Rangers forward Brad Richards says he understands why he was dropped to the fourth line for Wednesday's Game 4 against the Kings. Richards played just over 13 minutes in New York's win on Wednesday after averaging about 18 minutes per outing for the first three games of the series, but the veteran center acknowledged coach Alain Vigneault's motives, saying "..you go try to win a game. When youre down 3-0 something has to change." Expect Richards to remain on the fourth unit when the series resumes in Los Angeles Friday.

Brad Richards was dropped to the Rangers' fourth line on Wednesday night for Game 4, as the struggling veteran is pointless in his past five games. Head Coach Alain Vigneault sent out dummy line combinations for pre-game warmup rushes, and as soon as the game started the Rangers coach initiated a shuffle. Dominic Moore was promoted to center the Martin St. Louis and Chris Kreider line, while Richards was sent down to play with Brian Boyle and Derek Dorsett.

Brad Richards admitted on Tuesday that his mind was racing with scenarios of what he could have done differently. Richards' Rangers are down 3-0 in the Stanley Cup Final against the Los Angeles Kings. He hasn't been able to help much has he has no points and a minus-four rating in the finals. "But you have to make the best of it," he said. "The series is not over. We all can't wait to get back on the ice. It's just the waiting and the thinking. We've just got to get back into the battle and see where it goes."

Coach Alain Vigneault is expecting his second line, consisting of Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis and Carl Hagelin, to have a better showing in Game 3 Monday night. "I'm sure Brad, with his experience, knows that their whole line needs to be better," Vigneault said. "If you look at the stats on that night, it obviously wasn't one of their better nights. But they're veteran guys. They've been around. They can evaluate their game real well. I'm sure they're going to have a good bounce-back game tonight." Richards and St. Louis had minus-3 ratings while Hagelin was a minus-2 on Saturday. Turnovers were a problem for the trio and for the Rangers in Game 2.

Despite leading the Rangers into the Stanley Cup Final, Brad Richards continues to be one of the most talked about buyout candidates this summer with his $6.67 million cap hit through 2019-2020. 48 hours after the Cup Final concludes, teams have until June 30th to use their two compliance buyouts granted as part of the new labor agreement last year. Struggling players like Ville Leino of the Sabres and Jordin Tootoo of the Red Wings are among the top candidates, but Brad Richards' success with the Rangers this spring has not quelled the speculation in New York. Richards has 11 points in 20 games so far in the playoffs.

After playing in three grueling series, the New York Rangers have finally gotten a breather. The Rangers eliminated Montreal on Thursday and won't have to play until Wednesday. "I don't know if we get an advantage over the other team but I think we are welcoming the rest," Brad Richards said. "We've played a lot of hockey since March 1. We'd rather go in with a little more rest and preparation than not." The Rangers were the only team to play in back-to-back games in the first and second round of the postseason. That's all in the past now and while the Los Angeles Kings have had less rest, they are still expected to come out strong in Game 1.

Brad Richards isn't concerned which team is the underdog in the Stanley Cup Final. "I feel like when you get to the Stanley Cup final, you have a 50/50 chance of winning," he said. "The underdog thing and the favorite thing really doesn't mean anything in the locker rooms. You have to go out and play." Richards has five goals and 11 points in 20 games this playoffs for the Eastern Conference champion Rangers.

Brad Richards earned an assist in Game 4 to give him 11 points in 18 playoff games. He is tied for second on the Rangers in postseason scoring with Mats Zuccarello and Derek Stepan. The point was his first since Game 1 when he scored his fifth goal.

Brad Richards has taken on a veteran leadership role with the Ranger during the 2014 playoffs. "We've been to the conference final twice in three years, that's very rare," said Richards. "Look at teams around the league that you think are going to have chances to win Cups every year and it just doesn't happen. It's very tough. I haven't been back to a final since '04. I just try to hammer that stuff home." Richards has collected five goals and five assists in 16 games this postseason.

Brad Richards was helped by teammate Martin St. Louis in the off-season. While the two were not teammates in the off-season as St. Louis was still a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning, St. Louis helped train Richards after a difficult playoff in which Richards was a healthy scratch in the last two games against the Bruins in Round 2 of the 2013 playoffs. "Rock bottom," Richards said about how he felt after last season. "I was at rock bottom and I turned to Marty to help me rebuild my confidence. He was the perfect guy for me to go to and he was there for me. Training with him last summer, I leaned on him. It was inspirational for me." This season has been a different story as Richards leads the Rangers with five goals in 15 games and has 10 points.