perfect facility and Sam knew how quaint and supportive it was of the Montreal Canadiens,” Hawley read. “Oddly enough, I remember, we all came home with bushels of tasty, delicious apples.”Article contentArticle contentEarly onArticle contentRobinson remembers his first contract included a $7,000 signing bonus and $7,500 to play for the season.Article contentInitially, the offer was $2,500 less and Robinson was ready to sign. In those day, few players knew what anyone else was making. The team official stopped Robinson and said he could do better, raising his offer by $2,000 and then again by another $500.Article contentThey were paid every two weeks from September to April 7. His first season, the team made the playoffs and Robinson had to borrow $400 from his father to pay May’s rent. He paid it back by working that summer for Ontario’s highways department building Highway 417 from Ottawa to Montreal.Article contentArticle contentGetting the callArticle contentDuring the 1972-73 season, McNeil told Robinson he was going to NHL. The young defenceman asked if he had any advice.Article content“First shift, doesn’t matter who it is, hit him as hard as you can and as fast as you can and get yourself into the game,” Robinson remembers McNeil explaining.Article contentArticle contentBobby Nevin was the recipient of Big Bird lowering the boom.Article content“I hit him hard and they stopped the game and carried him off the ice. That was my first shift.”Article content Larry Robinson, shown with the Montreal Canadiens, made his professional hockey debut in 1971-72 with the American Hockey League Nova Scotia Voyageurs. – Postmedia archives Photo by Postmedia archivesArticle contentAnother thunderous hit came against Gary Dornhoefer, a forward with Philadelphia’s Broad Street Bullies team, in Game 2 of the 1976 Stanley Cup semifinals at the Montreal Forum, which was known for having rock-hard boards.Article content“I hit him so hard, the boards actually moved about a foot and a half,” Robinson described.Article contentThe game was delayed as crews repaired the broken crossmember.Article content“There was a lot more to Larry’s game than the hits,” Dornhoefer told the Montreal Gazette’s Stu Cowan in 2012. “He was a smart player and had that long reach that was difficult to get around. He was one of the best defencemen I ever played against.”Article contentArticle content Robinson won six Stanley Cups as a player with Montreal, three more as a coach in New Jersey and one as an executive with St. Louis. He had 958 points in 1,358 NHL games.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentCurfewArticle contentBowman had a unique way to ensure players made curfew or pay the price.Article contentRobinson remembered the bench boss giving a stick to the night watchman at the hotel in Vancouver before they flew back to Montreal. He asked him to get all the players to sign it who arrived after 11:30 p.m.Article content“That’s how he found out who was in late,” Robinson said.Article contentArticle contentDynastyArticle contentRobinson said he was surprised Edmonton didn’t adjust during this year’s Stanley Cup Final against Florida.Article content“They were trying to play the way that Florida was playing,” he said. “They didn’t have the personnel to play that way.”Article contentHe said depth is also a crucial ingredient to post-season success.Article content“If you’re going deep in the playoffs, you need to use four lines.”Article contentRobinson played for the Habs dynasty that won four straight Cups in the late 1970s. It was followed by the New York Islanders and Edmonton Oilers dynasties.Article contentWith expansion and a salary cap, the definition of a modern-day dynasty is up for debate.Article contentBut Robinson has no pause in including the Panthers, who have gone to the final three straight years and are the two-time defending champs.Article content“If you want to have a dynasty and you want to have a really good team, you have to … be a family. And you have to be willing to go to war for the guy beside you.”Article content NHL legend Larry Robinson, left, speaks with Kentville’s Tanner Wood, centre, and North Alton’s Rylan Conway at the Acadia Axemen Celebrity Hockey Dinner June 19 in Wolfville. Photo by Jason Malloy /Annapolis Valley RegisterArticle contentArticle contentQuick hitsArticle contentMontreal Canadiens legend Larry Robinson touched on a few topics during his recent stop in Wolfville.Article contentPlaying in CanadaArticle contentAfter another early exit by the Toronto Maple Leafs, a narrative was floated by how hard it is to play in a Canadian market.Article contentRobinson scoffed at the idea and said pressure is having to feed and clothe five kids and having no job, as a former NHLer once said.Article content“That’s pressure. What we do is a gift,” Robinson said. “It’s still a game.”Article contentPlaying in Los AngelesArticle contentArticle content“I have the most respect for Wayne Gretzky because of how he handled all of the notoriety he had there. He couldn’t go anywhere or do anything.”Article contentBest line he ever sawArticle contentGilbert Perreault on left wing, Guy Lafleur on right wing, flanking centre Wayne Gretzky at the 1981 Canada Cup.Article contentArticle contentRecognizing the foundersArticle contentThe 25th Acadia Axemen Celebrity Hockey Dinner took place June 19 in Wolfville. The original committee members for the first dinner in 1998 were listed during the fundraiser.Article content“We can’t thank you enough for what you did in 1998 to start this annual tradition,” emcee Len Hawley said.Article contentThe members were:Article contentKevin DickieArticle contentDon WellsArticle contentTom PrescottArticle contentSteve HealyArticle contentJeff ReddenArticle contentJohn WilliamsArticle contentRob MacGregorArticle contentEric HowattArticle contentMark WebsterArticle contentBob TrainorArticle contentConnie MacNeilArticle contentHarvey MapplebeckArticle contentAl BakerArticle contentDave SchultzArticle contentPeter LynchArticle content
Larry Robinson says coach Al McNeils advice helped turn career around
