Player Discussion What makes J.T Miller such a good player? (2021 Edition)

bobbyb2009

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Sep 3, 2009
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he's a UFA after this year so now that he's established himself as a top 6, dare i say first line player.... first line center? he's got a MASSIVE payday coming... He really needs to pump the stats. another 70 point season under his belt here would do him wonders.
However... maybe... maybe he takes a discount and stays here if he feels we make big strides? not sure... i would not bet on it

I think he has this year and one more on his contract?

J.T. Miller Contract, Cap Hit, Salary and Stats - CapFriendly - NHL Salary Caps
 
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Hit the post

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Oct 1, 2015
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Hiding under WTG's bed...
he's a UFA after this year so now that he's established himself as a top 6, dare i say first line player.... first line center? he's got a MASSIVE payday coming... He really needs to pump the stats. another 70 point season under his belt here would do him wonders.
However... maybe... maybe he takes a discount and stays here if he feels we make big strides? not sure... i would not bet on it
First & likely last chance at a big payday. I seriously doubt he takes a discount.
 

VanJack

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Jul 11, 2014
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What makes Miller so valuable? It's his contract, pure and simple.

He's a legit ppg forward who can play center or wing. and earning $5.25m a season. Might be one of the highest value contracts for a scoring forward in the entire NHL. The leadership qualities and the passion with which he plays are just a bonus.

It's rare that a lottery team trading its first round draft pick for a veteran forward ever makes any sense. But hard to argue that Benning hit one out of the park when he acquired Miller from Tampa for a first rounder, that ended up being 21st overall in 2020.
 

Icebreakers

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Apr 29, 2011
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I would be looking to move Miller next year for a dman. We won't be able to afford his raise with Horvat/Boeser/Podkolzin/Hoglander/Rathbone needing raises. Also EP when hes done his bridge.
 
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MarkMM

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I would be looking to move Miller next year for a dman. We won't be able to afford his raise with Horvat/Boeser/Podkolzin/Hoglander/Rathbone needing raises. Also EP when hes done his bridge.

Agreed, love Miller but you have to plan ahead and look at how the team will evolve. Our gap is a first or at least second pairing RHD who can be solid in the shut-down role, and if Podkolzin evolves into what we hope he can be and Hoglander keeps up his performance then we've got our top six good. Plus given the raise Miller will command when we'll be needing to consider raises for Boeser and Horvat, we can't afford Miller.

If we can trade Miller for a RHD, AND ideally offload Myers even if just for cap relief then this team suddenly becomes well structured and balanced.
 
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Petey O

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The last thing I want is to see this player traded. I think he's a vital piece to this core, and losing him would be a very bad thing.

But, I also look at what he would bring back as a rental on his contract to a likely SCF bound team, and if you could poach a high potential RH d-man who can actually play defense (whoever that may be), I think I'd do it. You'd have to hope for a seller's market, though.

To be honest, I'd rather trade Horvat and just make Miller the 1C/2C (however they decide to form the lines), but that's not realistic seeing as how Horvat is the captain, and would also be a huge loss.

But both of them are going to likely demand something in the region of 7.5-8.5~ mil (maybe more), and you can't keep both. JT Miller especially is going to look to get PAID, and rightfully so.
 
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Icebreakers

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The last thing I want is to see this player traded. I think he's a vital piece to this core, and losing him would be a very bad thing.

But, I also look at what he would bring back as a rental on his contract to a likely SCF bound team, and if you could poach a high potential RH d-man who can actually play defense (whoever that may be), I think I'd do it. You'd have to hope for a seller's market, though.

To be honest, I'd rather trade Horvat and just make Miller the 1C/2C (however they decide to form the lines), but that's not realistic seeing as how Horvat is the captain, and would also be a huge loss.

But both of them are going to likely demand something in the region of 7.5-8.5~ mil (maybe more), and you can't keep both. JT Miller especially is going to look to get PAID, and rightfully so.

He will be 30 when his deal expires. It sucks to lose him, but theres no way to justify giving him north of 7.5 long term. It is what it is.
 
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CanucksSayEh

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Apr 6, 2012
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No problem paying JT when the time comes. At some point the team needs to make a push, JT drives that 1st line, without him they take a huge step back.
 

4Twenty

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You only get one of Bo or JT two offseasons from now. I take the captain who is two years younger personally.

There is no Horvat replacement in the system. Hopefully Hoglander/Podkolzin are the JT Miller replacements. Those two will be 22/23, Miller 30. If he didn’t require a max term deal sure, but I don’t see him not cashing in.
 
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iFan

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May 5, 2013
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Yea I love Miller but I don’t want his next contract, term and money, it’s his last big deal and he’s a hell of a player. I think you have to look at moving him after this season, maybe TDL depending on how the season goes. But I do wonder if by trading Miller it hurts our chances at re-signing Horvat…
 
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F A N

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Aug 12, 2005
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It's hard to say how much Miller would be worth. The JT Miller we saw in 19-20 is a $7M player who can settle for a longer contract at a ~$6M AAV. The Miller we saw last season? Not so much.

Term is definitely going to be sticking point. A lot of teams will probably be willing to offer Miller 4 years. But some team may offer him 6. It'll be hard to extend him if we were to keep Boeser and Horvat.

A lot of posters think it's the end of the world to keep a player for the duration of his contract. In the Canucks case, that might be something they should do if the Canucks are anywhere close to contention.
 

BWJM

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If only the cap would magically increase. It will be a significant blow to lose Miller after his contracts up. Sure Hoglander/Podz could hopefully fill that void.. but then we need to replace one of them if we don't want to take a step back. Pray Klimovich is a hit I guess.

