Should the Flyers be interested in acquiring J.T. Miller? What could a trade look like?

On Tuesday, Vancouver Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford set the NHL world ablaze when he bluntly confirmed that there is something amiss in the relationship between the teams two top centers.

Colleague Thomas Drance summed the days news up thusly : The veteran executive revealed explicitly what we already knew: that this largely disappointing season has been stilted and held back by locker room discord, specifically a fractured relationship between Canucks stars Elias Pettersson and J.T.

Miller , Drance wrote.

Advertisement The notion that one of them will have to go before the March 7 NHL trade deadline, and potentially much sooner, is only stronger now.

Theres already been rampant speculation and reporting regarding Miller in particular, who seems like the much likelier of the two to get moved.

Hes having a bit of a down year by his standards, with 9 goals and 25 assists for 34 points in 39 games, but Miller posted 103 points last season and 99 points in 2021-22.

Hes eclipsed 30 goals in each of the last three seasons, too.

The Flyers , of course, need a high-end center.

Miller qualifies as one.

Should they be interested, and maybe even take a swing? Lets discuss.

But first ...

Why Miller and not Pettersson? In some ways, the more logical target for the Flyers might be the 26-year-old Pettersson, whos five years younger than the 31-year-old Miller and arguably has a higher ceiling.

Pettersson posted 39 goals and 102 points in 2022-23.

Hes a legitimate No.

1 center when hes at the top of his game.

But Pettersson is in the first year of an eight-year contract carrying an annual cap hit of $11.6 million the fifth largest in the league this season.

Miller is also on a long-term deal, but at a more palatable $8 million annually for two fewer seasons than Pettersson.

And he, too, is a No.

1 center himself.

My guess here based on what Ive learned from covering the new regime here is that Petterssons massive deal isnt likely something the Flyers would risk.

If you acquire Pettersson, youre immediately saying hes the centerpiece of your rebuild and a No.

1 center that you believe can lead you to a Stanley Cup.

If that was the case, why would Vancouver want to move him? Further, Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones and general manager Daniel Briere would, I believe, prefer that any players they commit to for the long term be people they know deeply well something Jones himself indicated to me in a Q&A last month .

Advertisement By knowing them, you have a better chance of making the right decision, Jones said.

So, homegrown does matter.

Its like taking a car for a drive before you buy it, and maybe having it for a couple weeks.

They might not know Miller very well either, but, again, his contract isnt in the same realm as Petterssons.

Further, he did break into the league with the New York Rangers in 2012-13 under John Tortorella, so theres at least some insight there.

Miller would also give the Flyers some much-needed size in the top six with his thick 6-foot-1, 218-pound frame.

For someone that sturdy, Miller can still move, too.

Theres also the matter of cost.

Should the Flyers approach the Canucks about Pettersson, if Im Vancouver, Im insisting on Jett Luchanko.

The Flyers obviously love Luchanko, something Briere reiterated last week when expressed his dismay at the way the teenager was used in the recent World Junior Championships.

The Flyers may already have him penciled into the lineup for next season, and they may even believe hes a future No.

1 center himself.

Miller anchoring a center group with Luchanko, Noah Cates and Ryan Poehling could be a decent foursome, particularly if Luchanko is ready to go and Cates continues his impressive season.

Further, and perhaps most importantly, Pettersson has just 18 goals and 38 assists for 56 points in 76 games since last seasons All-Star break, nearly a full calendar year ago.

Thats not enough for his cap number.

Miller has 70 points in 71 games over that span, for comparison.

The potential fit Clearly, Miller would immediately become the Flyers best center.

Putting him with Travis Konecny and Owen Tippett would give the team a top line to be reckoned with nightly, or perhaps Miller could be a fit for rookie Matvei Michkov , giving a boost to the youngsters development.

Miller will turn 32 in March, so, yes, theres a chance he will slow down sooner rather than later.

But hes also stayed mostly healthy for the past few years, playing in 80 games in 2021-22 and 81 in 2022-23 and last season.

He should have some good years left, and be an effective player when the Flyers plan on competing again in 2026-27.

Advertisement In his midseason press conference last week, Briere didnt rule out the Flyers acquiring a center thats a bit on the older side, as an immediate boost and/or stop-gap solution while they attempt to further strengthen that position in the future.

If (an older center) makes sense, yes.

But theres a lot that goes into play with that, also, Briere said.

The length of the contract on the back end.

The AAV obviously is another one, and what its going to cost you.

If it does make sense, absolutely.

But in most cases with those older guys, it doesnt.

Most cases.

But not all.

And adding Miller wouldnt all of a sudden make the Flyers an old team.

Theyre still one of the youngest in the league.

There is risk, of course, as there is with any transaction.

Miller has the reputation of being prickly at times with a competition level that sometimes crosses the line, which means the potential that dressing room discord might follow him to his next destination.

But thats also why Briere and Jones have put such a priority on culture so that if a new player does come in and attempts to rock the boat, hes quickly put back into place by his teammates.

The potential trade Miller, an Ohio native, has a full no-movement clause and according to colleague Chris Johnston , likely will only waive it for U.S.-based teams in the East.

The Flyers are one of those, last time we checked a map.

According to CapWages, the Flyers currently are about $1.6 million under the salary cap.

That means a significant contract or two would have to go back to Vancouver to make the money work.

So any deal here between the two teams would probably have to start with Rasmus Ristolainen and the $5.1 million hes making for this season and the next two.

The Canucks could use a player like Ristolainen, too, perhaps to anchor their third defense pair.

Advertisement As for the entire deal, lets use this reported potential deal between the Canucks and Rangers for Miller for reference.

In that one, New York defenseman Ryan Lindgren , center Filip Chytil and a first-round pick may have been on the table.

Lindgren, 26, is younger than Ristolainen, 30, but hes also smaller and not having nearly as good of a season.

In regards to the Canucks replacing Miller with another center, perhaps they might be interested in Morgan Frost , too.

After all, Frost was drafted just a few places after Chytil in 2017, and his 0.49 points-per-game in his career is actually better than Chytils 0.43.

Frost brings the added benefit of not having a significant injury history, unlike Chytil, who has endured multiple concussions.

As for the first-round pick that would probably have to be involved, the Flyers still have three of those their own, along with those from Colorado and Edmonton .

They also have three 2025 second-round picks (their own, along with the Ducks and Blue Jackets ).

Parting with one of their later first-round picks would still allow them five picks in likely the top 50 of the 2025 draft.

(Top photo of J.T.

Miller and Samuel Ersson : Bob Frid / Imagn Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.