Insider: “That’s The Final Straw” for JT Miller & Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks' 5-1 drubbing at the hands of the LA Kings Thursday night (which followed a 6-1 thumping to the Winnipeg Jets two nights earlier) may have been "the final straw" for JT Miller and the Canucks, according to insider Darren Dreger.

Speaking on Flamesnation podcast, Dreger discussed the fact that it might have been rock bottom for Miller, who had another disastrous night.

When I saw the media avail of JT Miller yesterday (Friday), I went, 'ooooh... This has the aroma and the look of a guy who's had enough'... It can either go one of two ways: either GM Patrik Allvin brings Miller's camp a trade opportunity, or maybe JT just steps up and says, 'Hey, I've got a no-move clause, I've got 3 young kids and I'm going to protect my family, so you can drag me through the mud all you want, but I'm not waiving it until the offseason.'

Head coach Rick Tocchet wasn't happy with the team's performance in that loss to the Kings, in which Miller was a minus-3 with zero shots on net.

“You get punched in the mouth and you get back up,” Tocchet told reporters. “You can't quit on yourself or your teammates."

“It doesn't matter what I do, I'm on the wrong side right now, and it's on me," said Miller, who hasn't had a point in five games.

"It seems like every time he's on the ice, something bad happens," added Tocchet. "I think he's got some bad luck, but he's also got some reads that he's got to look at himself right now and focus on some of these reads. I think he's trying. I think the focus level has to get a little higher.”

Dreger summed it up once again:

Something has to give. Plain and simple. And based on the aroma that came out of that building, it does feel like that's the final straw.

Canucks insider Rick Dhaliwal added that there's "a lot of activity around Miller today."

JT Miller has not been asked to waive his no trade clause yet but there seems to be a lot activity around Miller today.

Some think the Canucks are working hard on this.
— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) January 18, 2025