NHL Rumors: Will J.T. Miller be traded this summer?
Anthony Scultore
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J.T. Miller is still a member of the Vancouver Canucks despite all the trade talk in the past few weeks.
Free Agent Frenzy came and went with some big names changing their home address. Johnny Gaudreau provided the biggest stunner by choosing the Columbus Blue Jackets late on Wednesday.
There were even some trades that saw Brent Burns and Max Pacioretty both end up on the Carolina Hurricanes.
So when will one of the biggest names on the trade bait list actually get moved? It doesn’t sound like anytime soon.
“Well, I didn’t get any calls today,” Canucks GM Patrik Allvin said yesterday. “Hey, he was our best player last year… teams are kicking tires, checking in. It hasn’t gone much further than that. We’re really excited to have J.T. here for another year. I believe he’s excited and ready to come back, and who knows, anything could happen over the next couple of weeks, months, but we’re happy to have him back.”
J.T. Miller likely in-season trade
Miller, 29, was the Canucks leading scorer with 99 points in 80 games last season. He has one year left on his current deal which comes at a very affordable $5.25M cap hit that teams are interested in.
Here’s the big issue for Vancouver, they’ve set the ask too high for a player almost everyone knows wants to become a UFA next summer. Speculation has Miller looking for a new deal in the 5-7 year range with an $8.5M AAV at the very least. Many teams attached to him, like the New York Rangers, can’t afford that.
According to multiple insiders, Vancouver wants three to four pieces in return that would include at least one top prospect and a first-round pick. That’s very likely why no one is biting but it doesn’t mean they still won’t.
There are a few teams that have some cap space to accommodate a Miller trade. The New York Islanders were reportedly interested and may have been close to a deal that supposedly fell apart on the draft floor. Another could be the new Jersey Devils, who were spurned by Johnny Gaudreau on Wednesday.
What appears clear is that a trade is inevitable and will most likely occur during the season. However, if the Canucks wait too long they may not get max value. Once Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews decide to tell the Chicago Blackhawks they want to be traded those teams in on Miller will have options.
Basic supply and demand principles.
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