Capitals, Mike Richards Agree to One Year Deal

The Washington Capitals have signed free agent forward, Mike Richards for the remainder of the season.

Richards signed a one-year, $1 million contract on Wednesday. This was a low-risk move for the Capitals because if it doesn't work out then Richards can become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.

Richards had his contract terminated in June by the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings claimed that he had breached the terms of his contract and that's why it was terminated. The 30-year-old forward was facing legal action due to trying to enter Canada while in the possession of a controlled substance. He is still awaiting his preliminary court hearing. While with the Kings, Richards won two Stanley Cups, one in 2012 and the other in 2014. He also made another Finals appearance while with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2010.

The center hasn't played in a game since April 9, 2015 so he could go to the AHL for some game action and conditioning. In the 2014-15 season, he played in 53 games and registered 16 points while seeing 13:21 of ice time per game. He is a two-way forward that isn't afraid to drop the gloves or stick up for a teammate. He will play a physical game, but he can also be a little inconsistent in the offensive zone.

Richards can play both on the power play and while a man down. He will be reunited with his former teammate, Justin Williams, who is in his first season with the Capitals. Richards and Williams were teammates in Los Angeles, where they won two Stanley Cups.

In 710 NHL games, Richards has 179 goals, 303 assists, 482 points and has added 50 power play goals to go along with 28 shorthanded tallies.

Maple Leafs Acquire Jeremy Morin From Blackhawks

The Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired forward Jeremy Morin from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for forward Richard Panik.

Morin has spent this season playing for the Blackhawks' AHL Affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs. He was tied for the lead in points with 22. Morin was tied for second on the team with nine goals, and second in assists with 13 of them. The forward has played in 28 games, has tallied nine goals, 13 assists, 22 points and is a plus seven. Morin isn't afraid to shoot the puck since he already has 74 shots so far this season.

Morin's best month was December when he averaged exactly a point per game played (11 points in 11 games). He has plenty of experience in the AHL, where he averages 0.76 points per game. Morin has some NHL experience too, but only 82 games worth. In those 82 games, he has 10 goals, 12 assists, 22 points, is a plus eight and has 141 shots.

The forward can put the puck in the net especially at the AHL level, where he has 90 career goals. He has a decent shot and isn't afraid to take it whenever he can. Morin can play either wing, but needs to work on his defense. This is the second time that Morin has been traded from the Blackhawks in his career.

The Blackhawks acquired forward Richard Panik in the deal. Panik has spent this season with the Maple Leafs' AHL Affiliate, the Toronto Marlies. Panik spent last season with the Maple Leafs and in in 76 games, he had 11 goals, six assists and tallied 17 points. Panik had zero points in four preseason games and was sent to the Marlies prior to the NHL season starting. Another factor in Panik getting sent down could have been the offseason moves, including a coaching change by the Leafs.

Panik was fifth on the Marlies with 25 points. He was sixth in goals with nine and fourth in assists with 16. In 33 games, he has nine goals, 16 assists, 25 points and 66 shots to go with two game-winning goals. He has had a balanced start to the season, but Panik could stand to shoot the puck a little more.

He can score and setup his teammates. Panik could stand to improve his play in his own end and without the puck. He seems to spend a lot of time in the penalty box for a skilled player. He has spent 185 minutes in 161 career AHL games. He has played in 161 AHL games, where he has 53 goals, 65 assists, 118 points and is a plus 36.

The trade could give each player a chance to start over and eventually make it back to the NHL.

Philadelphia Flyers Waive Sam Gagner

The Philadelphia Flyers have Mark Streit coming off of long-term injury reserve and needed to clear cap space in order to keep rookie, Shayne Gostisbehere in the NHL.

The Flyers had some options such as a trade or placing someone else on waivers, but the team decided it was best to place forward Sam Gagner on waivers. The Flyers could have sent forward Scott Laughton down to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and he would not
have had to clear waivers. The Flyers could have made a trade or even put one of the other veterans on waivers like RJ Umberger or Nick Schultz.

