Rangers Trading for J.T. Miller Makes Sense Now & for the Future – The Hockey Writers New York Rangers Latest News, Analysis & More

The New York Rangers are the hottest team in the league since the calendar flipped to 2025. They are on a 10-game point streak with a record of 7-0-3 in those games. They are three points out of a wildcard spot and 10 points out of third in the Metropolitan Division with three games in hand over the New Jersey Devils. It is a miracle that the team even finds themselves in this position, as it seemed like this was a lost season not too long ago.

With the team performing better and pushing for a playoff spot, it seems that the Rangers want to add to the team ahead of the March 7 Trade Deadline. The one big name they have been connected to in recent weeks is J.T. Miller of the Vancouver Canucks. It seems he is more likely than not to be traded any day now, and the Rangers have been the main team connected to him. They even had a trade for him fall through last weekend, but they still remain the top team involved. In this piece, we are going to go over why making a trade for Miller makes sense for this team now and going forward.

It Likely Won’t Cost Much to Acquire Miller

With the Canucks seeming desperate to move Miller at all costs now, it likely won’t cost the Rangers much to acquire him. They are truly the only team interested that could take him and his full contract of $8.5 million right now and not have to send any salary back to Vancouver. There were other teams with reported varying interest in Miller like the Devils and Carolina Hurricanes, but after the big trade for Mikko Rantanen and Taylor Hall, Carolina doesn’t have the space for the deal and the Devils would have to trade some big salary off of their roster to make a deal work. As of right now, it seems that the Rangers are the only team left in these negotiations and they are one of the only teams he would consider waiving his no-move clause for.

It was reported that center Filip Chytil was the main piece of the deal that fell through between these two teams last week. It makes sense why he would be part of a trade like this. With Miller being a top-two center for Vancouver, they were going to need a center back in a potential deal.

For the Rangers, they weren’t going to trade Vincent Trocheck and Mika Zibanejad was not going to waive his no-move clause to go to the Canucks, so Chytil was the only option. Now, the Rangers might not have to give up Chytil in a deal because, in this scenario, they have all the power in these negotiations. The Canucks are desperate to move Miller and all the Rangers have to do is wait for Vancouver to drop their asking price and then make a deal that works for them.

Trading Mika Zibanejad in the Offseason

Now, the major concern many have in a potential Miller deal is having both him and Zibanejad on the books until the 2029-30 season at $8.5 million per season. Both of them are going to be 32 years old by the time this season is over and along with Trocheck, who is going to be 32 by the time next season begins, fans are worried about the Rangers having a very old and expensive center core for years to come. While they might be impactful for the next two or three seasons after this one, all players decline and fans don’t want these players on the team together when that time comes. However, there is one solution to this issue, and that is trading Zibanejad this offseason when more teams have the cap space to take on his deal. It also gives him time to figure out where he wants to go.

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It’s no secret that Zibanejad has seen a massive drop in his production over this season and last. He had 72 points in 81 games last season and now, it seems he won’t be getting close to those kinds of numbers with just nine goals and 29 points in 48 games played this season. So, the big question is, why would any team take on a player like this who seems to be declining and who is on a long-term deal?

Well, the salary cap is going up next season and every team is always going to prioritize the center ice position. So, it would make sense as to why certain teams would be interested in a player like Zibanejad, as they may think he could bounce back with their team. Many think his contract is untradable due his him performing so poorly, but there have been worse contracts traded.

Miller Would Be a Major Boost in a Potential Playoff Push

Making a trade for Miller maybe didn’t make sense a few weeks ago when the Rangers were looking more like a lottery team than a playoff team. Now, with the team finding their game and pushing for a playoff spot, adding a player like Miller, especially if you don’t have to give up major pieces off the current roster, would be a massive boost to this team as they head down the stretch. Even though he is having a down season with just eight goals and 33 points in 38 games played, this is a player who is coming off a 103-point season and a player who had 12 points in 13 games in the playoffs. He is one of the elite players in this league when he is on his game. Coming back to New York could give him that spark back.

Miller is also the type of player that the Rangers are lacking. He brings heart and physicality in every shift he plays and he is not afraid to get in the dirty areas to make plays happen. This is a player the Rangers need on their team if they want to make a push for the playoffs. Does he have his weaknesses? Absolutely. Just like every player in this league, he is not perfect, but he would still be a great addition to this team. It is going to be interesting to see how this all plays out because a Miller deal could happen at any time and if it does happen, look for the Rangers to be that team he gets traded to.