RELISHING THAT LUC OF SUCCESS AS RED WING, ROBITAILLE'S CUP RUNNETH OVER.

Byline: Matt McHale Staff Writer

Hockey's most heated rivalry was over for now, and Luc Robitaille went sorting through the enemy looking for a friend.

At center ice in Detroit's Joe Louis Arena in May, players were shaking hands after Robitaille's Detroit Red Wings defeated Rob Blake's Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference finals.

The two had played nine years together in Los Angeles, co-sponsored golf tournaments and rented cars for numerous visits to former Kings owner Bruce McNall in prison.

But this was different.

Robitaille's Red Wings now were on the verge of winning the Stanley Cup, his first and the same Cup Blake won with the Avalanche the year before.

They had dreamed of winning it together with the Kings, which only made the moment more powerful when they met.

``When I saw him he almost made me cry,'' Robitaille said. ``He said, `You got to go for it, it is the best feeling in the world.' He said all the stuff that came before won't matter anymore. He wanted it for me almost as much as I did. Coming from someone so close meant so much.''

There was plenty more crying two weeks later, when the Wings beat Carolina for the title. The sight of a sobbing Robitaille hoisting the Cup overhead became the snapshot for the season. ``Watching him on TV, I felt very happy for Luc,'' Kings general manager Dave Taylor said. ``You could see how emotional it was for him. He was very deserving.''

One year to the day since he left the Kings for big free-agent money and a chance to win his sport's ultimate prize, Robitaille says he never has been happier.

He has returned to his family home in Bel Air but is on a cruise this week with his wife Stacia and two sons to celebrate the couple's wedding anniversary. Before leaving Detroit, Robitaille, his teammates and their wives threw a party with rapper Kid Rock and actress girlfriend Pamela Anderson that including an impromptu concert.

What makes this summer sweeter is not just the Cup, which he'll bring to L.A. for a visit in August. It is the difficulty Robitaille endured to get to this point.

Certainly the two-year, $9 million contract he received from Detroit helped cushion the blow of leaving the Kings, where he played for 12 of his 16 seasons. Robitaille, 36, scored his 600th career goal in November, and if he gets 30 more next season the Red Wings will guarantee a third year at $4.5 million.

The Kings offered one year at $2.5 million. What might have hurt worse was that the club did not make him the captain after Blake was traded in February 2001.

``Everything worked out great and I know he wouldn't change a thing,'' said Pat Brisson, Robitaille's agent. ``But very few people realize just how hard it was for Luc. He learned that there is quite a price for winning.''

Robitaille seemed to begin paying the day he signed. His new teammates immediately blasted management for not pursuing another free agent, Brett Hull, who had won a Stanley Cup with Dallas in 1999.

When Robitaille left for Detroit, his family remained in Los Angeles. They made several trips, including a surprise visit on a night in November after he scored a goal that helped beat the Kings.

Robitaille was overjoyed to see his brood, but the emotion of the long absence was overwhelming when his sons entered the Wings' dressing room.

Although Robitaille got off to a fast start and Detroit ran away from the rest of the Western Conference, his style of play often frustrated legendary coach Scotty Bowman. Just a year earlier, Bowman ripped another one of his stars, Brendan Shanahan, for not playing defense. This time it was Robitaille's turn to get an earful from the Hall of Fame coach.

Kings coach Andy Murray had similar complaints, but he needed Robitaille's scoring. Bowman had a team with nine potential Hall of Famers and was looking for his ninth Stanley Cup. He cut Robitaille's playing time from more than 20 minutes a game with the Kings to around 13.

He finished the season with 50 points, the second-lowest total of his career. Thirteen of his 30 goals came on the power play, but there were long stretches when all he played was special teams. In 23 playoff games, he added four goals and five assists, just ninth on the Wings in postseason scoring.

``Every player wants to play,'' Robitaille said. ``I wasn't used to that and it was difficult. But this was one of the lessons I learned this past year. To win the Stanley Cup, the sacrifice is incredible. It was never so sweet or so hard. If it was going to mean playing 13 minutes, then that's what it would take.''

Midway through the season, Red Wings management could see Robitaille was struggling emotionally with all the changes. He had been the Kings' most popular player. Staples Center was a half hour from home. And unlike Blake, who has been booed every time he returns, Robitaille was cheered wildly and the Kings said no one would wear his No. 20 again.

That safety net now was more than two thousand miles away.

The Wings grew so concerned that owner Mike Ilitch met with Robitaille to see if he wanted a trade closer to home.

With a trip to the Finals nearly assured, Robitaille told Ilitch he had come too far to turn back. He also said he would be bringing his family to Detroit to live next season.

Robitaille stayed, but the rumors began in Canada that he wanted out. The Mighty Ducks hadn't made the playoffs in four years and were desperate for scoring to complement Paul Kariya and a popular player to boost sagging attendance.

The plot actually thickened because the Wings won the Cup. Goaltender Dominic Hasek retired and the club knows his replacement, perhaps Curtis Joseph, will demand one of hockey's highest salaries.

A half-dozen players are restricted free agents and all will get raises. Defenseman Chris Chelios is 40 but coming off one of his best seasons. He is an unrestricted free agent and wants more than the $5.5 million he received last year.

Ilitch already has the NHL's highest payroll, but he will need to trim where he can.

Meanwhile, the Ducks signed veteran playmaker Adam Oates to a two-year, $7 million contract Monday.

A trade still is possible, but Robitaille's salary will be tough to move.

``I've learned in this business anything is possible, but I have no reason to think I won't be back in Detroit,'' Robitaille said. ``Whatever happens, happens, but I'll always have the memories of winning the Cup. Like Rob said, ``that's one thing they can never take from me.''

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(color) Former Kings star Luc Robitaille finally won a Stanley Cup this season as a member of the Detroit Red Wings. But his road to the NHL's ultimate prize sometimes was bumpy.

Ryan Remiorz/Associated Press