If Gagner clears waivers, the Flyers will gain about $950,000 more in cap space, but $2.25 million of his $3.2 million will still count towards the salary cap for the Flyers. The Flyers needed to clear cap space in order for Streit to return and to keep Gostisbehere without being over the cap.  Once Gagner clears waivers he could be sent to the AHL and join defenseman Andrew MacDonald to play on the  Phantoms.

Gagner had two goals, three assists and five total points in just 18 games this season. He was a healthy scratch at times, and missed the last 14 games due to a concussion. The Flyers could have waived him in the offseason, but decided against it because the thought was that he could help the second power play unit. He has one power play goal and only 23 shots on goal. He has only won 20 of the 44 face-offs that he took, which gives him a 31.2 face-off winning percentage on the season.

Gagner was demoted to the fourth line and only see the ice for 11:51 per game. The last
time he scored a goal was on October 21 against the Boston Bruins. The last time he
registered a point was on October 30 against the Buffalo Sabres. Gagner is a former
first round draft pick of the Edmonton Oilers, and he has declined in all aspects of his
game from producing points to winning face-offs. Gagner is set to become an unrestricted
free agent at the end of the season.

The Flyers will keep eight defensemen on the roster for now. Michael Del Zotto was injured
in a game against the St. Louis Blues before the break, and is considered day-to-day.

Rookies Making An Impact Around the NHL

This year's NHL rookie class is turning out to be a good one, despite the absence of Connor McDavid, the first overall draft pick in 2015. McDavid has been out since suffering a broken collarbone on November 3.

There have been some unexpected players leading the way like Chicago's Artemi Panarin, Arizona's Max Domi and Anthony Duclair, and Detroit's Dylan Larkin just to name a few. Most of the rookies made the rosters because of strong play during training camp and preseason, but some were called up due to injury. Philadelphia's Shayne Gostisbehere was one of those rookies, and he's made the most of his time registering 14 points in only 18 games played. Buffalo's Linus Ullmark was called up due to an injury to goaltender Robin Lehner, and has been playing decent since his call up.

The rookie forwards have some help since most of them are playing with veteran players, who know how to create offense. Panarin plays with Patick Kane and Artem Anisimov at even strength. Sam Reinhart, one of the Buffalo Sabres' rookies, is playing with Jamie McGinn and Ryan O'Reilly. The other Sabres' rookie, Jack Eichel, has been playing with Evander Kane and Tyler Ennis at even strength. Joonas Donskoi is taking even strength shifts with Patrick Marleau and Matt Nieto.

The rookies are also seeing some significant time on the man advantage. They are spending time on either his team's first or second unit depending on how each unit was before the rookie's arrival. Panarin leads the way with eight power play points, but Gostisbehere is right behind him with seven points on the man advantage. Gostisbehere has four power play goals which leads all rookies. Max Domi has six power play points for the Coyotes.

The rookies have been producing in clutch moments as well because their coaches aren't afraid to use them in a critical situation. Larkin leads not only all rookies, but the whole NHL at a plus 21. Gostisbehere has three game-winning goals, all of which have come in the overtime session. Larkin, Sam Reinhart, and Colton Parayko also have three game-winning goals this season.

There are not many rookies that have the chance to be on the ice for the penalty kill, but there are a few. Edmonton's rookie defenseman, Darnell Nurse sees about 1:27 of shorthanded ice time per game, while Chicago's Trevor van Riemsdyk sees about 1:42 of ice time on the penalty kill. Brett Pesce sees 1:03 of shorthanded ice time per game, and Jordan Martinook spends over 2:30 of his ice time per game on the penalty kill.

The rookie goaltenders weren't projected to be in the NHL at the start of preseason, but beat out another goalie, or got called up because of injury. Mike Condon, the Montreal Canadien's goalie, got his chance in goal due to an injury to Carey Price. Linus Ullmark got called up when Robin Lehner got hurt early in the season and has been spending his time backing up Chad Johnson for the Sabres. Anders Nilsson beat out Ben Scrivens for a roster spot, and has been splitting time with Cam Talbot for the Oilers this season.

The rookie class this year is contributing in every aspect of play from even strength to the penalty kill to the power play, but it could even better when Connor McDavid returns.

