Man, that Mike Richards sure was an awful leader. Wasn’t ready for the Flyers‘ captaincy. Good thing we got rid of him.
Oh, what’s that? He’s still helping the Flyers even after they broke his heart and traded him away? Neat. Via NHL.com, here’s Claude Giroux speaking before Tuesday’s win against Ottawa:
“It wasn’t going right, and I got a nice text from Mike Richards. … I think he gave me a boost to relax and play the game. It’s a great game. There’s a reason why we play in the NHL. It’s because we know what we’re doing. It’s just about going back to basics, going out there, have fun, play the game.”
…
“I talk to him once in a while, but yeah, obviously he played here; he was captain. It was nice for him to reach out and talk to me a little bit.”
Sure, a text message doesn’t magically help end a slump, but simply hearing “hey, relax a bit” from a friend and former mentor can definitely go a long way, especially when slumps like the one Claude went through to start the year are mostly mental. Miss you, Mike. Thanks for the help.
