Mike Richards. Interest & Asking Price

[Beats By CoRD]

Your right his footspeed isn't a main strength ><"

Not only is not a main strength, it seems he's struggling to keep up to the speed of the game completely. Its one of the reasons he's been waived. The guy is just brutal out there.

I ONLY want him as a 4th line centre. Even with his speed issues, its Richards > Stajan as a 4th line guy all day everyday.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Honestly, I remember 3-4 seasons ago when Sutter had Stajan playing on our 4th line, everyone including me hated that man (except maybe HLM). He was useless, had no skill, wasn't a good playmaker, wasn't physical enough for a bottom 6 role, wasn't skilled enough for a top 6 role, but he battled through and is still here. Hartley showed confidence in him and put him in a leadership role on our team, he was reborn. Stajan to this day knows his role and I learned my lesson about him. He can play anywhere in your lineup, he can play with an Iginla or Sundin, or he can play with a Bollig, but you can't expect him to produce big numbers on your 4th.

Look at LA's depth, the only guy Richards should be outplaying right now is Stoll, but even he's a very good 3rd liner. Like Stajan I think Richards would have something to prove here and would think he would be relied upon heavily. Yes it's a risk, but he would be a great guy to have around the kids. He would also look pretty damn good hoisting the Cup with Iggy in a few years time

 

[Wayne Primeau]

Keep Jones, he’s useful in his ways.


Richards (25% Retained)
King


Stajan

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

^^^ Drop the retained salary and send them Raymond.

 

[Wayne Primeau]

^^^ Drop the retained salary and send them Raymond.

Y’ok, fine with me.

 

[SaintMorose]

If we're pushing hard to get M Richards and a 1st I think the Kings would love Russell @ 60%
If we're pushing maybe Glencross @ 50% would be a great return for them (again both M Richards and a 1st.

Though I can also see us offering Hanowski/Acolatse and feeling like we don't want to give them any current piece as we want their playoff spot and maybe they take it or maybe they want something for this year.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Seriously I think I'm pretty into getting Forbort and Richards for Stajan.

 

[SmellOfVictory]

If we're pushing hard to get M Richards and a 1st I think the Kings would love Russell @ 60%
If we're pushing maybe Glencross @ 50% would be a great return for them (again both M Richards and a 1st.

Though I can also see us offering Hanowski/Acolatse and feeling like we don't want to give them any current piece as we want their playoff spot and maybe they take it or maybe they want something for this year.

Oh god, if the Flames are taking Richard's salary from the Kings and giving them a highly valuable trade piece in Russell or Glencross (especially with salary retained) there had better be more than just a 1st round pick coming back.

 

[Calculon]

I suspect Richard would struggle massively with his general lack of foot speed nowadays in Hartley's up-tempo, score off the rush system.

Kings with an impressive comeback against the Hawks. Down 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, they now take a 4-3 lead late in the third.

 

[Flamesfan13]

I suspect Richard would struggle massively with his general lack of foot speed nowadays in Hartley's up-tempo, score off the rush system.

Kings with an impressive comeback against the Hawks. Down 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, they now take a 4-3 lead late in the third.

I think he would be an upgrade on Raymond regardless of his foot speed and wouldnt do worse than Raymond is doing under hartley's system.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Raymond has lots of food speed and is struggling in his Hartley's system. That isn't to say that Richards would do well, but Raymond is really struggling to play a 2-way game while still contributing on the score sheet. While foot speed is a great asset to have, a smart player can often make up for that by knowing how to read the play and where to be.

 

[CraigsList]

It's pretty much a win-win for us. If we trade for him we get assets back, very good ones too.

If we don't (or some other team doesn't), LA suffers.

 

[1989]

Raymond has lots of food speed and is struggling in his Hartley's system. That isn't to say that Richards would do well, but Raymond is really struggling to play a 2-way game while still contributing on the score sheet. While foot speed is a great asset to have, a smart player can often make up for that by knowing how to read the play and where to be.

Relevant:

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Agreed except for Kessel, that guy is freakishly fast for his body type.

 

[CraigsList]

Agreed except for Kessel, that guy is freakishly fast for his body type.

