Calgary Flames at Red Wings 12-20-15

Red Wings forward Brad Richards is pumped to be playing in his fifth outdoor game, with a pair of speedy linemates.

(The Associated Press)

DENVER - Detroit Red Wings forward Brad Richards soon will be the answer to a trivia question: Who has played in the most NHL outdoor games?

Richards will be playing in his record fifth NHL outdoor game tonight against the Colorado Avalanche at Coors Field (8 p.m., NBC).

"Anytime you're part of the league, let alone getting to do these things it's just great memories for me that I'll be able to have the rest of my life," Richards said. "Every day you don't take this game for granted and to be able to do these things with the audience and the attention on it, it's not a regular game in an 82-game schedule."

He'll be lined up with a pair players participating in their first NHL outdoor game - rookies Dylan Larkin and Andreas Athanasiou.

"I'm playing with two guys that are hopefully not going to be affected by the ice; they're the fastest guys I've ever seen on the ice, so hopefully they'll bring me along for the ride," Richards said.

Larkin likened Richards to a quarterback having a pair of speedy targets for deep passes.

"I'm telling them if I get the puck in time hopefully they can just fly and I can get pucks into some space for them because they're literally two of the fastest players in the world," Richards said. "Double-A in overtime the other day (Tuesday vs. Columbus), how he wound up there, I don't know if I've ever seen someone on skates go that fast. And you can tell he's skating a lot more as he gets confidence. So hopefully we can get something going and stick together for a bit. It would be fun."

What advice would he gives players taking part in their first outdoor game?

"There's a line and stuff about being simple and weird things can happen with bounces and just the way the game is," Richards said. "It's not your normal game, so we talk a little about that. But they'll enjoy it."

Richards played in three outdoor games with the New York Rangers and one with the Chicago Blackhawks. He prefers the night games.

"It's just cool to go out under the lights and see the crowd with a different look to the building," Richards said. "I think the (game vs. New Jersey in 2014) there was snow coming down in the second period and that's pretty cool, too. You just kind of roll with what Mother Nature's going to give you."

Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said he has relied on Richards' experience in preparing for this game.

"I've talked to Richie a lot through the year and asked him about a lot of things," Blashill said. "He's got a great head on his shoulders, been through tons of experiences.

"Brad brings tons to the table. One is he brings a wealth of experience that we try to find out as much as we can to help us in making our decisions."

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