Devils’ Richardson set to make Elite League history

Mark Richardson, the longest-serving player for the Cardiff Devils, will break the record for appearances in the Elite League on Sunday night.

His total of EIHL games played at Vindico Arena will reach 1,778, breaking the record held by Sheffield Steelers legend Jonathan Phillips, who was born in Cardiff.

Richardson became the most successful player for Great Britain in 117 games last year, breaking another Phillips record.

Phillips expressed his delight at having Richie as the subject of the conversation.

He is the best professional in the business. He is truly unique.

Richie has played a significant role in Cardiff’s success over the past ten years or so.

He plays hard, he plays tough, but in that respectable manner, as he describes himself.

He is “the reason’s voice.” He has the ability to grab a group with his mere presence. merely demonstrating his presence in order to spread positivity.

Phillips’ final season before joining Sheffield saw Richardson join the Devils at the age of 18 before making his first professional appearance.

You could tell how talented he was at the time, Phillips said. Every time he touched the ice, he swore his socks off. The game was obviously being studied by him, as you could see.

Richardson left the Devils two years later to join the Nottingham Panthers, and he then made a second Richardson returned to the Devils in 2009.

Richardson has been with Cardiff for the entire time, aside from a five-month stint in Kazakhstan in 2012 and a time when the Covid’s 2020/21 UK season was canceled in Germany.

According to managing director Todd Kelman, Richie has been a fantastic player for the club for almost 20 years.

He has been a great ambassador for us off the ice and has played a crucial role in every championship we have won.

He played nearly all of his EIHL games for the Devils, and we anticipate that he will be celebrating milestones before deciding to put on his skates.

Richardson has won ten awards during his 20 seasons playing in the Elite League. One was won by Nottingham in the 2008 Challenge Cup, and the other nine were won by Cardiff.

In January of this year, Richardson won the club’s first European trophy with a victory in the IIHF Continental Cup, along with two Elite League titles, three Challenge Cup victories, and three play-off victories.

Richardson and Phillips played together from the beginning of the British team’s international heyday until they competed in the top division of the World Championships.

You just felt safe with him on the ice every time, Phillips said when he said of playing for GB.

His positioning is “blatantly incorrect.” He is able to read instructions for players.

You simply couldn’t move past him, he said. His technical prowess are astounding. Richie concentrates on the little details. He is not overly sassy, either.

“I work with the under-16 and under-19 students in Sheffield, and all I talk about is watching people play Richie and how simple the game is.”

“This is a challenging league to play in,” said one player. Some regular season games aren’t as difficult as others because everything in other leagues around the world revolves around the play-offs.

It’s a 54-game play-off because you’re competing against a Cardiff, Sheffield, Belfast, or Nottingham team that are constantly fighting for the league title.

You play play-off hockey every night.

And it’s amazing Richie has done that for so long and with such consistency.