Is J.T. Miller the spark the Rangers needed? 

Jonny Lazarus
Jonny Lazarus
Is J.T. Miller the spark the Rangers needed? 
Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images

While his first two games with the Rangers weren’t the prettiest team efforts, it’s fair to say that J.T. Miller has stood out the most.

The analytics support that notion.

The team looks rejuvenated, and Miller can feel it. The Rangers acquired Miller on Friday night from the Vancouver Canucks, and put him right into the fire on Saturday afternoon. The Rangers lost 6-3 to Boston that day, but Miller had two goals. He then battled hard with a two-assist effort in a 4-2 win over Vegas back at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.

“It’s very special – I forgot what it was like to be on the home side of things here,” Miller said. “What a cool way to come back, that was a good team effort there in the third period.” 

Miller isn’t the same kid as he was when he first arrived in New York City. When he left in February of 2018, he was a kid in his mid-20s, still trying to earn his opportunity in the NHL. Now, he’s a 31-year-old veteran who has learned a lot about what makes him successful. 

As silly as it might sound, one of those things is how he warms up before a game.

“I didn’t warm up when I was here before,” Miller said, laughing. “I did a little bit of dynamic stuff, and that was pretty much the same.” Now, Miller finds himself playing a lot of soccer. The pregame feeling is also different when you’re traded to a team that has a back-to-back with no practice time. Miller has had to learn the systems from the guys and through meetings with the coaches, but he sees that as a positive. 

“Fortunately, we’re just playing hockey. I spent my first two days basically at the rink the whole time, so I’m trying to learn on the fly at the rink right now, but everybody has been really helpful. The coaches have been awesome with filling me in and just letting me play a little bit. It’s fun trying to learn the new guys’ tendencies.” 

From a coaching perspective, it won’t take much time for Peter Laviolette to adjust to someone as experienced as Miller. 

“You’re talking about a veteran player who’s a real pro here,” Laviolette said. “Even though I haven’t worked with him personally – he’s been around a long time. You watch him play – you understand the game that he plays. He’s an easy player for a coach to like. He came in yesterday and was really receptive to the information and played a good game behind it.” 

Miller has recently gotten criticism for what he’s like as a teammate. But he’s back with former teammates Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad, and his lifelong best friend, Vincent Trocheck. In a way, the adjustment has been seamless. 

“I’ve played with a handful of the guys before,” Miller said. “Having a best friend on the team – I don’t think at the start of the year we were thinking about playing with each other, but when the opportunity came, obviously, that’s something for our families that’s really special. For us to be here together, trying to work together to get a common goal – that’s a really cool feeling. We’re both very lucky.”

Until Miller gets settled back into the Big Apple, he’ll be living with Trocheck – something that never was up for discussion.

“I didn’t ask. I just moved right in”, he said with a smile. 

On the ice, Miller has already made drastic improvements to the man-advantage. In the first two games with Miller on top unit, it has clicked at a remarkable 60%, scoring on three of the five attempts they’ve had. What’s most impressive about this clip is that the group hasn’t even had the chance to practice together yet. 

“I think we’re just trying to get to know the tendencies a little bit,” Miller said. “I’ve played with Kreids and Mika, so I kind of know what they’re doing. I know Bread and Foxy are special players. I’m used to having lefties on the unit, and I’ve got righties on the unit – so I’m trying to get out of the way sometimes and also try to make myself available. I also haven’t had a practice yet, so I’m looking forward to practicing with them.”

Miller’s presence has been felt everywhere – on the ice, in the room, and even away from the rink. He’s the guy that they’ve needed – someone who drags everyone into the fight with him. Not only does he have an aura, but he seems to have a ton of gratitude in his second stint with the original six franchise that drafted him.

“The support has been amazing so far, even coming back into town – old friends reaching out, it’s just been a crazy 48 hours,” Miller said. “As I can tell, it’s a good group of guys here and a hungry hockey team, so it was a pretty good character third period by the guys. We’re in a desperate position – we don’t really have time to wait and see what happens. A lot of games are going to be like that coming down the stretch. It was nice to be on the right side of it.” 

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