J.T. Miller Leads with Old School Emotion

With six goals and six assists for 12 points over his last six games, J.T. Miller is finding a new gear as the playoff push is upon us. 

The 30-year-old centre is in the midst of his fifth season with the Vancouver Canucks and continues to grow in his role as one of the leaders of the group. He also connects with head coach Rick Tocchet to help channel his emotion in the right direction and be a jolt for the group when the team needs another on-ice leader.

Tocchet has seen a lot of growth in Miller’s game as well as his leadership qualities this season. They say you learn a lot from losing and it seems like one of the things that Miller has learned in the previous years is that losing sucks and the NHL is a tough league where failure can snowball in a hurry.

“When things aren't going his way, he’s dealing with it a lot quicker than he did in the past, how to manage whatever the issue was,” said Tocchet. “I give him a lot of credit. He's worked on some parts of the mental aspect of his game. I think that's helped his overall game. I’ve got to give him a lot of credit because he knows his process to keep himself in a good frame of mind.”

Coming off his first All-Star appearance, Miller has scored nine goals in 13 games. And at five-on-five, he’s only been on ice for three goals against since the All-Star break at the beginning of February. 

“I feel good, my timing is good,” said Miller. “I think that's a big thing. Sometimes I'm working really hard and not really in the right spot. I think since that Chicago game I felt a little better. It's not that my legs aren't there all the time. Like I said, this game is so timing based, I think guys will tell you, you feel like you’re skating laps and you’re never in the right spot, and I feel like my instincts right now are just a little sharper, it’s allowing me to be in the right place and once that happens everything else kind of takes care of itself.”

Miller is on pace to have his first 100-point season in the NHL and an interesting note is that Miller has never averaged under 20 minutes a game in his four seasons as a Canucks. This year, Miller is averaging 19:40 per game and is finding that he is noticing a difference even though it’s just a minute or two most nights. 

He does credit it to being able to control leads and not have to be on the ice every second shift for the final five minutes of a game. Miller is still a prominent piece of the power play but has seen his time on the penalty kill dip. Though his PK time is down, his impact while a man down still remains. Miller is the eighth-ranked forward when you average out shorthanded ice time per game but he leads the team with two shorthanded goals this season. 

Top players make big plays and that’s what Miller has been doing all season long for the Canucks. He leads with emotion and longtime linemate Brock Boeser likes the way that Miller leads by example on the ice. 

“He's old school, works super hard, he's physical, can make plays and score. He's a big driver for our team and he's been doing a great job,” said Boeser. “I think that's just part of his competitive nature and he's the guy that steps up. He's done it ever since he's been here, so, we’ve got to make sure that we get everyone on board.”

Tocchet looks at Miller as a guy who the players look to for in-game adjustments as well as motivation. It’s often that you’ll see a pre-faceoff huddle where four players are locked in on Miller while he draws up a play.

“He’s a polarizing guy, and he really wants to win,” said Tocchet. “He has ideas and I think a lot of his ideas are good. That's why guys will look to him because they want answers.”

As much as Miller leads with emotion, Tocchet has been impressed with Miller learning to be honest with himself and the coaching staff this season. It shows a level of maturity and understanding that has done nothing but help Miller grow into the player that he is today.

“I think when there's challenges and there's a matchup I want, he doesn't shy away from it,” said Tocchet. “J.T. wants to take on those challenges and if it doesn't go his way, he's the first guy to say ‘hey, that didn't go well, or I didn't play well’. He knows when he plays well and when he doesn’t, and he's not afraid to say it either way. That's a big thing for him.”

Miller continues to grow and lead in the room. Through it all, he’s the most vocal Canuck in the dressing room and does a great job keeping things light and bringing a smile to his teammates’ faces. 

With the playoffs fast approaching, it should be noted that Miller has the second-most games of playoff experience on the Canucks’ roster. Ian Cole has played in 116 NHL playoff games and Miller has been in 78.

The team continues to ramp up as the postseason treads closer and closer and Miller is ready to take on the role of being a go-to player and leader for this Canucks team when the games mean the most.