Brad Richards talks about his introduction to the Detroit Red Wings
By Jesse O’Brien –
TRAVERSE CITY — Sixteen NHL seasons, five teams and two Stanley Cups, but Brad Richards still gets butterflies on the first day of camp.
The veteran center, in his first season with the Red Wings after signing a one-year deal this offseason, took to the ice for the first real time on Friday in Detroit’s training camp opener in Traverse City.
“I think it was just good to get the uniform on for real and no matter how many years you do it, it’s always butterflies the first day,” Richards said. “It’s a good pace out there and it’s good to get day one under the belt.”
Going on his 17th season, the 35-year-old Richards is hoping to bring a sense of veteran leadership to the Red Wings. Richards scored 12 goals and had 25 assists in 76 regular season games for the Blackhawks last season and added three goals and 11 assists to aid Chicago in its Stanley Cup campaign.
He could contribute immediately in helping anchor a second line that includes the offensive firepower of Tomas Tatar and Darren Helm. With Pavel Datsyuk out for the foreseeable future after undergoing ankle surgery at the end of June, Richards looks to fill in what was one of Detroit’s most dangerous lines last season.
“First, I think Richards has been a really elite player in this league for a long time,” first-year head coach Jeff Blashill said. “I think Tats is a real offense, give and go type player. Helmer I think can give a little bit of speed, tenacity, will go to the net, a complement to that line.”
That group might take a little longer than expected to start to gel, after Helm collided with undrafted invitee Jerome Verrier early on Friday. Both were hospitalized for observation, and Helm is dealing with a concussion. Richards played with Tatar and Tomas Jurco in the Red vs. White scrimmage.
As far as getting back into midseason shape and learning Blashill’s schemes, Richards isn’t overly concerned — “Hockey’s not rocket science, most teams play similar styles and there’s always little things to tinker with,” he said — but instead he’s focusing on building a rapport with his new teammates and settling into his new team.
“It’s good to meet all the guys, be up there away from home, get up there and get to know the guys because that’s the hardest thing coming into a new team,” he said. “You want to feel comfortable, and if you feel comfortable and they feel comfortable, everybody just does things normally. I just want to come to the rink like I’ve been here a long time, and that way I feel better doing everything.”