Radko Gudas Suspended Three Games

The Philadelphia Flyers have lost another defenseman, but this time to a suspension handed down by the NHL Deparment of Player Safety.

Radko Gudas was suspended for three games for an illegal check to the head of Ottawa Senators player, Mika Zibanejad. A faceoff win by the Senators sent the puck back to Zibanejad, who was in shooting position. Gudas stepped around a Senators' player, took a stride and lunged towards Zibanejad. Gudas lunged upwards out of his crouched position, and his forearm made contact with Zibanejad's head. Zibanejad went down to the ice and didn't return to the game after taking the hit.

There was no penalty assessed to Gudas during game action. Gudas is a first time offender and had no fines or suspensions assessed to him prior to the hit on Zibanejad. Gudas will sit out the three games without pay, and the money will go to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund. He'll lose $15,944.62 while not playing.

The Flyers are already short-handed on defense with the injuries to Mark Streit and Nick Schultz. Mark Streit is out for six weeks, possibly longer depending on his recovery. Schultz, who took a heavy hit against the New York Islanders, is day-to-day with an upper body injury. The five remaining healthy defensemen are rookie Shayne Gostisbehere, Michael Del Zotto, Evgeny Medvedev, Brandon Manning and Luke Schenn. The Flyers next game is Friday night against the New Jersey Devils so hopefully Nick Schultz will be ready to go by then.

Gudas has played in 22 games this season and only has one point. He has 37 shots on goal, 118 hits and 36 blocked shots. He is averaging 20:44 of ice time per game. Gudas has been logging over 20:00 of ice time in the nine games since Streit went down with an injury. He has also been a big part of the Flyers penalty kill, which has killed off the last 20 man advantages against. Gudas isn't afraid to block shots either.

He is one of the Flyers more physical defenseman with Luke Schenn being the other. Gudas isn't afraid to throw hits along the boards or in open ice. He will take the occasional bad penalty because of the open ice hit, which can come back to hurt his team. Gudas is an aggressive defenseman that will hit the opposing player and try to disrupt his offensive play.

The Flyers will have to find someone else to take his minutes during a game or spread them out among the remaining defensemen.

Dallas Stars Off to Fast Start

The Dallas Stars have started the season by only losing five if its first 24 games played, and a big part of the fast start is due to the play of Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin.

Jamie Benn has picked up right where he left off last season after winning the Art Ross Trophy for the most points scored. He leads the NHL with 18 goals, is second in points behind Patrick Kane and seventh in assists (17). He also leads the Stars in points and game-winning goals (3). Eight of his 18 goals have come while the Stars have been on the man advantage. Jamie Benn also has two goals while the team has been short-handed this season.

Tyler Seguin is also off to a good start. He ranks fourth in the NHL with 13 goals, third in the league with 21 assists and ranks third in total points with 34. He leads the Stars with 98 shots. He has added three goals and eight assists for 11 points on the power play. Seguin and Jamie Benn have been a big reason for the hot start, but not the only reason.

The Stars defense has been playing decent this season. The team has been avoiding the up and down pond hockey style of play that they've been know to play in the past. There have been a few games where they've let up six goals or more, but they're playing team defense for the most part. They give up about 2.58 goals against per game, which is ranked 15th in the league. The Stars win 51.1 percent of faceoffs taken.

One reason for the improvement to the defense has been John Klingberg. Klingberg is evolving into a two-way defenseman in only his second year in the league. In 65 games, last season he had 40 points in 65 games played and in 24 games so far this season he already has 27 points. Klingberg has also been averaging 23:25 of time on ice per game. The defenseman plays both even strength and the power play. The Stars defense has been decent this season, but when they've broken down, the goaltenders have been there to stop the puck.

The Stars goalies have been doing a  job of keeping the puck out of the net. Antti Niemi has played in 15 games while compiling a 10-4-0 record. He has a .908 save percentage to go with a 2.60 goals against average. The down side is that he has let in six or more goals three times so far this season. He is 4-1-0 in his last five games played.

