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‘It wasn’t his fault’: Nikita Zadorov defends JT Miller’s role in rift with Elias Pettersson

Photo credit: Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports

By Tyler Kuehl

Sep 15, 2026, 16:23 EDTUpdated: Sep 15, 2026, 16:25 EDT

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Fans will always be curious about what might’ve been going on behind the scenes during one of the more tumultuous periods in the Vancouver Canucks’ recent history.

On the Cam & Strick Podcast earlier this week, former Canucks defenceman Nikita Zadorov was asked about the chaos of the 2024-25 season, when a locker room rift between star players Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller emerged.

“That’s the media,” Zadorov said. “People who still think J.T.’s a bad teammate, go watch Spittin’ Chiclets’ golf video, please, and then tell me.”

Zadorov was referencing Miller’s quip about the reported feud between him and Pettersson, stating that “I went to rehab for that,” after Paul Bissonnette joked that he bullied Pettersson.

Zadorov’s relationship with Miller developed during the 2023-24 season, after the 6-foot-7 blueliner was traded to Vancouver from the Calgary Flames. Zadorov praised Miller’s game and said whatever happened in the locker room the following year wasn’t due to Miller’s actions.

“He’s going to go on the ice, and he’s going to die for you,” said Zadorov. “That’s all that matters. He’s a great teammate, he’s competitive, he wants to win. It just pisses me off when people make it like it’s his fault over there. It wasn’t his fault.”

The tension between Miller and Pettersson took the attention away from the ice for a team that had won the Pacific Division when Zadorov was with the Canucks the year prior. In 2024, Vancouver was one win away from the Western Conference Final, ultimately losing to the Edmonton Oilers in seven games. The following year, amid the feud, the Canucks were in disarray, stumbling down the standings and missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The contention between Pettersson and Miller eventually led to the latter being shipped out of town the following season, when Zadorov was no longer part of the Canucks. Miller was traded to the New York Rangers in January 2025, with the Canucks receiving forward Filip Chytil, defenceman Victor Mancini and a conditional first-round pick in 2025 as part of the deal.

Zadorov, heading into his third campaign with the Boston Bruins, admits Miller is one of his favourite teammates he’s played with in his 13 seasons in the NHL, despite rubbing some people the wrong way. “Yeah, sometimes he’s too straightforward,” Zadorov added. “Sometimes he has bad days, and he’s a little bit grumpy, but that’s J.T., we love him.”

Zadorov might not have been on the scene when the drama unfolded in Vancouver, but he believes the situation was perceived similarly by both players and the rest of the hockey world.

“People who are in the hockey world know that too, but then you have 16-year-old idiots sitting on Twitter and tweeting out that sh*t, so it’s all getting blown up right now. The problem right now is everybody thinks they have a voice, and then they use it, and then everybody should care about that voice.”

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