Mike Richter

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Position Goaltender
Catches Left
Height
Weight		 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
185 lb (84 kg/13 st 3 lb)
Pro clubs New York Rangers
Nationality Flag of the United States United States
Born September 22, 1966 (1966-09-22) (age 41),
Abington, PA, U.S.
NHL Draft 28th overall, 1985
New York Rangers
Pro career 1989 – 2003

Michael Thomas Richter (born September 22, 1966 in Abington, Pennsylvania) is a former National Hockey League (NHL) goaltender. One of the most successful American-born goaltenders in history, he is best known for having led the New York Rangers to the Stanley Cup title in 1994 and for repeatedly representing the United States in international play.

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[edit] Playing career

He attended and played for Germantown Academy, Fort Washington, Pennsylvania. After playing for the United States in the World Junior championships in 1985, he played for the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1985–1987, and the Rangers made him the 28th overall pick in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft. He would again represent the US in the World Junior championships, World championships, and the 1988 Calgary Olympics before making his NHL debut in the 1989 playoffs. Though he lost the one game in which he played, he was soon a regular member of the club, posting 12 wins against 5 losses in his rookie season as the Rangers' backup goaltender. The next two seasons, he would split playing time with the Rangers' veteran goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck, he was selected to represent the U.S. in the Canada Cup.

Vanbiesbrouck was traded before the 1993–94 season and Richter had his first season as the team's number one goaltender, posting a career-best 42 wins and 2.57 goals-against average as the Rangers won the Presidents Trophy. His play was a key factor in the Rangers' Stanley Cup championship win over the Vancouver Canucks. He become the eighth goaltender in history to post four shutouts in one playoff season, and over the next few years he would consistently be ranked among the world's top goaltenders. He led the United States to victory in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, with his efforts earning him Most Valuable Player honors.

His last appearance in the Stanley Cup playoffs would be 1997, as a series of knee injuries and a string of mediocre Ranger teams saw his personal statistics suffer. Nevertheless, he was selected as the top goalie for Team USA in the 1998 and 2002 Olympics, winning a silver medal in the 2002 Games. A year later a skull fracture and concussion forced him to retire, but not until after he became the first Ranger to record 300 wins.

[edit] Post-retirement

His jersey (#35) became the third number retired by the Rangers at Madison Square Garden on February 4, 2004. Though he played his entire career for the Rangers, he twice changed teams between seasons due to a quirk in the NHL rules of free agency, returning to the Rangers each time.

Mike Richter returned to college in 2004 and will graduate in 2007 from Yale University. He is majoring in Ethics, Politics & Economics (EP&E). Richter entered Yale through the Eli Whitney Students Program.[1] His admission was notable in that Yale admits very few older students into the College and he was among this highly select group in 2004. Richter also volunteers as a coach for Yale's men's hockey team coaching alongside head Keith Allain. Allain was an assistant coach for Team USA in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey.[2]

In 2007 the Rothenberg Political Report reported Richter, who lives in Guilford, Connecticut was considering running for U.S. Congress under Connecticut's 4th congressional district in 2008 as a Democrat. However, on March 23, 2007, he stated that he would not run,[3] despite still expressing interest in seeking public office one day.

Richter competed in Ironman Lake Placid on July 22, 2007. The triathlon involves a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride, and a 26.2 mile run. He completed the grueling race in 12 hours 49 minutes 10 seconds.

On November 4, 2007 Richter ran in his first New York City Marathon finishing with a time of 3:54:35.[4].

[edit] Career statistics

[edit] Regular season

Season Team League GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV%
1986–87 UW–Madison WCHA 36 19 16 1 2136 126 0 3.53 .901
1987–88 Colorado Rangers IHL 22 16 5 0 1298 68 0 3.14 --
1988–89 Denver Rangers IHL 57 23 26 3 3031 217 1 4.30 --
1989–90 New York Rangers NHL 23 12 5 5 1320 66 0 3.00 .904
1989–90 Flint Spirits IHL 13 7 4 2 782 49 0 3.76 --
1990–91 New York Rangers NHL 45 21 13 7 2596 135 0 3.12 .903
1991–92 New York Rangers NHL 41 23 12 2 2298 119 3 3.11 .901
1992–93 New York Rangers NHL 38 13 19 3 2105 134 1 3.82 .886
1992–93 Binghamton Rangers AHL 5 4 0 1 305 6 0 1.18 .964
1993–94 New York Rangers NHL 68 42 12 6 3710 159 5 2.57 .910
1994–95 New York Rangers NHL 35 14 17 2 1993 97 2 2.92 .890
1995–96 New York Rangers NHL 41 24 13 3 2396 107 3 2.68 .912
1996–97 New York Rangers NHL 61 33 22 6 3598 161 4 2.68 .917
1997–98 New York Rangers NHL 72 21 31 15 4143 184 0 2.66 .903
1998–99 New York Rangers NHL 68 27 30 8 3878 170 4 2.63 .910
1999–00 New York Rangers NHL 61 22 31 8 3622 173 0 2.87 .905
2000–01 New York Rangers NHL 45 20 21 3 2635 144 0 3.28 .893
2001–02 New York Rangers NHL 55 24 26 4 3195 157 2 2.95 .906
2002–03 New York Rangers NHL 13 5 6 1 694 34 0 2.94 .897
NHL Totals 666 301 258 73 38,183 1840 24 2.89 .904

[edit] Playoffs

Season Team League GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
1987–88 Colorado Rangers IHL 10 5 3 536 35 0 3.92 --
1988–89 Denver Rangers IHL 4 0 4 210 21 0 6.00 --
1988–89 New York Rangers NHL 1 0 1 58 4 0 4.14 .867
1989–90 New York Rangers NHL 6 3 2 330 19 0 3.45 .896
1990–91 New York Rangers NHL 6 2 4 313 14 1 2.68 .923
1991–92 New York Rangers NHL 7 4 2 412 24 1 3.50 .894
1993–94 New York Rangers NHL 23 16 7 1417 49 4 2.07 .921
1994–95 New York Rangers NHL 7 2 5 384 23 0 3.59 .878
1995–96 New York Rangers NHL 11 5 6 662 36 0 3.26 .883
1996–97 New York Rangers NHL 15 9 6 939 33 3 2.11 .932
NHL Totals 76 41 33 4,515 202 9 2.68 .909

[edit] Career highlights

Olympic medal record
Men's Ice Hockey
Silver 2002 Salt Lake City Ice Hockey

[edit] Records

  • NYR Club Record, Games Played, Career: 666
  • NYR Club Record, Wins, Career: 301
  • NYR Club Record, Games Played, Single Season: 72 (1997–98)
  • NYR Club Record, Wins, Single Season: 42 (1993–94)
  • NYR Club Record, Save Percentage, Single Season: .917 (1996–97)

[edit] NY Rangers team awards

  • Crumb Bum Award - "For service to New York youngsters" (1997)
  • Frank Boucher Trophy - "Most popular player on and off the ice" (1991, 1999, 2000, 2002)
  • Good Guy Award - "For cooperation with the media" (1991)
  • Lars-Erik Sjoberg Award - "Best rookie of training camp" (1991)
  • Player's Player Award (1991, 2000)
  • Team Rookie of the Year (1991)
  • Team MVP (2000, 2002)

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Yale Herald, Special programs welcome grown-up students to Yale
  2. ^ Ivy League Sports, Richter joins Yale staff
  3. ^ Political Wire, In CT-4, Democrats Eye Richter
  4. ^ PR Newswire, Mike Richter Sets Goal with ING to Complete the ING New York City Marathon