Kari Lehtonen was the Stars full time goalie last season and he's been splitting the duties with Niemi this season. Lehtonen is 9-1-0 on the season with a .921 save percentage and a 2.41 goals against average in 11 games this season. Lehtonen hasn't allowed more than three goals in any game that he has started this season. The goalie doesn't have any shutouts this year and he last one came against the Chicago Blackhawks last season. Both goalies need to do a better job while the team is short-handed since each has a save percentage under .900.

If the Stars want to avoid a slump then they'll have to keep up the offense and playing the team defense that they've been playing all season.

Blackhawks Beat Kings in Double Overtime

The defending champion, Chicago Blackhawks, beat the Los Angeles Kings in double overtime to force a game six in the Western Conference Finals.

The Blackhawks got on the board just 1:13 into the game after Drew Doughty took a seat in the penalty box for tripping Jonathan Toews.  Patrick Kane got the puck over to Toews, who made the pass to Brent Seabrook at the point.  Seabrook took a slapshot and it beat Jonathan Quick to give the Blackhawks the early 1-0 lead.

Johnny Oduya made a pass to Andrew Shaw and he for the puck to Kane in the neutral zone.  Kane made a nice move at the blue line, took the shot, and the puck went right to Oduya in the slot. Oduya beat Quick for the two-goal lead.

The Kings answered with a goal of their own.  They got into the Blackhawks zone and Jarrett Stoll was behind the net.  Stoll tried to pass it to one of his teammates out front but the puck got caught up in skates and none of the Blackhawks players could get a stick on it to clear.  Stoll came from behind the net, found the puck and wristed a shot that beat Corey Crawford to cut the Blackhawks lead in half.

Brandon Saad scored his fifth of the playoffs to give the Blackhawks the 3-1 lead.  Kane got the puck along the boards, and found Saad.  Saad passed the puck to a wide open Shaw, who was in the slot, and he took the shot.  Quick made the save but left a big rebound that found its way onto Saad's stick and he put it into the net.

Marian Gaborik then came back with a gaol of his own to make it a 3-2 game in favor of the Blackhawks.  Quick made a big pad save on Toews, which led to the eventual goal at the other end.  Dustin Brown got the puck and skated into the Blackhawks zone, where he made a little drop pass to Anze Kopitar.  Kopitar then made the pass over to Gaborik, who scored his 11th goal of the postseason.

The first period was wide open with both teams finishing with nine shots a piece.  Crawford didn't seem to be tracking or seeing the puck well during the first period.  There were five goals scored on just 18 shots between the two teams in the period.

The second period started off a little tighter than the first, but the Kings still managed to tie the game and then take the lead two minutes later.

Brent Seabrook failed to clear the Blackhawks zone and Brown took a shot, which was blocked.  The puck bounced right to Gaborik and he took the shot, but Crawford was there to make the save.  The rebound went right to Brown and he put it into the net to tie the game at three.

Mike Richards for the puck out of his own zone and into the neutral zone, where Jeff Carter managed to get the puck ahead to Tanner Pearson.  Pearson took the shot from just above the face off circle and it beat Crawford for the 4-3 Kings lead.  It was the fourth time in the playoffs that the Blackhawks had blown a two goal lead.

There was only one goal in the third period.  It came early but was the game-tying goal for the Blackhawks.  Ben Smith got the puck to Saad, who took a shot.  The shot was deflected over to Smith, who put the puck in the wide open net, just 1:17 into the period to tie the game.

There were chances for either team to win the game in the final 1:30.  Marian Hossa took a shot late but Quick made the save and Niklas Hjalmarsson made a nice defensive play for the Blackhawks to keep Carter from getting a scoring chance.

The first overtime was up-and-down hockey with hardly any whistles.  Both teams had scoring chances, but the Blackhawks had the better of them.  The period had such a fast pace to it that the teams managed to play it in just 26:45, and it usually takes teams about 45 minutes to play 20 minutes of hockey.

Saad had a goal and two assists and was everywhere for the Blackhawks tonight.  He played a solid game along with Kane, who had four assists and was a plus three in 28:34 of ice time.  Crawford started out slow and look shaky but redeemed himself with stopping the last 19 shots that he faced from the Kings.

Will the Blackhawks be able to force a game seven or will the Kings be going to the Stanley Cup Finals?  Tune in Friday night at 9pm on NBCSN to find out.