If Mike Richards is bought out...

[apadilla]

If he plays like he did last night, I'll take him back any day of the week.

This.

 

[Lurch]

I don't know. Maybe I'm just over sensitive about it. Just the tone of how he said it just came off to me as someone that is still bitter about what happened.

Why wouldn't he be bitter? The Flyers absolutely lied to him and screwed him.

 

[RJ8812*]

Why wouldn't he be bitter? The Flyers absolutely lied to him and screwed him.

that's gold...i didn't know trading a player is lying and screwing someone over

 

[Jtown]

This.

The problem with that is , his variability from game to game. RIchards played much better in the finals than he did in the beginning of the playoffs and at the end of the year. The difference was pretty stark if you ask me and what was most noticeable was that he was skating faster and finishing checks.

Some posters have claimed that the fall off for richards play has been his concussions. Well his concussions weren't effecting him in game 5. So the fact that he can get back to that level of play to me is a clear indication that his dropoff in performance is better explained by a lack of conditioning, something that has always been an issue for richards since his time in the nhl.

I don't expect him to be that forechecker and fighter he once was because that will cause too much wear and tear on his small body, but i thought that with a average effort level that a professional athlete should have to offseason conditioining that he would still be capable of manufacturing a few more 60 pt seasons.

At 5.7 million dollars he should be getting in the 50 - 60 pt range, and I just dont ever see that happening again.

 

[RJ8812*]

People seem to forget his attitude and his interviews during his final season with the Flyers, including his disinterested play on the ice. His conditioning was crap, he wasn't as defensively responsible any more, he dropped below 50% on his faceoffs. He was not the player we signed to that extension. He was a miserable ******* and he spent that year being a constant pain in the ass to Laviolette. Fans and the media were calling him out about the drop off and he responded by pouting and acting a baby.

Anyone remember: "I'm not going first"?

 

[Jtown]

People seem to forget his attitude and his interviews during his final season with the Flyers, including his disinterested play on the ice. His conditioning was crap, he wasn't as defensively responsible any more, he dropped below 50% on his faceoffs. He was not the player we signed to that extension. He was a miserable ******* and he spent that year being a constant pain in the ass to Laviolette. Fans and the media were calling him out about the drop off and he responded by pouting and acting a baby.

Anyone remember: "I'm not going first"?

what was that?

 

[Beef Invictus]

People seem to forget his attitude and his interviews during his final season with the Flyers, including his disinterested play on the ice. His conditioning was crap, he wasn't as defensively responsible any more, he dropped below 50% on his faceoffs. He was not the player we signed to that extension. He was a miserable ******* and he spent that year being a constant pain in the ass to Laviolette. Fans and the media were calling him out about the drop off and he responded by pouting and acting a baby.

Anyone remember: "I'm not going first"?

How quickly you forget the massive wrist injury he played through, since the Flyers didn't think he needed to get surgery on it before the season.

When his wrist was fixed he was fantastic...until that concussion.

 

[RJ8812*]

what was that?

An exact quote from Richards after a loss, following the game when the media wanted to start talking to the players

How quickly you forget the massive wrist injury he played through, since the Flyers didn't think he needed to get surgery on it before the season.

When his wrist was fixed he was fantastic...until that concussion.

Having an injury does not effect a player's effort and determination out on the ice and turn you into a miserable doucher. It may hamper his play, but you could still tell if the player was trying out there or not. The guy flat out quit on this team and did not act like a captain

I was always a huge fan of the guy, but it was pretty obvious that did not want to put in the effort that he used to.

 

[Beef Invictus]

Dude, what were you watching? The effort was still there, but the results weren't; something that happens with injury. His last play as a Flyer was diving in front of an empty net shot in a lost game in a lost series. That's not what a guy who's quit on his team does.

He was only a "doucher" to the media, and frankly, they deserved every damned bit of it. They treated him like **** because he didn't treat them like gods.

 

[Bryz4shiz]

How quickly you forget the massive wrist injury he played through, since the Flyers didn't think he needed to get surgery on it before the season.

When his wrist was fixed he was fantastic...until that concussion.

Yeah his last season here his drop off in points was entirely due to fewer goals scored and a career low shooting percentage ie wrist issues.

Richards conditioning was so terrible he was able to play 100+ games during the 09-10 season at a very high level. He was great for the Flyers that year and his line with Toews and Nash was absolutely essential for Canada.

Stop it with the ******** revisionist history about Richards. He did everything he could for the Flyers organization.

