Richard's early hockey career began with the Montreal Nationale in 1951-52, where his ability began to show through quickly. In his first season he had 23 goals and 32 assists in 49 games. The following season he improved on those totals and notched 27 goals, 36 assists in 46 games. In 1953-54 Richard was moved to the Montreal Jr. Canadiens of the Quebec Junior Hockey League where he set a blistering pace, and league leading totals in goals with 56, and in assists with 53 in only 54 games, an average of over 2 points per game. He just about repeated the feat the following season, leading the league in goals with 33, recording 33 assists, for a league leading 66 points in 44 games.

By this time Richard had refined his skills even further. His ability to be where the puck was, his fluid and explosive skating ability and accurate shot made him a threat whenever he was on the ice. In 1955-56 Henri played his first NHL season with the Montreal Canadiens posting a respectable 19 goals and 21 assists in 64 games. Richard shared the centering duties of the Canadiens with two other greats, Jean Beliveau and Ralph Backstrom, so getting a huge amount of ice time was not an option. Despite such great company, Richard began to produce and by 1957-58 he was second in league scoring to his team mate Dickie Moore. He also led the league in assists with 52 and would later repeat the same feat in 1962-63 with 50 helpers.

In the next 9 seasons he would appear in the top 10 goal scorers 5 times. In 1971-72 Richard was named as Canadiens' team Captain and he wasted no time in leading his team to yet another Stanley Cup victory in 1972-73.

The Pocket Rocket's career was however, not without controversy. In the 1971 Stanley Cup finals he was reported to have called his coach, Al MacNeil, the worst coach he had ever played under in the NHL. The media soon twisted his comment into a French-English conflict and Richard had to retract the statement in order to keep the peace. Later, he and team mate Serge Savard were involved in a hot tempered discussion and Richard slapped Savard across the face.

With his career winding down, Richard decided to hang up the skates on a high note, stating, "a good thing is coming to an end." Richard finished his career part way into the 1974-75 season. In all, Richard had 358 goals, 688 assists for 1046 points in 1256 games. He has more Stanley Cup rings (11) than he has fingers to wear them on. He was named to the NHL First All Star Team in 1958 and to the Second All Star Team in 1959, 1961, and 1963. Richard won the Bill Masterton Trophy in 1974 and played in 10 All Star Games. He still holds or shares several Montreal Canadien Team Records. He has played, along with Jean Beliveau the most seasons (20) and has played the most games (1256). His number 16 has been retired by the Montreal Canadiens, and in 1979 he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.