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.