Appreciation thread for JT Miller

[Slegr]

 

I cannot believe how lucky we are to have JT Miller on this team. The way he has played this season, I think he may be the most complete centreman this franchise has ever had.

He is a huge offensive threat, constantly driving the line and his team. He plays with an edge, with a physicality that this team has lacked for so many years, and he's all about winning.

Perhaps the closest we've seen to Miller on this team is Trevor Linden, who would body check so hard, but he never quite played on the same edge, and whose offense wasn't quite as natural. 

Since JT Miller arrived to the team, his offensive numbers have been through the roof. Such a positive change compared to other big names we had invested in from other teams over the years.  He also signed with us for a very team friendly deal.

Could you imagine if management prioritized Horvat over Miller last year?

JT Miller is the man. And yet, he never seems to get the respect throughout the league that he should. I like how he seems to downplay himself, making himself almost seem out of place at the All Star game. That's because he brings the meat and potatoes to his game. He's got old-school, cold hockey blood in his veins, and apart from the unworldly Quinn Hughes, he is our team MVP this year.

Edited February 25, 2024 by Slegr

[AlwaysACanuckFan]

Miller before each game

 

[Barn Burner]

Just saw this article today on NHL.com 

 

https://www.nhl.com/news/best-united-states-born-nhl-player-roundtable-debate 

 

J.T. Miller

Choosing my favorite American-born player is tough just because the thing that resonates with me when it comes to players I've covered and written about are personal conversations that, on occasion, stop me in my tracks. J.T. Miller has become an unbelievable hockey player and has the numbers to back it since being selected No. 15 by the New York Rangers in the 2011 NHL Draft. I didn't want to put any emphasis on statistics for this exercise, however, and instead choose a memorable story. I wrote about J.T. prior to the draft and was there at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, when he made his NHL debut for the Rangers against the Devils on Feb. 5, 2013, my sixth season with NHL.com. Following the morning skate prior to his big night, I asked J.T. what he did with the gold medal he won as a key member of the United States at the 2013 World Junior Championship. "I actually put the medal in the coffin with my great grandfather. Not many can say they had a special relationship with a great grandparent, but that was something very special to me," he said. It's a moment I'll never forget and one of the most heartfelt gestures I ever had an athlete tell me. -- Mike G. Morreale, senior draft writer

[Jimmy]

Remember when people thought Tampa fleeced us?

[AlwaysACanuckFan]

7 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

Remember when people thought Tampa fleeced us?

Remember when some people wanted him traded 

[Jeremy Hronek]

6 minutes ago, AlwaysACanuckFan said:

Remember when some people wanted him traded 

 

Yes, there were a lot of losers at HF Canucks that wanted this since Miller was perceived as a Jim Benning guy.

 

Check out this thread made by one of their posters from a few years ago:  

 

https://forums.hfboards.com/threads/jt-miller-vs-ryan-kesler.2895336/

 

 

[Jess]

Still irritates me how vastly underrated he is around the league. I'd argue he's probably no worse than the 5th or 6th best centre in the entire league this year, yet most fans outside of Vancouver would probably rank him something like 13th.

[ploughcat07]

I remember thinking at the time prioritizing JT over Horvat felt like a mistake. I have never been more wrong. 

 

Definitely explains why I'm not a GM. This management group knew exactly what they were doing.

 

Even if JT declines later in this contract, I'll remind myself how good he was at the start of it. There's not a chance this team is first in the NHL without Miller. If they're going anywhere in the playoffs, it'll likely be on JT's back. He has the talent and the sheer force of will to carry a team. There are very few players in the league that can do that, but he has proven to me this year that he's one of them. 

 

I felt in 2011 that Kesler was like that - but JT's offensive abilities far outshine Kesler's. 

 

It's an exciting time to be a Canucks fan. Thank you JT!

[-dlc-]

PREACH IT MY BROTHER.

 

I honestly have a good eye for talent (yes, I'm going to pump my own tires for a minute). I think they should hire me as a scout. (heehee)

 

As a woman, I've taken so much heat...."you don't know hockey/anything" stuff. Homer cheerleader. Yes, I am those things but I'm also a long time fan of this team and go to many games and watch every single one of them. Closely.