Imagine if he was fit... He'd be more lethal than what he already is. I'd hate it though, Toronto would start calling him a god or something along those lines.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Imagine if he was fit... He'd be pretty lethal.

I heard someone on the main board claim that he may have the body type he does because he has undergone cancer treatment in the past and sometimes that can cause your body to appear swollen.

 

[CraigsList]

I heard someone on the main board claim that he may have the body type he does because he has undergone cancer treatment in the past and sometimes that can cause your body to appear swollen.

Did not even know that .

 

[1989]

Agreed except for Kessel, that guy is freakishly fast for his body type.

Imagine if he was fit... He'd be more lethal than what he already is. I'd hate it though, Toronto would start calling him a god or something along those lines.

I heard someone on the main board claim that he may have the body type he does because he has undergone cancer treatment in the past and sometimes that can cause your body to appear swollen.

Looking at that spare tire he's got in the image I posted, I'd have to guess that's at least 7-10lbs he could lose right there. Just imagine how much more efficient he would be. That's not a result of cancer treatment. That's fat.
Treatment side effects CAN include swelling, but more often than not it's a swelling of the face, neck, and/or abdomen (like a pot-belly.) Kessel could have those side effects but realistically, a lot is still just excess fat.

It's actually a blessing for the rest of the League that he is simply unwilling to get to his maximum fitness level. His endurance would go up, his speed would be greater, just wow.

But the guy just doesn't have it in him (unless the it is cheeseburgers) to be the best he could possibly be. I would seriously believe Kessel could be a top-5 player in the League if he had the work ethic to match the natural ability.

 

[HighLifeMan]

Honestly, I remember 3-4 seasons ago when Sutter had Stajan playing on our 4th line, everyone including me hated that man (except maybe HLM). He was useless, had no skill, wasn't a good playmaker, wasn't physical enough for a bottom 6 role, wasn't skilled enough for a top 6 role, but he battled through and is still here. Hartley showed confidence in him and put him in a leadership role on our team, he was reborn. Stajan to this day knows his role and I learned my lesson about him. He can play anywhere in your lineup, he can play with an Iginla or Sundin, or he can play with a Bollig, but you can't expect him to produce big numbers on your 4th.

Look at LA's depth, the only guy Richards should be outplaying right now is Stoll, but even he's a very good 3rd liner. Like Stajan I think Richards would have something to prove here and would think he would be relied upon heavily. Yes it's a risk, but he would be a great guy to have around the kids. He would also look pretty damn good hoisting the Cup with Iggy in a few years time

Haha.. I have never been a huge fan of Matt Stajan, but I do remember trying to defend his play on numerous occasions during that period of time. It can't be easy having a coach that is not a huge fan of your game...especially for someone like Richards who has been a top six forward and leader for his entire career.

A big part of his decline has been in large part to a decreased role on the team in addition to being tied down with two offensive blackholes in Dwight King and Kyle Clifford. I honestly believe that Mike Richards could still thrive in a top six role if given the opportunity, although at this point that likely won't happen. The transition from being one of the games elite center's to a middle nine forward can't be easy but the fact remains that Mike Richards is still more than capable of helping a successful team, and I agree with you that his on-ice play would be of benefit for this organization.

If there is a deal that makes sense for us then I would be thrilled to be the team that gave this guy the chance to rejuvenate his career. He does not deserve to be in the AHL, and unfortunately that is the ****** part of the game/business.

 

[Calculon]

Eh, it's not as though speed by itself is a guarantee of success in Hartley's system. Raymond has a bad case of tunnel vision and perimeter play. Would Richards be an upgrade in that regard? Sure. But chances are, he won't be able to keep up with who ever his linemates are.

It's really not as though Richards all of sudden doesn't mesh with Sutter's system. When he was first acquired he was playing on the second line with Carter. But as his play got worse, he was moved down the lineup.

Poor conditioning, a heavy style of play and a whole lot of games in a short period time have worn him out. Best case scenario is a lengthy break rejuvenating his play but there's no guarantee of that either. And with how his contract is structured (owed 7M next year I believe), he's not going to be taking that time off either.