Kings put Richards on waivers
Former Flyers captain Mike Richards helped Los Angeles win two Stanley Cups, but his production has dipped.
THE STATISTICS and analytics matched what Dean Lombardi's eyes were witnessing. He could see the drop-off in Mike Richards like everyone else, but didn't want to believe it.
Managing a dynastic Stanley Cup enterprise isn't always black and white, after all. Not when people are involved.
Lombardi had one final opportunity last June to buy out Richards' contract, but was swayed by the conversation he had with the player who made the Los Angeles Kings' 2012 Cup possible. He decided against it.
It was a decision the general manager clearly regrets now, after placing the former Flyers captain on waivers yesterday. Richards, 29, has 5 years remaining on his contract at $5.75 million per season and the Kings seem to be stuck. At that rate, he is unlikely to be claimed by one of the other 29 teams today, including the Flyers.
Richards has just one goal since Nov. 29.
"Under the circumstances, with what he had done for us, I thought he deserved a chance to get back to where he knows he's capable of,'' Lombardi told reporters yesterday. "That's a hard balance. We expect loyalty from our players, and I think it's a two-way street.''
Lombardi admitted the numbers aspect of the decision said "it should have been easy.'' Richards netted 41 points in 82 games last year, his worst total in a full season since his rookie year with the Flyers in 2005-06. He has 15 points in 47 games this year.
"Things like passion and loyalty are values that I thought made sports special,'' Lombardi said. "Commodities guys will tell you that doesn't matter. Well, that's been a big part of the success of this team, I certainly believe. But there's still got to be a certain level here that has to get done.''
Since being traded to Los Angeles on June 23, 2011 for Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds, Richards has two Stanley Cup rings and 132 points in 251 games with the Kings. He posted 349 points in 453 games with the Flyers from 2005-2011, captaining the team to the 2010 Stanley Cup finals.
Complicating matters for any interested team is that they could be on the hook for a significant "cap recapture penalty'' imposed by the NHL if Richards does not play out the life of his contract. The rule was designed to punish teams who gained an unfair advantage on the salary cap by increasing the length of deals to lower the yearly salary cap hit.
Richards signed a 12-year, $69 million deal with the Flyers on Dec. 13, 2007. He was just 22 at the time. Strangely, the Flyers are not at risk to be penalized, even though they orchestrated his circumventing contract and reaped the benefit for three seasons.
Richards is expected to report to AHL Manchester, N.H., if assigned. The Kings would receive a $925,000 benefit on the salary cap with Richards in the AHL.
"The way I look at it is, Mike, in his career, has shown he can be a .330 hitter and get you 80 RBI and be an All-Star player,'' Lombardi said. "Maybe at this stage, maybe it's not there but I certainly think he's capable of being a .280 hitter. I see no reason why not, but it's going to be up to him.''
Shark bait
Four months after he failed to earn a deal with the Flyers in training camp, the Sharks signed 20-year-old center Nikita Jevpalovs to a 3-year, entry-level contract yesterday. Jevpalovs has racked up 71 points (38 goals) in 45 games with Blainville-Boisbriand in the QMJHL this season.
Jevpalovs, who hails from Riga, Latvia, went undrafted 3 straight years before climbing to fourth in QMJHL scoring. He popped up on the Flyers' radar after scoring the overtime winner in Game 7 to eliminate first-round pick Samuel Morin's junior team (Rimouski) from the playoffs.
Slap shots
The Coyotes practiced at Wells Fargo Center last evening, increasing the odds of tonight's game being played as scheduled. Last year, however, a Jan. 21 game against Carolina was postponed even though both teams and the officials were in town . . . Rookie forward Scott Laughton (suspected concussion) missed practice. He was crushed by Washington's Matt Niskanen on Jan. 14. "He's not progressing as quickly as we hoped or even thought,'' GM Ron Hextall said . . . Defenseman Nick Grossmann (right shoulder) returned to practice but isn't ready to play a game . . . A decision is expected on the fate of Kimmo Timonen's career in the next 2 days . . . Goaltender Steve Mason, who missed the last six games before the All-Star break because of injury, and Michael Raffl did not participate in practice yesterday because of illness. Mason could still be in the lineup tonight despite limited practice time . . . All-Stars Claude Giroux and Jake Voracek were given the day off from practice.
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