Richards, 24, made his NHL debut with the New York Rangers in 2020-21 and collected an assist in his lone game with the club on May 8 at the Boston Bruins. He has registered 16 goals and 26 assists for 42 points with 49 penalty minutes and 139 shots in 110 career AHL games with the Cleveland Monsters and Hartford Wolf Pack since making his pro debut in 2020-21.
The 5-11, 190-pound forward, who was on an AHL contract with Cleveland, has posted 6-11-17 with 16 PIM, 35 shots and a +11 plus/minus rating in 23 contests in 2022-23. He has set career highs in goals (tied), assists and points and leads the club in plus/minus. Last season, he set career highs in penalty minutes, shots and games played with 6-8-14, 23 PIM and 80 shots in 67 appearances with the Wolf Pack.
Born in Orlando, Florida, Richards notched 26-40-66 with 38 PIM and a cumulative +40 plus/minus rating in 120 career NCAA games at the University of Minnesota-Duluth from 2017-20. He helped the Bulldogs win back-to-back NCAA championships in his first two seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19 and was named to the All-Tournament team in 2018-19. The son of former Blue Jackets head coach Todd Richards, he played for the Ohio AAA Blue Jackets 14U, 16U and 18U teams from 2012-16 and spent the 2016-17 campaign with the Lincoln Stars in the United States Hockey League.
