While reading an article (can’t find the article, video on related content here) on Quinn Hughes recently, it was hard to ignore how he sang JT Miller’s praises. Paraphrasing, Hughes said Miller was the most talented player he had been teammates with in a long time, and when he left the Vancouver Canucks, Hughes could feel the team lose confidence and talent. Given how disgusted many are with Miller’s leadership this season, Hughes’ comments put things into perspective and perhaps we need to shift to how the Rangers can enable JT Miller to be the guy Hughes said he was.
Sure, the Rangers could buy him out or trade him when his value is the lowest, but that won’t do much of anything for the organization. New York could strip him of his captaincy, but that will just further alienate him from the fan base. While he was an awful pick for captain, he is the captain.
Instead, the Rangers should keep doing what they’re currently doing, and try to do everything possible to enable JT Miller to get him back to his best self. I struggled to understand the logic behind Miller coming back to first unit power play time after his injury, but it certainly seems the Rangers wanted to encourage his play coming off an injury. In hindsight, it’s not a bad idea. While Gabe Perreault deserves time too, Miller’s play matters.
If the Rangers can enable JT Miller and get him as close as possible to that point per game pace again, he will be a confident, brash, and talented two-way player. The Rangers will suddenly be looking at a refreshed Miller and Mika Zibanejad as their top two centers, with Noah Laba replacing Vincent Trocheck as the 3C. Whether the Rangers are rebuilding, retooling, or trying to win, that’s a solid foundation at the center position. Assuming the Rangers get a decent prospect somewhere, that prospect can follow the two of them and learn different aspects of the game from each.
It’s an unfortunate place to be that your $8 million a year captain needs to be essentially babied into feeling like he’s part of the solution, but that’s where the Rangers appear to be. Rather than fighting it, it’s time to accept it and enable JT Miller to be “that guy” again. Keep running Miller out there, cheer him on, give him opportunities, and hope that he can start to feel like himself again.
Where JT Miller goes, the Rangers will likely go too. He can help the power-play, penalty kill, and at even strength. The Rangers need everything he can bring to the table. It’s time to get him to do just that.