There were a number of teams interested, but the Washington Capitals were the one team to pull the trigger.
The organization has announced that free agent forward Mike Richards has signed a one-year contract with the team, effectively immediately. The contract is worth $1 million for the remainder of the season.
The contract comes shortly after Richards was given the green light by the NHL to resume his career with no punishment coming from an investigation.
The 30-year old Richards has 482 points (179 goals, 303 assists) in 710 career games with the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings. He ranks second among active NHL players with 28 shorthanded goals, only behind Marian Hossa of Chicago who has 30.
General manager Brian MacLellan said that he first targeted Richards at the end of the Summer. Throughout the past few months, the team kept track of him and pursued the move after it was apparent that he would be able to play.
As far as his fit with the team, MacLellan said the team will be open minded with Richards.
“We’re going to see where he’s at physically and mentally,” he said. “He could be a third-line center or fourth-line center. We’ll just kind of play it by ear and see where it goes.”