 

[RJ8812*]

Except take his job seriously and act like a professional

If he did that, he would still be in O&B

 

[Beef Invictus]

Except take his job seriously and act like a professional

If he did that, he would still be in O&B

How the hell did he not take his job seriously?


The only people who didn't act like professionals were the Philly media, and I'm not going to begrudge him disliking them. He had more than enough reason to.

 

[Tripod]

The time has come turn the page on Richards. He is trending downward. How far? Who knows? Stick with the guys that are trending upwards.

 

[FlyersFanz]

No more ex-Flyers....have we learned nothing???

 

[Fire Tortorella]

People seem to forget his attitude and his interviews during his final season with the Flyers, including his disinterested play on the ice. His conditioning was crap, he wasn't as defensively responsible any more, he dropped below 50% on his faceoffs. He was not the player we signed to that extension. He was a miserable ******* and he spent that year being a constant pain in the ass to Laviolette. Fans and the media were calling him out about the drop off and he responded by pouting and acting a baby.

Anyone remember: "I'm not going first"?

Is this serious?

 

[Bob Clarke Fan Club]

Why wouldn't he be bitter? The Flyers absolutely lied to him and screwed him.

Here's 69 million dollars Mike, Bend over. If only we could all be screwed that way.

 

[FlyersFan61290]

Let's not forget who Lavy had Richards playing with too. How much can a guy do when playing with the likes of Nodl and Carcillo? In Richards final season his two most common linemates were literally Nodl and JVR (the 2010-11 version).

Lavy misused Richards, add that to his wrist injury and I think it more then understandable for him to struggle (btw he was still 17th in C scoring) and to be a bit sour. His effort on the ice never wavered though.

I for one don't give two ***** how he talks to/with, if at all, to the Philly media.

 

[Fire Tortorella]

Here's 69 million dollars Mike, Bend over. If only we could all be screwed that way.

Money isn't everything.

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

Why wouldn't he be bitter? The Flyers absolutely lied to him and screwed him.

Yeah let's not act like Richards was completely innocent here, clashing with your coach (Lavi) & another top player (Pronger) has a tendency to rub people the wrong way especially when you're supposed to be the leader of the team.

 

[SuchySays]

PS

I bought a new Richards jersey today for 25 dollars.

He's coming home

 

[Fire Tortorella]

Yeah let's not act like Richards was completely innocent here, clashing with your coach (Lavi) & another top player (Pronger) has a tendency to rub people the wrong way especially when you're supposed to be the leader of the team.

Speaking of not being completely innocent...

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

Speaking of not being completely innocent...

Well fortunately for Pronger when you're a future hall of fame player you're going to carry more clout with people in the organization over someone like Richards. It also helps not challanging authority as well.

Saying Richards got screwed over & had no hand in his movement is laughable.

 

[Dumpster Flyers]

Well fortunately for Pronger when you're a future hall of fame player you're going to carry more clout with people in the organization over someone like Richards. It also helps not challanging authority as well.

Saying Richards got screwed over & had no hand in his movement is laughable.

It's disingenuous to suggest that Richards deserved to be traded for "clashing" with Laviolette and Pronger, because we have clue what happened between them. What we do know is this organization has a history of handing out lots of NTCs only to weasel out of them. Carter got screwed a LOT worse, but I'd imagine Richards would still be pissed about signing a life time deal then being traded right before the NTC kicks in.

 

[Bob Clarke Fan Club]

Money isn't everything.

Pretty much is to a professional athlete who's career could end in the blink of an eye. Most players would take the money and let the chips fall where they may, and by most I mean pretty much all. Also let's not pretend we're talking about a little bit of money here. IMO the animosity issue is way overblown.

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

It's disingenuous to suggest that Richards deserved to be traded for "clashing" with Laviolette and Pronger, because we have clue what happened between them. What we do know is this organization has a history of handing out lots of NTCs only to weasel out of them. Carter got screwed a LOT worse, but I'd imagine Richards would still be pissed about signing a life time deal then being traded right before the NTC kicks in.

You don't just trade your captain for the hell of it, to act like it was 100% on the Flyers that he was traded is stupid.

He also lost it towards the end there. He was lashing out towards the media in public on multiple occasions. The media sucks here don't get me wrong & definitely deserves some backlash every once & a while but he played right into their hand by giving them so much attention & becoming a distraction. He wasn't the first player to get drug in the mud here by the media but he was one of the few that tried wage war with them. Bryz did the same thing two years later & found himself on the way out shortly after that as well.

There's enough blame to go around from everybody including Richards himself for what went down but fortunately all parties are satisfied with what later transpired of the events.