Confirmed with Link: Brad Richards retires

[LightningStrikes]

Brad Richards retires: http://www.nhlpa.com/news/brad-richards-retires-from-nhl-after-15-seasons

Click to read more...

 

[DaBolts]

Brad Richards retires: http://www.nhlpa.com/news/brad-richards-retires-from-nhl-after-15-seasons

Well, we're going to be hanging some jerseys up in the rafters this season. Vinny and Brad were without a doubt two of the greatest Bolts of all time.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Congrats on a great career Brad. Kind of fitting that he leaves the league along with his life long friend Vinny. Also very weird now that all players of the 04 cup team are done in the NHL.

 

[The Macho King]

Well, we're going to be hanging some jerseys up in the rafters this season. Vinny and Brad were without a doubt two of the greatest Bolts of all time.

Don't think Brad gets into the rafters, honestly. Love him and will remember him fondly, but he played half his career elsewhere.

 

[tjs*]

http://nhl.nbcsports.com/2016/07/20/two-time-cup-winner-brad-richards-retires-after-15-years/

One of my favorites from the Stanley Cup team. Is it too late to add him to the +/- game?

 

[CupsOverCash]

Mine too. I thought he deserved to be in the +- game. One of our greatest. Definitely a top 5 bolt of all time.

 

[MattM92]

The last of the Big 3 retires. Sad day.

 

[Todd1a]

The last of the Big 3 retires. Sad day.

Has Dan Boyle retired remember the big four ??

 

[Leonardo87]

Enjoyed watching him play during his Rangers years, the 11-2012 run was fun to watch. Anyway, enjoy retirement! You earned it!

 

[Hoek]

Brad was class. Definitely the most underrated of the three amigos. 7 game winning goals on the way to the cup is still insane to think about. He got us almost half the wins needed with that alone.

Hope to see him around more. Congratulations on a great career.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/lightning/brad-richards-on-career-ill-cherish-all-of-it/2286260

Richards plans to stay in his summer home outside New York until his baby his born, then head to his wife's native Australia for several months. He'll return in March and contemplate his next home, which he hopes is in Tampa. Heck, maybe he and recently retired former Lightning teammate Vinny Lecavalier can be neighbors.

"I love Tampa, everybody knows that," Richards said. "It'd be a great spot to retire."

...Richards maintains he never wanted to leave Tampa Bay, which traded him to Dallas in 2007.

"There's nothing bad about my career, but that was the worst I've ever felt," he said.

Richards is proud his legacy most notably will be what he, Lecavalier, Marty St. Louis & Co. helped build in Tampa Bay. He could see it in the sellout crowds at Amalie Arena during the playoffs the last two seasons, a town immersed in the sport.

"We grew together, we built that," Richards said. "We created a fan base that made hockey a lot of fun to play there. If you talk to players around the league, everybody would love to play in Tampa now. And that was the coolest thing we did, is put it on the map and we made it a place, a destination that players wanted to play hockey and win and not just come down here and retire and play golf."

Richards said he consulted with both St. Louis, who retired in 2015, and Lecavalier, who retired after this season, to bounce his thoughts off them.

"It makes this a lot easier for me to know two of my best friends and players I grew up with are gone," Richards said. "It's not like I'm sitting here watching players I grew up playing with are still playing, a lot of us are done now. It's the world we live in, things can't last forever. It's emotional for sure, but I'm also very excited and I can move on and do other things."

As for Richards' next step, he has no idea. 'Hockey is all I know." He never envisioned himself coaching, but hopes to stay involved in the game. He'll see how much he misses it. Either way, he has plenty of time to think it over.

And there's a good chance he'll be back.

"Tampa is always going to be there," he said. "I can live there anytime. I love the town."

 

[Brie]

While it's sad to see players leave you still have to be happy when it happens on their term and it seem it was that way for Brad so congrats to him on a great carer.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[Stammertime91]

Sad to see him retire. Disliked him the past two years but can't forget or be naive about what he did when he was here. I'll be grateful and always wish we could've held onto the big four for longer, especially Brad. Seems like such a distant memory since he was here.

 

[VasilyKucherov]

 

[Kristia]

Sad to see him hang them up, was always one of my favorite players. Best of luck to him.

 

[BoltSTH]

Joint Vinny/Brad night, hanging the jerseys in the rafters soon, I hope

 

[These Are The Days]

Joint Vinny/Brad night, hanging the jerseys in the rafters soon, I hope

Ehh I don't know man. Considering the fact that people like Stephane Vielluex (however you spell it) and BJ Crombeen went and wore #19 after Richards left it kind of tarnishes the legacy. I wouldn't want 25 honored for Andreychuk after the craptacular performance of Matt Carle sullying the number. The only numbers I am confident of retiring are

4 Lecavalier (in 1 to 3 years)
26 St. Louis (in 3-5 years)
77 Hedman (in 10 years or so)
91 Stamkos (in 10 years or so)

 

[LightningStrikes]

 

[Stammertime91]

Miss that time. If only management would've been competent.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[tjs*]

Ehh I don't know man. Considering the fact that people like Stephane Vielluex (however you spell it) and BJ Crombeen went and wore #19 after Richards left it kind of tarnishes the legacy. I wouldn't want 25 honored for Andreychuk after the craptacular performance of Matt Carle sullying the number. The only numbers I am confident of retiring are

4 Lecavalier (in 1 to 3 years)
26 St. Louis (in 3-5 years)
77 Hedman (in 10 years or so)
91 Stamkos (in 10 years or so)

I get what you're saying but they wouldn't be the first great players to have their numbers retired after lesser players used them. Also, is it really any worse than if those mediocre players had worn those numbers before the ones for whom they would be retired rather than after?

And I know people will disagree but I don't want MSL's number retired. I'm not suggesting his accomplishments as a member of the Lightning should be forgotten entirely due to his conduct at the end of his tenure here, but I do think he forfeits that level of individual honor. If we have an event honoring the Stanley Cup team he should be welcome, but I don't want his number hanging in the rafters or a statue of him outside the arena.

 

[Sky04]

Ehh I don't know man. Considering the fact that people like Stephane Vielluex (however you spell it) and BJ Crombeen went and wore #19 after Richards left it kind of tarnishes the legacy. I wouldn't want 25 honored for Andreychuk after the craptacular performance of Matt Carle sullying the number. The only numbers I am confident of retiring are

4 Lecavalier (in 1 to 3 years)
26 St. Louis (in 3-5 years)
77 Hedman (in 10 years or so)
91 Stamkos (in 10 years or so)

You do know Stamkos and Hedman are only 25/26 years old right?

 

[Iceman]

You do know Stamkos and Hedman are only 25/26 years old right?

He just assumes all our players retire at 36.

 

[Sky04]

He just assumes all our players retire at 36.

Hedman will probably still be an elite dman at 36