Mike Richards' Captaincy

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Lore & Background

Richards was drafted in the first round of the 2003 NHL entry draft by the Flyers, 24th overall, and made his NHL debut in 2005. He was named captain of the Flyers in 2008 at just 23 years old, leading Philadelphia to a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2010. In 2011, the Flyers traded Richards to the Los Angeles Kings, where he was a member of two Stanley Cup-winning teams with Los Angeles in 2012 and 2014. The Kings terminated his contract in 2015 after Richards was arrested for possession of oxycodone, a controlled substance, without a prescription. The drug charges were later stayed by the judge, effectively ending the case against him. In addition to his two Stanley Cup titles, Richards won an Olympic gold medal with Canada senior team at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Richards' career also included championships in the Memorial Cup (2003), World Junior Championship (2005), and Calder Cup (2005).

In Their Own Story

The arena hummed with tension as Richards skated toward center ice for the faceoff. The crowd noise faded into a dull roar behind him; all that mattered was the puck drop. He gritted his teeth, gripping his stick tightly, embodying the relentless energy demanded of a captain in Philadelphia. Every shift was a battle, every check a statement to the opposition that this team would not be pushed around.

Reader's Guide

Richards made his NHL debut with the Flyers in 2005–06, scoring a goal in his first game on October 5, 2005, against the New York Rangers. He finished his rookie season with 34 points in 79 games. After an injury-shortened sophomore season, Richards emerged as a star in 2007–08, topping the team in scoring with 75 points. He was named one of the Flyers' alternate captains and signed a 12-year contract extension worth $69 million on December 13, 2007. On September 17, 2008, Richards was named the 17th captain in Flyers history. On February 15, 2009, he became the first player in NHL history to score three career three-on-five short-handed goals. Six days later, on February 21, Richards became the first Flyer in team history to score a short-handed goal in three consecutive games. He finished the 2008–09 season second in team scoring with 80 points and a league-leading seven shorthanded goals. In the 2010 playoffs, during game five of the Eastern Conference Final against the Montreal Canadiens, Richards scored a spectacular short-handed goal to tie the game at 1–1 seconds after throwing a big hit on Marc-André Bergeron, a sequence Flyers fans call 'The Shift.' The Flyers lost the Stanley Cup Final 4–2 to the Chicago Blackhawks. The trade on June 23, 2011, included the Kings retaining a portion of Richards' salary, but the source does not specify the exact details of the trade return.

Did You Know?

• Richards scored his first NHL playoff goal on a penalty shot against Washington Capitals goaltender Cristobal Huet in game three of the 2008 playoffs, becoming the first player in NHL history to score his first playoff g
• Richards was a finalist for the Frank J. Selke Trophy in 2009, losing to Pavel Datsyuk by a vote of 1,028 to 945 in the closest Selke race since its inception.
• Richards scored his 100th career NHL goal on February 1, 2010.