Well, no one's going to remember his stats. All anyone really remembers and cares about is who wins what and how they did it. That said, if Richie shows up in the playoffs and helps the NYR win the Stanley Cup, no one will care if he had the worst statistical season of his professional career. On the other hand, I wouldn't want to be him if this team fails year after year, especially if he's not contributing or making his teammates better players. It will be a long 8 years in NY if that's the case.
It would be nice if he was just a victim of bad luck or great goaltending i dunno...it's just he has been invisible...cannot see the effort...prove us wrong brad...finish strong
I'm disappointed with his play, no doubt. If he comes up in the playoffs, I won't care, though. Either way, I won't call for his head. I'll be willing to give him another shot next year. If he's still as poor next year as he's been this year, I'll start to be mad.
Richards has a lot of good games but i remember every time the Rangers played Tampa or Dallas i thought "damn, we better contain Richards he's scary good" he doesn't give out that fear any more. He just kinda blends.
I think he's run into some bad luck this year...esp on the PP. He's made some nice setup passes that guys simply havent finished. Two recently that jump to mind are the pass to Girardi in OT vs Tampa, and Stepan last game vs NJ. I distinctly remember him giving Dubinsky two point blank chances in front of the net in the 1-0 NJ loss that Dubi simply flubbed.
At some point, we need to put him and Gabby together and leave them together for awhile. See what happens.
The fact is that when Richards and Gabby were on the same line, the other lines were garbage and the only time the other teams defense had to try was when they played that line with whoever was on the LW
So glad this thread was started, as his invisibility in so many games is frightening. Even when Gabby wasn't scoring, he was still getting a few chances each game and he'd still find a way to be a threat, mainly by using his wheels. Richards? I can't tell you guys how disappointed I am in his on-ice play. He's just not a threat on 5-on-5 play, and he hasn't done much (if anything) to improve this awful PP. I'm not asking him to put up Malkin numbers, or even a PPG in this sytem. Just be a damn threat! So the answer is yes, the team's success has kept the spotlight off of him.
Also, for all of the guys who love to tout his "clutch" late game goals, I'll counter that by stating he's 0-for-8 in shooutouts, and the Rangers have lost 5 of those 8 SO's. He's also CLEARLY mentally lost in the shooutout now, as his last few attempts involved him skating in slowly and not having any clue what to do. Torts is only putting him out there not to embarrass him, but Richards is embarrassing himself out there.
You are not seriously evaluating the Rangers success on this...right?
To a degree. I think you remove Richards from this team and it's probably battling for a playoff spot, not a President's trophy. 45 points is hardly eye popping, but it's a pretty massive upgrade over the guy who chipped in 5 points in 24 games that he replaced. Add to that the change in on-ice leadership that came with the swap, a pretty obvious factor as well IMO.
To be fair, I'm not discounting the rebirth of Del Zotto, or the improvement you've seen in Stepan's 2nd year, but, seriously, there aren't a lot of other changes from last year. Same core roster. Same basic game strategy. Same horrendous PP strategy. I mean, if you've got another theory as to why this NYR team is world's better than the last one, I'm all ears.
After watching a ton of Stars games the last two years, the major one is it appears to me that he will pass the puck earlier than he used when an opposing player is approaching him to avoid contact. He's been better as of late but in the first half of the season IMO it was pretty bad.
He's also taking less shots than the last few years so I don't think he's getting as involved as he has in the past. This could be because of new team.
Last two years averaged about 3.5 shots per game ... this year it's down to about 2.5 spg.
After watching a ton of Stars games the last two years, the major one is it appears to me that he will pass the puck earlier than he used when an opposing player is approaching him to avoid contact. He's been better as of late but in the first half of the season IMO it was pretty bad.
He's also taking less shots than the last few years so I don't think he's getting as involved as he has in the past. This could be because of new team.
Last two years averaged about 3.5 shots per game ... this year it's down to about 2.5 spg.
Yeah, it's possible that he's more aware in those kind of situations, and of course that is gonna show. The shots could be the fact that the PP is not running as it should, and he takes fewer shot there. Don't know if that is true though. Anyway, I think he's been doing alright in ES, it's the PP that is the issue and one of the things that he was taken here to solve. Of course it's not his fault that it's not working, but I had expected more from him in that sector.
I think he's a good presence in the locker room and has helped some of our younger guys.
But his performance on the ice has left something to be desired. His decision-making isn't as sharp as it has been in past years, especially on the PP. I still have confidence that he will show up in a big way in the playoffs, though. If he plays like he has through next season then I'll start getting concerned. As a veteran player, I'd like to see him step up in the next few games and try to steady the ship with much of the team looking tired and mistake-prone as of late.
I think he has helped the Rangers in a number of ways that do not show up the scoresheet. He has some beautiful setup passes that tend to go unnoticed for some reason, many of which do not get finished because he is playing with second liners. That still does not totally excuse his lack of statistical production. That said, I believe he is learning the system, his teammates, the Garden and its fans, and I give him some time to really start showing up in the stat sheet like he should be.
I think he has helped the Rangers in a number of ways that do not show up the scoresheet. He has some beautiful setup passes that tend to go unnoticed for some reason, many of which do not get finished because he is playing with second liners. That still does not totally excuse his lack of statistical production. That said, I believe he is learning the system, his teammates, the Garden and its fans, and I give him some time to really start showing up in the stat sheet like he should be.
Statistically, Gaborik's line mates, are 2nd liners. Stepans on pace for 55 points, Anisimov likely on pace for less. Yet, Gaborik has showed up.
It's not an excuse. That's why I wanted Nash. Not because Richards necessarily needs the talent on his line to produce, but because adding someone of that caliber would motivate Richards to step his game up. The last thing I want is Richard's salary to become a waste on the cap. He's a big investment. Having another Canadian who's familiar with the way Richards plays and can have instant chemistry would have done wonders for Brad.
Let's hope Kreider becomes that missing link at the end of the season. Not saying Kreiders gonna be a sniper but hopefully he and Richards meet eye to eye and have instant chemistry.
Richards has a lot of good games but i remember every time the Rangers played Tampa or Dallas i thought "damn, we better contain Richards he's scary good" he doesn't give out that fear any more. He just kinda blends.
The reason why is that Torts doesnt give him that role that he had in Dallas. Dallas did not have the depth we did so it was largely up to Richards to put the team on his back often.
All of the excuses I read in this thread were made for Gomez and Drury their first couple of seasons as Rangers.......
"He has no one to pass to"
"It's the system"
"He brings leadership and is mentoring"
"He needs to get used to playing our style"
I'm sorry, but if you are paid close to 7 million dollars a year, you better be racking up the points and be AT LEAST close to a PPG. He is not.
Sorry but this annoys to hear this. Somehow through Richards large contract everyone forgets who he is. He is not meant to be scoring a goal per game, he is a playmaker. Hes meant to rack in the assists and be the QB of the PP, not be playing Gaboriks role.
