Canucks executive furious about rumors concerning former Rangers forward
Ever since former New York Rangers forward J.T. Miller took a leave of absence from the Vancouver Canucks for personal reasons, there’ve been a slew of rumors about him and his situation. They’ve only increased since Miller is staying out of the spotlight and the Canucks remain mum on the topic.
Recent reports have speculated that the 31-year-old forward, who was named Wednesday to Team USA for the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, could be done playing in the NHL. Other rumors persist that Miller will be traded by the Canucks. One floated on a recent podcast said that Miller was forced to step away from the team because he “crossed” coach Rick Tocchet.
On Wednesday, Canucks president Jim Rutherford fired back at those stirring up rumors and/or speculation about Miller, who was the Rangers’ first-round pick in the 2011 NHL Draft.
“Don’t start making stuff up on someone in his situation. That’s disrespectful,” Rutherford told Postmedia. “People that do this for fun, or for a living, just go back to making up trade rumors.”
When asked directly if the Canucks are looking to trade Miller, Rutherford had an equally direct answer.
“No, we are not (trading him),” Rutherford said. “We stand by him.”
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Former Rangers 1st-round pick took leave of absence from Canucks on Nov. 19
Miller took the surprise leave of absence, ironically, when the Rangers were in Vancouver to play the Canucks on Nov. 19, a game the Blueshirts won 4-3. No details were provided except that this decision was made for personal reasons. It was later reporter by Postmedia that Miller needed a re-set mentally and that the leave was “not related to substance or alcohol abuse.”
The Canucks immediately expressed support for Miller.
“Right now, our sole focus is making sure that J.T. knows the entire organization is here to support him,” general manager Patrik Allvin said in a statement.
Since then, there’s been radio silence on the matter, except on the rumor mill.
Miller played all or part of six seasons with the Rangers, and helped them reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2014, when they lost to the Los Angeles Kings in five games.
Miller appeared in 30 games that season, and in four Stanley Cup Playoff games, before taking on a larger role the next four seasons. He helped the Rangers win the Presidents’ Trophy in 2014-15 and scored 22 goals in consecutive seasons beginning in 2015-16. Miller was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning ahead of the 2018 NHL trade deadline, after the infamous letter regarding New York’s rebuild was sent to the Blueshirts faithful.
He was traded to the Canucks ahead of the 2019-20 season and has flourished with them. He scored 27 goals his first season and has three-straight 30-goal seasons heading into 2024-25. Miller set NHL career highs with 37 goals and 103 points last season, when he finished ninth in the League scoring race.
In 816 NHL games, Miller has 655 points (244 goals, 411 assists), including six goals and 16 points in 17 games this season. Miller is in the third season of a seven-year, $56 million contract he signed with Vancouver before the start of the 2022-23 season.
Miller has competed for Team USA in the past, but not for more than a decade. His last international competition with Team USA came in 2013 when he helped the Americans win gold at the World Junior Championships. Miller also participated in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey as a member of Team North America, a squad comprised of players aged 23 and under from the U.S. and Canada.
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