When a reporter suggested Ovechkin thrives off physical contact and likes to hit, Richards came back with, "Yeah, well I like to hit too."

And when the reporter challenged Richards by saying it’s better to leave Ovechkin alone because if you start hitting him it fires him up, Richards retorted.

"I disagree," said Richards. "If he’s running around worrying about hitting people then he’s not worried about scoring goals. He’s a competitive player who likes the competitive nature of the game. Just because he gets more physical doesn’t mean we’re going to stop hitting him. We have to try to hit him as much as possible."