NHL

Struggling Richards may be reaching end of Rangers career

It was hard to watch for the second straight game, Brad Richards struggling to help his Rangers, struggling to contribute offensively and making some glaring defensive gaffes.

The result was the Rangers losing to the Kings, 3-0, in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals on Monday night at the Garden, going down in this best-of-seven by that same 3-0 margin and putting the Blueshirts on the brink of elimination.

It also put Richards likely on the brink of his final game as a Ranger, with an amnesty buyout looming once this season ends, his contract now a burden which the organization is unlikely to keep around.

And Richards did all he could to not focus on his personal future, or the stark reality his team is in.

“You don’t look at anything more than just a game on home ice,” he said about Wednesday’s Game 4. “You can’t look anywhere past that. It’s obvious, we don’t have to talk about the hole we are in. But they didn’t get four [wins] yet. There is a game Wednesday that we are going to be here and we are going to play.”

Richards carries an annual salary-cap hit of $6.67 million through 2019-20. If the 34-year-old retires before then, the team will be hit with a cap recapture charge, keeping his bulky salary on the books for the whole of the contract.

With just over six minutes gone by in the first period on Monday, Richards turned the puck over at his own blueline, right to Justin Williams, who had a reasonable scoring chance. Early in the third period, at the point of the power play, Richards turned it over again, leading to another blown man-advantage and a chorus of boos.

He finished with three shots on net in five attempts, three giveaways and a minus-1 rating over 16:03, with 8:47 of that coming on the power play.


There was a pregame press briefing from league VP Colin Campbell and NHLPA special assistant Mathieu Schneider after they had a meeting of the competition committee.

Among those things discussed — and to be brought to the general managers meeting on Wednesday — were expanded video replay, the expanded trapezoid box for goalies playing the puck, the crackdown of embellishment, the changing ends of the ice in overtime, and a possible coach’s challenge.

Then, of course, there was the possible use of video review for goaltender interference, an especially poignant topic considering the bitterness that remains with the Rangers after their netminder, Henrik Lundqvist, was run over en route to an important Kings’ goal in Game 2.

“If it were easy, it would have been done a long time ago,” Campbell said. “This isn’t an issue just because of the play the other night that just developed. There have been lots of calls.
“It’s big now because it’s the Stanley Cup final, but it’s always big for coaches and players, whether it’s a game in October or a game in June.”


Rugged forward Dan Carcillo has completed his six-game suspension and will be eligible to return for Game 4.

“Obviously I want to play, but we’ll see what happens going forward,” Carcillo said Monday morning. “It’s not easy. Obviously, you want to be playing. But I’m not right now. I’m trying to be a good teammate, good guy in the room, and just be ready, try and stay as ready as possible.”

He was suspended for his physical abuse of an official in Game 3 of the East finals.


Goalie David LeNeveu backed up for the third straight game, as regular second-stringer, Cam Talbot, remained out with an undisclosed “hockey-related” injury.


Defenseman John Moore played for the second straight game after returning from his two-game suspension, getting 15:50.

Additional reporting by Zach Braziller