Richards took line rushes for Saturday's pre-game skate and is expected to play against the Sabres, Mike Vogel of Monumental Network reports.

EDGE Analysis

Richards, signed by the Capitals on Jan. 6, has been improving in recent practices and head coach Barry Trotz appears ready to let him play. While the progress is reassuring, the Capitals have indicated they will be very pragmatic regarding Richards and a conditioning stint with AHL Hershey still looms as a possibility. It is hard to gauge Richards' fantasy value for the rest of the season although it does not appear at this time that he will crack Washington's potent top-six assuming everyone is healthy. Keep an eye on his progress, but it's hard to recommend picking him up in standard formats at this time, at least until his role becomes clearer.