J.T. Miller Unwilling to Waive No-Trade For Rangers

It’s hard to believe that the New York Rangers and J.T. Miller are already in this spot with trade rumors. If it seems familiar, Miller was in this same situation last season with the Vancouver Canucks, before they dealt him to New York. Just 12 months after the trade, and fresh off giving Miller the captaincy, the Rangers are heading into a retool, and the status of their forward is in question.

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While Miller could be a sound trade chip, Pierre LeBrun revealed on TSN’s Insider Trading that people need to relax a bit with any rumors.

“J.T. Miller…his name’s already out there being bandied about, I’m not quite sure why; Miller has no intention of waiving his no move clause and the Rangers have no intention of going to him to ask to waive it.”

It’s understandably a bad look to trade your new captain less than a year after giving him the letter. However, after giving up just a first-round pick, Filip Chytil, and Victor Mancini to acquire him, the Rangers could easily re-acquire similar or even better assets if they did flip Miller at the deadline. While it’d be a good idea in theory, the prospect of asking him to waive his no-trade clause and souring the relationship is something they must consider.

J.T. Miller is Part of the Rangers’ Solution

The Rangers already told Artemi Panarin that he won’t be re-signing with the team in the offseason. The assets that New York will acquire at the deadline for the star winger are worth more to them than signing him to a long-term deal.

New York wants to avoid going into a complete rebuild. They have the pieces to do a quick retool, with veterans like Miller, Adam Fox, and Igor Shesterkin. If they can eventually unlock Alexis Lafreniere’s potential more consistently, it’d also be a massive help.

Some may argue that Miller’s continued presence on teams that implode warrants further investigation. However, the Rangers see something in their new captain, along with Team USA general manager Bill Guerin, who demanded that Miller be on the Olympic team to help locker room chemistry. It would make it seem like his reputation as a non-team player is completely overblown.

Next: 3 Potential Trade Destinations for Calgary Flames’ Nazem Kadri