Multiple sources have confirmed that the Vancouver Canucks are trading forward J.T. Miller along with defense prospects Erik Brannstrom and Jackson Dorrington to the New York Rangers for Center Filip Chytil, defense prospect Victor Mancini, and a top-13 protected first-round pick in 2025. If the pick lands in that range, it will convert to an unprotected pick in 2026.
Miller was supposed to play in Vancouver’s game on Friday versus the Dallas Stars but agreed to waive his no-move clause to let the trade go through.
More NHL: Exploring Impact of JT Miller Return to New York Rangers
The Rangers are listed at +124 to make the playoffs as they currently sit with a 24-22-2 record and trail five points behind the Blue Jackets for the second wild card spot in the East. New York is also +1600 to win the Eastern Conference, which seems more likely now following the Miller trade, but I would hold off on running to bet on the Blueshirts as New York has the fifth-hardest remaining strength of schedule.
Miller has nine goals and 26 assists for 35 points in 40 games with the Canucks this season. His point-per-game average is impressive considering the media circus that has taken over the hockey world over recent weeks with the growing tension between Miller and teammate Elias Pettersson.
The 6-foot-1 forward set a career high with 37 goals and 103 points last season, helping the Canucks secure a 50-23-9 record and Pacific Division title. He is in just the second season of his seven-year, $56 million contract that carries an annual cap hit of $8 million. The Ohio native was originally drafted by the Rangers 15th overall in the 2011 NHL Draft and has gone on to record 246 goals and 668 points in 833 career games.
Vancouver is -142 to make the playoffs as they currently sit just one point behind the Flames for the second wild card spot in the West. If the Canucks make the postseason, a bet on any Canadian team to win the cup could be looked at with +290 odds.
Chytil, 25, has been involved in Miller trade talks for some time. The Czech forward was the Rangers’ 21st overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft and has been a letdown so far with 164 points in 378 games played over eight NHL seasons. He’s shown flashes of something like his 45-point campaign during the 2022-23 season but has been limited up till this point after struggling to stay healthy.
Mancini, 22-year-old Michigan native, was selected by the Rangers in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The rookie defenceman has a goal and four assists for five in 15 games so far this season but has mainly spent time at the AHL level with the Hartford Wolfpack, where he recorded 13 points in 30 games
Senators fans will remember the name Erik Brannstrom as the former first round pick for Otttawa in 2017. The 25-year-old blueliner hasn’t panned out at the NHL level with the Rangers being his third team after being dealt to the Canucks for recording just 66 points and a -13 in 266 games played with the Senators over six seasons.
