It’s no secret the Boston Bruins are shopping the league for a potential trade. It’s been no secret that J.T. Miller is one of the Vancouver Canucks top trade pieces.
It seemed like only a matter of time before the two were linked.
Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reported last night that the Bruins were one of the teams showing interest in the Canucks forward.
Seravalli: "The other three teams that I've heard that have been interested in JT Miller are the Boston Bruins, Minnesota Wild, and Calgary Flames." #Canucks
— Sportsnet 650 (@Sportsnet650) January 25, 2022
Miller has been one of the best and most consistent players on a Canucks team that has not been that. He has 39 points in just as many games this season and figures to be one of the top trade targets for contenders.
J.T. Miller would be a perfect fit in Boston
Miller has rumored in trade targets for a couple years now and every time he gets brought up, I have thought the Bruins should be all in on him.
He’s a versatile forward who can player either wing or center if needed. His defense can be questionable at times, but he more than makes up for it on offense. His speed his one of his greatest weapons and he also has displayed some excellent passing abilities.
Miller no-look dish to the Captain 👀 pic.twitter.com/1Kf6vZVAwN
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) January 16, 2022
One of the concerns with Miller is he goes invisible at times where you don’t even notice if he’s out there. I wonder if that’s more indicative of the Canucks than of the Ohio native.
Miller would be a great piece on really any of the top three lines. I think if he were to be brought in, he should play in the top-six, but the way those two lines are playing as of late, I’m not sure you break it up. Although slotting in Miller for Craig Smith on the top line and then bumping Smith to the third would make a ton of sense and I think make that top line even more dangerous.
The cost? It would be a lot. Probably a prospect and a pick, at the very least. He’s still under contract for another year at $5.25 million so it’s a team-friendly cap hit for what he’s producing and he’s not simply a rental.
The other piece of the puzzle is if the Canucks are going to be sellers at the deadline. They’ve turned things around a bit with Bruce Boudreau replacing Travis Greene, but they still remain in second-to-last in the Pacific.
However, the rest of the Pacific is slipping as well and the Canucks are only eight points behind the Anaheim Ducks for third place and a playoff spot. If Vancouver strings together more wins, do they suddenly become playoff contenders and want to keep Miller for a run? We saw it last season with Nashville where the Predators looked like sure sellers, then won a ton of games and found themselves in the playoffs and kept everyone.
I do think the smart thing for the Canucks to do is trade Miller and the Bruins rightfully should be in on him. I don’t think acquiring him alone is enough for this team, the defense on the left side needs to be addressed. But he will certainly make the offense stronger if he was a bruins.