Rangers vs. Canucks: Lineups, storylines, including J.T. Miller homecoming
When the New York Rangers last visited Rogers Arena to face off against the Vancouver Canucks, there was a juicy subplot involving J.T. Miller. The veteran forward will again be part an intriguing storyline when the Rangers and Canucks hook up in Vancouver on Tuesday.
Miller didn’t play when the Rangers skated to a 4-3 road win against the Canucks on Nov. 19 of last season. That’s because he took a personal leave of absence from the Canucks amid a public dispute with teammate Elias Pettersson. Of course, all of that eventually led to the Canucks trading Miller to the Rangers on Jan. 31.
And now on Tuesday, Miller returns to Rogers Arena for the first time since the trade, and does so as Rangers captain.
Miller recorded 437 points (152 goals, 285 assists) in 404 games over six seasons with the Canucks. He established career highs with them in 2023-24, when he scored 37 goals and totaled 103 points. Two seasons earlier he had 32 goals and 99 points.
Sure, Miller was a first-round pick by the Rangers in 2011, and currently is in his second stint with them. But keep in mind that Miller played fewer games with the Rangers (383) than with the Canucks, though that should change this season, assuming the 32-year-old remains healthy.
Beyond the video tribute and hype surrounding Miller’s return, Tuesday night affords another chance for the Rangers (3-5-2) to get back on track. Their play regressed the past week, when they lost three straight (0-2-1), including to a pair of bottom feeders, the San Jose Sharks (6-5 in overtime at home) and Calgary Flames (5-1 on Sunday to start this four-game road trip).
Miller and coach Mike Sullivan were very pointed in their criticism postgame in Calgary, and the overall frustration level is rising.
The Canucks (5-5-0) close out a three-game homestand, and come off a wild 4-3 overtime victory against the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday. Vancouver blew a two-goal third-period lead before Kiefer Sherwood scored the OT winner.
The night before, the Canucks let a 2-0 lead slip away in a 4-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. That was their third straight defeat, on the heels of a three-game winning streak.
The Rangers are 3-0-1 in their past four visits to Rogers Arena, and 5-2-1 in their past eight overall against the Canucks.
3 storylines when Rangers visit Canucks
1. Time for Quick change
This feels like the right time for the Rangers to give Jonathan Quick another start in goal. Igor Shesterkin allowed 11 goals in the past two games, and Quick hasn’t played in 10 days. This would appear to be the most favorable opportunity for Quick to start on the road trip, and give Shesterkin a break before the Rangers visit the Oilers on Thursday.
Perhaps the Rangers will also tighten things up defensively in front of the 39-year-old backup, after a pair of subpar outings in a row with their No. 1 goalie in the crease. That remains to be seen, of course, considering that the Rangers showed no favorites with their sloppy defensive play last season, when they were equally as bad no matter whom the goalie was.
Quick is 1-1-0 with a 2.03 goals-against average and .911 save percentage in two starts this season. He allowed three goals on 24 shots in a 4-3 road win against the Montreal Canadiens in his most recent start Oct. 18.
2. Call Red Cross
The Rangers and Canucks each are working around significant injury issues the first month of the season. Two regular forwards — Vincent Trocheck and Matt Rempe — won’t play for the Rangers on Tuesday. Trocheck, who’s on LTIR with an upper-body injury, is eligible to be activated Saturday. But Sullivan recently said the veteran center just started skating again Monday. The 32-year-old leaves a huge hole in the Rangers lineup, and played just two games this season.
Rempe misses his second consecutive game after sustaining an upper-body injury in a fight with Sharks enforcer Ryan Reaves last Thursday. No doubt that the Rangers missed Rempe’s tenacity against the Flames, and the fourth line wasn’t nearly as effective without the towering 6-foot-9 forward. Now comes word from Sullivan that Rempe will be out “longer-term.”
The Canucks played without captain Quinn Hughes on Sunday and he’s doubtful against the Rangers due to a lower-body injury. The 2024 Norris Trophy winner as top NHL defenseman has seven points (one goal, six assists) in nine games, and averages a League-high 26:38 TOI.
Former Rangers center Filip Chytil is out and on IR with an unspecified injury after receiving a massive hit by Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson on Oct. 19. Another concussion is feared, though not official, for Chytil, who’s yet to play against the Rangers since that Jan. 31 trade last season.
Also on injured reserve for the Canucks are forwards Jonathan Lekkerimäki and Teddy Blueger, and defenseman Derek Forbort. Forward Nils Hoglander is on LTIR.
3. Carson Soucy homecoming, too
It’s easy to forget with all the focus on Miller’s homecoming — and the fact that Chytil again won’t face his former team — that Carson Soucy returns to Vancouver on Tuesday for the first time since the Canucks dealt him to the Rangers for a third-round draft pick ahead of the 2024 NHL trade deadline.
The 31-year-old defenseman has been good for the most part this season, though he comes off a rough night Sunday in his home province of Alberta. Soucy was on ice for the Flames’ first three goals, each featuring serious missed assignments defensively by the Rangers. That negated a plus-3 showing against the Sharks the previous game.
Soucy played well for the Canucks in 2023-24, but fell on hard times and out of the rotation last season. He didn’t play great down the stretch for the Rangers either, but started off well this season before he was sidelined four games with an upper-body injury. Since then, he’s mostly partnered on the third pair with Braden Schneider — though he’s back on the second pair alongside Will Borgen against the Canucks — and continues to be a regular on the penalty kill.
New York Rangers projected lineup
Artemi Panarin — Mika Zibanejad — Will Cuylle
Conor Sheary — J.T. Miller– Alexis Lafreniere
Juuso Parssinen — Noah Laba– Taylor Raddysh
Adam Edstrom — Sam Carrick — Jonny Brodzinski
Vladislav Gavrikov — Adam Fox
Carson Soucy — Will Borgen
Urho Vaakanainen — Braden Schneider
Jonathan Quick
Igor Shesterkin
Rangers vs. Canucks: When, where, what time, how to watch
Who: New York Rangers vs. Vancouver Canucks
When: Tuesday Oct. 28 at 10 p.m. ET
Where: Rogers Arena
How to watch: MSG
More About: New York Rangers News
