The JT Miller trade is official.
Hours after reports surfaced about the disgruntled centre being traded to the New York Rangers, the Vancouver Canucks made the news official, announcing he, defenceman Erik Brannstrom and the rights to Jackson Dorrington were heading to the Big Apple.
In return, the club announced forward Filip Chytil, defenceman Victor Mancini and a conditional first-round pick in 2025 would come back to Vancouver.
Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said the decision “was not an easy” one to make.
“On behalf of the entire Canucks organization I want to thank J.T. for his time here in Vancouver,” said Allvin in a statement. “J.T. was a passionate impact player and good leader for our hockey team. Moving him was not an easy decision but we are pleased with our return from the Rangers.
“Both Filip and Victor are good additions for our club and we are excited to see what they bring to us on the ice.”
Miller returns to the team that drafted him 15th overall in the 2011 draft nearly seven years after the Rangers traded him to the Tampa Bay Lighting. Despite scoring 72 goals and 172 points in 341 games, he and defenceman Ryan McDonagh went to a Lightning team looking to load up.
His time there didn’t last long, however, as 16 months later, the Canucks would acquire him for Marek Mazanec and first and third-round picks.
Miller would thrive in Vancouver, finding offence he never had before in his career. He would score a career-high in goals and points last year, with 37 and 103, respectively, hitting a career-high in assists two years prior. It wasn’t just in the regular season where he would perform, adding another nine goals and 30 points in 30 playoff games between 2019-20 and 2023-24.
But a rumoured rift between he and Elias Pettersson went public this season, affecting both players and hanging overtop of the organization as it struggled through the first half of the season. Now, both the franchise and player will get fresh starts.
In Chytil, the Canucks bring back a 25-year-old centre who has found was to contribute offence in depth roles in New York, scoring 75 goals and 164 points in 378 regular season games that included career highs in goals, assists and points in 2022-23, racking up 22, 23 and 45, respectively. But a concussion limited him to just 10 games in 2023-24, which was reportedly his fourth suffered in his career. Those injury concerns come with him to Vancouver, but there’s no denying him being a solid middle-six winger when healthy.
Mancini, meanwhile, is still finding his way in the pro ranks with this year being his first full season. The 22-year-old spent three years at the University of Nebraska-Omaha scoring four goals and 23 points in 110 games, before joining the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack at the end of last season, drawing in for four games. This year, he’s appeared in 15 NHL games with the Rangers, scoring a goal and five points, adding three goals and 10 points in 23 AHL games.
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.