 

I remember taking heat when everyone wanted Bieksa gone after his injury/ies. He was done. Pinched too often and got caught. Blah blah blah. But he was my guy. Him and Burr. They got trashed a lot too....until people caught on. Started watching instead of listening (to the rumblings).

 

Warriors. Like JT. When someone was actually throwing out a Juice jersey, I was asked if I wanted it. Damn right I did....wore the 3 right off the back of it.

 

Same with Burr....I started following him early (when my daughter met him as a rookie and I jokingly said "you can marry this one"). We were fans from day one because he was so cordial and polite. Loved his fans. But as I watched him, I saw the same thing....that do or die attitude. Hated to lose. 

 

My track record's pretty good so far and I'm proud of that. I stand behind players despite having to go against the grain at times (early on). A few here went HARD at me (and a couple others) about the JT thing. We didn't know anything about anything. Except we did.

 

Now I get to gloat a bit. I love my team and the players who wear their hearts on their sleeves are the ones for me. Not so much flash and dash....more grit and give 'em sh stuff.

 

JT will never be out of the spotlight and as soon as he hits rough patches, people will chime in. Short memory types. 

 

Just as when the team strings a few losses together, they're done. Crap. Not good enough.

 

Pick a side and stick with it. Slam the gate for emphasis.

 

JT is my number one, that's no secret....but from the minute he got here I saw it. That heart and soul player who hated to lose. A small handful of us did and wouldn't be persuaded by all the noise.

 

I'm glad the team wasn't influenced by the screaming masses out there who wanted him gone. Thank God they knew.

[Miss Korea]

I think it's important to compare where he was during the worst days to where he is at today.  The turnaround has been truly remarkable.  He has matured and improved his game to a whole other level, and he's done so at an age nobody expected.  He has gone from being untradeable to being... untradeable.

[-dlc-]

5 minutes ago, Miss Korea said:

I think it's important to compare where he was during the worst days to where he is at today.  The turnaround has been truly remarkable.  He has matured and improved his game to a whole other level, and he's done so at an age nobody expected.  He has gone from being untradeable to being... untradeable.

So from when? Be specific so I can tell you you're wrong.

 

He's been a ppg player pretty much since he got here.

 

The team was awful for a bit....but he was the one guy who at times tried to drag them out of the funk. Remember, our d was atrocious so that wasn't really his fault.

[Hammertime]

1 minute ago, Miss Korea said:

I think it's important to compare where he was during the worst days to where he is at today.  The turnaround has been truly remarkable.  He has matured and improved his game to a whole other level, and he's done so at an age nobody expected.  He has gone from being untradeable to being... untradeable.

What are you talking about? Where was he? Untradable? Worst days? Nonsense!

 

 

He's done nothing but perform since day one. There have been ups and higher ups. Untradable is the dumbest narrative I've ever heard. 

[HKSR]

49 minutes ago, ploughcat07 said:

I remember thinking at the time prioritizing JT over Horvat felt like a mistake. I have never been more wrong. 

 

Definitely explains why I'm not a GM. This management group knew exactly what they were doing.

 

Even if JT declines later in this contract, I'll remind myself how good he was at the start of it. There's not a chance this team is first in the NHL without Miller. If they're going anywhere in the playoffs, it'll likely be on JT's back. He has the talent and the sheer force of will to carry a team. There are very few players in the league that can do that, but he has proven to me this year that he's one of them. 

 

I felt in 2011 that Kesler was like that - but JT's offensive abilities far outshine Kesler's. 

 

It's an exciting time to be a Canucks fan. Thank you JT!

I fought tooth and nail on CDC saying how we should not trade away Miller.  He's as heart and soul as you can get for a team.

I'm doing the same thing now for Garland.  Hope people catch on soon that if we need to unload cap, it should be Mikheyev before Garland.

[-dlc-]

 

 

A few nice plays here too:

 

[Hammertime]

I think what's most important to notice is his stats aren't padded. His assists are PRIMARY by a land slide. 

[gwarrior]

He's been a monster, the last few few games especially. Either putting the team on his back, or dragging them into the fight with him. I love seeing that. Yeah he can get a little too frustrated or emotional at times, but all that says to me is that he HATES losing with a passion. Really happy we kept him, and his contract as it stands, is pretty team friendly.

