The Los Angeles Kings terminated the contract of forward Mike Richards on Monday, citing a “material breach” of contract.

Richards, 30, was placed on waivers on Sunday - many believed with the Kings seeking flexibility to buy him out of the five years and $22 million remaining on his deal.
Instead, with a termination, Richards would not be due any of the money left on his contract and the Kings would not be saddled with a salary cap hit.

“The Los Angeles Kings today have exercised the team’s right to terminate the contract of Mike Richards for a material breach of the requirements of his Standard Player’s Contract,” the Kings said in a statement. “We are not prepared to provide any more detail or to discuss the underlying grounds for the contract termination at this time.”
According to the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, teams may terminate a contract if “a player shall at any time: fail, refuse, or neglect to obey the Club’s rules governing training and conduct of Players, if such failure, refusal or neglect should constitute a material breach of this SPC” [Standard Player’s Contract].

The NHL Players’ Association was gathering information on Monday, shortly after the release, and was deciding whether or not to issue a statement. The NHLPA could opt to grieve the termination of Richards’ contract.

TSN also placed calls to Richards’ agent, Pat Morris, seeking comment.

Los Angeles could have used their final compliance buyout on Richards’ deal last summer, but general manager Dean Lombardi put his faith in the belief Richards would rebound. He finished with a career-low 16 points in 53 games and spent the part of the season in the AHL.

Richards signed the 12-year, $69 million contract with Philadelphia Flyers in 2008. He was acquired by Los Angeles in a 2011 blockbuster trade and helped propel the Kings to Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014.