NEW YORK -- K'Andre Miller was back on the ice at Madison Square Garden for a morning skate Tuesday, but this will not be the dream return the Carolina Hurricanes defenseman was hoping for when he eyed the schedule.
Miller, who spent the previous five seasons here, will not play against the New York Rangers (7 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, MSG, SN1), the sixth straight game he'll miss because of a lower-body injury.
"Obviously, this is one of the games you mark on your calendar from whenever the schedule comes out," Miller said. "So yeah, this one stings a little bit, but I'll take the right approach to my body, my health. I think that's the most important thing and make sure I'm ready for a big push."
Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said Miller is close to returning but is not quite 100 percent and won't return until that is the case.
The Rangers traded Miller to the Hurricanes on July 1, and he immediately signed an eight-year, $60 million contract ($7.5 million average annual value).
The 25-year-old, who had 132 points (36 goals, 96 points) in 368 games with New York from 2020-25, was off to a strong start to this season with four points (two goals, two assists) in six games before sustaining his injury against the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 20.
"He couldn't have played much better at the start," Brind'Amour said. "I was so impressed. It's the range, it's the skating ability. We might be almost burned but we close it off just because we have got two extra feet of reach. And his skating ability fits perfectly, getting up the ice and doing everything. He was kind of doing it all for us there until he went out. That's a big piece we're missing."
Miller actually is one of three big defensemen Carolina is missing; Jaccob Slavin and Shayne Gostisbehere are also out with lower-body injuries. Slavin will miss his 10th straight game, and Gostisbehere his third in a row and sixth in seven.
The Hurricanes have lost three of their past four games and four of six after starting the season with five consecutive wins.
