Tuesday marks the second meeting between the New York Rangers and the Vancouver Canucks since they consummated the big J.T. Miller trade on Jan. 31 last season.
Miller, now the Rangers captain, scored an empty-net goal against the Canucks at Madison Square Garden nearly two months after the trade, on March 22. And he returns to Rogers Arena on Tuesday for the first time since the Canucks dealt him to the Rangers, amid his bitter dispute — not with the team but with Vancouver’s star center Elias Pettersson.
Considering that Miller played 440 games with the Canucks and had his three best seasons with them, including 103 points in 2023-24, his homecoming is a big deal.