We need some luck. I want to actually stay competitve for awhile for once :'(
 

MarkMM

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It's hard to say how much Miller would be worth. The JT Miller we saw in 19-20 is a $7M player who can settle for a longer contract at a ~$6M AAV. The Miller we saw last season? Not so much.

Term is definitely going to be sticking point. A lot of teams will probably be willing to offer Miller 4 years. But some team may offer him 6. It'll be hard to extend him if we were to keep Boeser and Horvat.

A lot of posters think it's the end of the world to keep a player for the duration of his contract. In the Canucks case, that might be something they should do if the Canucks are anywhere close to contention.

I think it comes down to being honest with where we're at. Like if we're on paper in but realistically not looking good to make the playoffs and even if we did it's all but a foregone conclusion we'd be out, and trading Miller meant we could balance out our defence by getting a solid RHD that can stabilize Hughes and replace Hamonic when his contract is gone, then I think you have to think about what the REAL goal should be and that should be setting the team up to legitimately compete for the Cup in coming years and not just squeak into the playoffs to declare it a "success".

But yeah, if we're definitely in the playoffs and have the ability to go far enough that a Cinderella story is plausible then sure, look at Miller as a self-rental kind of thing. But in the past I think we've blown those calculations and opportunities to get something out of an eventual lost asset (Hamhuis comes to mind).
 

F A N

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I think it comes down to being honest with where we're at. Like if we're on paper in but realistically not looking good to make the playoffs and even if we did it's all but a foregone conclusion we'd be out, and trading Miller meant we could balance out our defence by getting a solid RHD that can stabilize Hughes and replace Hamonic when his contract is gone, then I think you have to think about what the REAL goal should be and that should be setting the team up to legitimately compete for the Cup in coming years and not just squeak into the playoffs to declare it a "success".

But yeah, if we're definitely in the playoffs and have the ability to go far enough that a Cinderella story is plausible then sure, look at Miller as a self-rental kind of thing. But in the past I think we've blown those calculations and opportunities to get something out of an eventual lost asset (Hamhuis comes to mind).

I think it comes down to Podkolzin and Hoglander's development. If Pods can play left wing and can adequately replace Miller then I can see a trade happening. Otherwise, forward depth is something that the Canucks have been focused on and trading Miller leaves a big gaping hole.

It seems that the prevailing thought among GMs and players is that anything can happen in the playoffs. When a GM talks about not wanting to be a one and done team, that only occurs when the team is out of the playoffs or rebuilding and the GM is preaching for more patience. So this whole Cinderella story idea is really just some fan perspective. All evidence point to the fact that if a team is in playoff contention, GMs don't make moves to make the team worse and anger the players.
 

MarkMM

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I think it comes down to Podkolzin and Hoglander's development. If Pods can play left wing and can adequately replace Miller then I can see a trade happening. Otherwise, forward depth is something that the Canucks have been focused on and trading Miller leaves a big gaping hole.

It seems that the prevailing thought among GMs and players is that anything can happen in the playoffs. When a GM talks about not wanting to be a one and done team, that only occurs when the team is out of the playoffs or rebuilding and the GM is preaching for more patience. So this whole Cinderella story idea is really just some fan perspective. All evidence point to the fact that if a team is in playoff contention, GMs don't make moves to make the team worse and anger the players.

Agreed on all the above. I think when it comes to trading Miller there are two considerations, one, unless we can dump Myers, there just won't be cap room to keep him after Horvat and Boeser are renewed, and we'll also need to factor in the likely post-bridge contract for Petersson. So whether we can keep Miller is an open question, and if we're going to lose him anyway and if he could return something that could set us up for the future like a good RHD then it's the kind of bold decision that a championship-building GM has to be able to make. But even then, we'd STILL likely need to dump Myers to make room for the salary for said RHD upgrade. Cap management is so key.
 

timw33

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Miller at next year's deadline as a two playoff run rental would be easily the most valuable player on the market. Even more so with a bit of retention.
 

F A N

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Agreed on all the above. I think when it comes to trading Miller there are two considerations, one, unless we can dump Myers, there just won't be cap room to keep him after Horvat and Boeser are renewed, and we'll also need to factor in the likely post-bridge contract for Petersson. So whether we can keep Miller is an open question, and if we're going to lose him anyway and if he could return something that could set us up for the future like a good RHD then it's the kind of bold decision that a championship-building GM has to be able to make. But even then, we'd STILL likely need to dump Myers to make room for the salary for said RHD upgrade. Cap management is so key.

I agree. From an asset management perspective, trading Miller would be the best move and I think dumping Myers would help a lot. I'm just not sure what Miller's trade value would be. He's a great player but I think the best return would probably be a first round pick or a young RHD who hasn't established himself yet. Hockey moves like Miller for a top 4 RHD is rarely made and certainly few would have a good one expendable to trade for Miller.

With that said, I expect the Canucks to continue getting value out of Miller.
 
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VanillaCoke

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Oct 30, 2013
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You only get one of Bo or JT two offseasons from now. I take the captain who is two years younger personally.

There is no Horvat replacement in the system. Hopefully Hoglander/Podkolzin are the JT Miller replacements. Those two will be 22/23, Miller 30. If he didn’t require a max term deal sure, but I don’t see him not cashing in.
The younger cheaper horvat is the clear choice, should be able to get a couple high quality assets for Miller.

Having a replacement in the system in 2 years would've been perfect, a high scoring winger like Guenther maybe would've fit.
 
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