[HKSR]

Could you imagine if we had these guys down the middle in their prime...

 

Miller

Kesler

Linden

Smyl

[Miss Korea]

37 minutes ago, -dlc- said:

So from when? Be specific so I can tell you you're wrong.

 

He's been a ppg player pretty much since he got here.

 

The team was awful for a bit....but he was the one guy who at times tried to drag them out of the funk. Remember, our d was atrocious so that wasn't really his fault.

 

If that is what you truly believe (that he's never played poorly), then he deserves zero credit for any supposed improvements made this year.  Scoring 3 points in a clutch game?  No big deal - he was always like this.  Makes the all-star game?  No big deal - he was always an all-star.

 

J.T. Miller doesn't become the leader he is now without struggling from that poor performance last year.  Suggesting he was never bad completely betrays all the hard work he's put in.

[Hammertime]

3 minutes ago, HKSR said:

Could you imagine if we had these guys down the middle in their prime...

 

Miller

Kesler

Linden

Smyl

Miller

Pete

Lindholm

Suter

Bluger

Lafferty

Aman

 

Is filthy C depth. 

[Miss Korea]

37 minutes ago, Hammertime said:

What are you talking about? Where was he? Untradable? Worst days? Nonsense!

 

 

He's done nothing but perform since day one. There have been ups and higher ups. Untradable is the dumbest narrative I've ever heard. 

 

If that is the case, then he hasn't improved at all this year.  He's just playing like he always has.  And something like this doesn't make any sense:

 

 

Keep in mind those 22-23 numbers looked even worse before Rick Tocchet stepped in. 

 

Had Horvat been extended, there is no doubt in my mind Miller would've been traded.  That $56M extension made it very hard for other teams to consider acquiring him.  

[Hammertime]

3 minutes ago, Miss Korea said:

 

If that is what you truly believe (that he's never played poorly), then he deserves zero credit for any supposed improvements made this year.  Scoring 3 points in a clutch game?  No big deal - he was always like this.  Makes the all-star game?  No big deal - he was always an all-star.

 

J.T. Miller doesn't become the leader he is now without struggling from that poor performance last year.  Suggesting he was never bad completely betrays all the hard work he's put in.

Bad? You call PPG with 32g and 37 primary assists bad? 

 

He doesn't have to be bad to improve. He's gone from very good to better if anything that shows the competitor he is. He isn't satisfied with very good. He's always improving. 

[Jimmy]

16 minutes ago, Miss Korea said:

 

If that is what you truly believe (that he's never played poorly), then he deserves zero credit for any supposed improvements made this year.  Scoring 3 points in a clutch game?  No big deal - he was always like this.  Makes the all-star game?  No big deal - he was always an all-star.

 

J.T. Miller doesn't become the leader he is now without struggling from that poor performance last year.  Suggesting he was never bad completely betrays all the hard work he's put in.

 

I think I know what you're trying to do, give JT credit for his work ethic, which has always been there. 

 

But Bruce had a shite system, and it would be hard for anyone to not look on paper like they had a down year, defensively in particular. I attribute any drop last season to the shit show that it was on the ice and in the locker room until Tocc showed up. 

 

[Hammertime]

12 minutes ago, Miss Korea said:

 

If that is the case, then he hasn't improved at all this year.  He's just playing like he always has.  And something like this doesn't make any sense:

 

 

Keep in mind those 22-23 numbers looked even worse before Rick Tocchet stepped in. 

 

Had Horvat been extended, there is no doubt in my mind Miller would've been traded.  That $56M extension made it very hard for other teams to consider acquiring him.  

You're just flat out wrong. Where did I say he hasn't improved? All I'm saying is he was never bad. He put up 82 points in the season you're referring to as "bad"

Edited February 25, 2024 by Hammertime

[Fanuck]

Now that he's in control of his emotions instead of the other way around,  he truly is a complete player. 

 

I hope he can sustain this level of play not only this year,  but into the post season and many,  many seasons afterwards. 

[spook007]

2 hours ago, -AJ- said:

Still irritates me how vastly underrated he is around the league. I'd argue he's probably no worse than the 5th or 6th best centre in the entire league this year, yet most fans outside of Vancouver would probably rank him something like 13th.

He'll make them eat their word....