Everyone in the hockey world is still abuzz about the Kings waiving Mike Richards yesterday . Even with the return of hockey action tonight against Chicago, Kings fans are still trying to process the rapid decline and demotion of the once highly sought after star.
Where did it all go wrong for No. 10? We are talking about a player who just a little over five years ago had an 80 point season. He was coming off back to back 60+ points seasons when he came to the Kings in the summer of 2011.
Here we are, less than five years later and Richards is on his way either out of town or to the AHL. While there are still some who think the 29-year old can rekindle his game and work his way back (Lombardi included), the simple fact is this: Richards is where he is because he hasn't been very good.
But given the strong downward spiral from the Philly days to now, the more pertinent question on the mind of fans is "How?"
There have been plenty of theories tossed about already ranging from the David Booth hit to the concussions to the trade itself. Let's highlight some of them and see if there are any conclusions that can be drawn from what has been a mercurial Los Angeles Kings tenure.
The David Booth Hit
I have seen some say that the hit that Mike Richards laid on David Booth changed him and how he played.
No question, a scary injury or injury causing hit can make you re-evaluate things and put a perspective into you that you otherwise didn't have. It is a fast paced game, a dangerous game, and it is played by pretty blue-collar guys who don't want to hurt each other. But it still happens. And sometimes it can be really devastating to both parties.
On October 24th 2009, the Flyers were engaged in a regular season bout with the Florida Panthers. Then, late in the second period this happened:
David Booth has never been the same though. After a promising 60 point and 30 goal sophomore season, this halted his career. After missing all of 2009-10, Booth returned the following year to mixed results. Since then he has been inconsistent, and constantly hampered by injuries and the after effects of the hit.
As far as the effect on Richards? Well there wasn't any immediate one whatsoever. He went on to have his highest career goal total that year at 31, and had an equally strong 2009-10 campaign.
He did have 40 less hits the following season, but those numbers came back around to normal on his first year of the Kings.
Yea, it was a bad hit and a scary one at that, but it doesn't seem to be anything more than that.
His Health
All things considered, Richards had a decent initial season with the Kings. 44 points and 18 goals wasn't exactly the 60-80 point range fans had in mind, but he was adjusting to a new team and a new system. On December 1 of his inaugural Kings season he suffered a concussion at the hands of Sean Bergenheim, but was later cleared to play about two weeks later. As far as it having negative effects, he had a decent season. His hits and physical player remained constant from his Philly days, and he also had a very good lockout shortened 2012-13. He posted a 32 points season that year in 48 games, which would have matched some of the output of his Philly days.
However, like most concussions, in never seems to be the first one that gets you. It is the second one. Then the third. Then the 4th etc. etc.
In Game 1 of the 2013 Western Conference Finals against the Chicago Blackhawks, Richards was absolutely rocked by Dave Bolland.
Richards was actually having a fantastic post season, with 12 points and a plus-5 rating in 15 games. His possession numbers, which had been in steady decline, were still not the greatest. None the less he was still producing.
However, 2012-13 was basically the last we saw of a Mike Richards with an offensive threat to him.
Draw what conclusions you will from that, but Richards never did get back to a good level after that 2012-13 season.
He also has seen a heavy drop in his hit totals over the years, so this may be a sign that the all-out style that people came to respect from Richards just caught up to him.
The Trade
Overall, you could venture that this is one of the more plausible and realistic theories out there of why we saw such a precipitous drop in basically everything Mike Richards did.
When he came to LA it was a very different place, a different system, and a very difficult system to work into.
In theory, Mike Richards had a game that was a perfect fit for the Kings. A hard-working two-way center. A good character player. A leader. A producer.
The Kings got pretty much all of that from Richards except for the latter. The best laid plans of mice and men...
You can blame part of this on the differences in hockey systems to a degree, but you could also blame some of this on the confidence blaster that was getting traded away from the only team you've known. The team that you were the captain of.
As much as we may attribute it to injuries and what not, Richards was simply never the same player once he got dealt.
The numbers reflect that. Take a look at some of the charts on stats.hockeyanalysis.com
The decline has been steady.
The redline in this chart shows when he switched from Philly to LA.
How could he be so different on one team versus another?
It is simple and complicated at the same time.
In Philly the system was more wide open and forgiving about defensive lapses. Less structure led to more offense, more high quality chances, and overall more eye pleasing statistics.
When you get out to the heavy possession and rigorous LA Kings system everything changes. You have less opportunity offensively and more responsibility defensively. For the converse of this look at Wayne Simmonds and what he has become with Philly. While Richards took the knocks offensively due to this system, Simmonds was able to flourish into a 30 goal scorer and powerplay specialist for the Flyers.
With Richards struggling to get it together offensively, the problem of his role seemed to compound as he was limited to less minutes and less offensive zone time. The cycle continued, and now here we are. From 2nd line to 4th, from 4th to waivers.
I know I have said it once and I will say it again: The Kings system is not an easy system to play in.
Case and point? Mike Richards.
Also, in regards to the trade, the one aspect we can't quite eliminate is the mental side of it.
The confidence was more than likely obliterated by his movement out of Philly. The rumors after that about him being a locker room cancer, a party animal, and a bad teammate were extremely overblown. As much as players try not to read their own press clippings, it can be hard no to when so much is being said.
Doing your job to the best of your ability every day when so many people are writing and saying terrible things can take a heavy toll on you mentally.
Where does he go from here?
Manchester since he wasn't claimed. The real question is what happens moving forward.
With his contract and his level of play there is little hope he can return to the main squad and prove more than just a 3r or 4th line center. The Kings need money, and his contract has been a thorn in their side for a few years now. It doesn't look all that promising, but perhaps the motivation will be there for the former Olympian to figure something out when he is in the AHL.
Who knows.
You have to feel for the guy. He has always been a worker, and a good player in the room. Only he can decide what happens from here on out. Do we see Mike Richards return to the NHL some day and will it be in LA? Who knows.
Follow me on twitter for news and notes about the Kings and the NHL
++++I AM CURRENTLY LOOKING FOR ADVERTISERS! If you, or anyone you know would be interested in placing an ad on the blog here at HockeyBuzz then send me a PM!+++++