Mike Richards was apparently bothered this season by an illness in December. "After being sick, I kind of got out of shape, not playing a lot," said Richards in an interview last week. "It probably took me a couple of weeks to realize that. That's when I started getting back on the bike and doing things." He missed eight games that month with an upper-body injury. Richards skated with Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli in Saturday's loss to Vancouver, but he's continued to skate Kyle Clifford and Trevor Lewis this week at practices.

Mike Richards practiced on the Kings' fourth line on Friday. Richards hasn't recorded a point in his last six games, which unfortunately is just the latest rough patch in what has been a terrible season by his standards. He has just nine goals and 39 points in 70 contests in 2013-14. That being said, it sounds like Kings coach Darryl Sutter is hoping the demotion serves to spark Richards and suggested that he needs Richards to bounce back if the Kings are going to be successful in the playoffs. Consequently, the move might be very short-term.

Mike Richards had an assist in the Kings' 2-1 win over Columbus. Richards snapped a seven-game point drought. He has seven goals and 36 points in 59 games this season.

Mike Richards has only one goal and seven assists in his last 25 games. The center had six goals and 27 points in his first 32 games but it was downhill from there. The Kings have scored only three goals in their last six games and need players like Richards to start scoring again if they hope to remain in a playoff spot.

Mike Richards managed to pitch in two assists despite a 5-3 Kings loss to Colombus Tuesday night. Richards is on a three game point streak (1 G, 4 A) and has 35 points through 41 games this season.

Mike Richards enjoyed a two-point night, however the Kings came up short 3-2 in the shootout against the Red Wings. Richards scored on the power play in the second period, and he assisted on Jeff Carter's power-play goal in the third period. While Richards has 32 points, only seven have come via goals. Right now, he's converting at just a 6.8 percent clip, compared to his 11.1 percent career mark. Drew Doughty and Slava Voynov had two helpers.

Mike Richards failed to score Saturday and now has not scored in his last 21 games. Coach Darryl Sutter thought that Richards played a lot better on Saturday. "He played a good game tonight," Sutter said of Richards. "It was probably the game with the most opportunities that he's had in 21 games. He's not the only guy. If you want to condemn Mike Richards, there are several players....There's expectations on the group of offensive players to score, not just one." Richards has six goals and 30 points in 46 games but has only 16 penalty minutes and is even in the plus/minus category.

Mike Richards hasn't scored a goal in his last 20 games. He has picked up just two assists in his past 13 contests. "It's been frustrating," Richards said. "But I'm not a natural goal scorer as Jeff [Carter] would be. I have to kind of earn what I get. I have to stop looking for the pass-first mentality that I usually come with and try to get pucks to the net more. I don't use it very often, but I have a decent shot, so I think I have to get back to trying to shoot more instead of trying to pick your targets." He's projected to play with Matt Frattin and Tyler Toffoli against Montreal on Saturday night.

Mike Richards registered two assists in the Kings' 3-1 win over Toronto on Wednesday. Richards has five points in his last three games. That gives him six goals and 21 assists in 32 contests in 2013-14.

Mike Richards had two assists in the Kings' 6-0 win over Montreal. Those were Richards' 100th and 101st points as a member of the Kings. He has six goals and 25 points in 31 contests in 2013-14.