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Rangers Mix Up Forward Lines Again; A Few Thoughts on J.T. Miller

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Image from Lisa Gansky via Wikimedia Commons

Image from Lisa Gansky via Wikimedia Commons

The Rangers employed new forward lines at practice today, moving Kevin Hayes back to the third line center spot, and moving J.T. Miller onto Brassard’s wing:

Kreider – Stepan – Nash
Miller – Brassard – Zuccarello
Hagelin – Hayes – Fast
Glass – Moore – Sheppard

I think Hayes projects best as a center, so I’m glad to see him back in the middle. Interesting that now without Miller or Sheppard on his wing, he’s without a faceoff safety valve.

Steve Zipay notes that Lundqvist won’t go to Carolina, but will practice with the team Tuesday and Wednesday.

Zipay also notes that Klein (who is out with what he classifies as a broken forearm) guesses he’s about two weeks away from returning.

On J.T. Miller, I like him with Brassard and Zuccarello. I’ve often thought that Miller projects as a similar player to what Benoit Pouliot is now, and Pouliot obviously had a lot of success as the left wing on that line. In a much smaller sample, Miller has seen similar results in puck possession as Pouliot did with the pair (data from Puckalytics):

Of course Miller will make the semi-occasional gaffe that will make you wonder if he just woke up from an medium-heavy nap. Like Pouliot, I don’t think that will ever completely go away. Also like Pouliot, I don’t think it will prevent him from being an effective NHL player.

When Miller makes an error, however, he often finds his way to the bench for extended periods, which just as often leads to some venom launched from Ranger fans to his head coach. There’s a big difference between accepting a player’s faults and enabling a habit of complacency, though. Miller turned 22 last week; he’s not done developing as a player. Part of Vigneault’s job is help Miller reach his potential, which involves tightening up his focus as a player. Not every benching means that he doesn’t trust Miller on the ice, sometimes player development could be his main focus.

I don’t know what impact tying consistency of ice time to consistency of play will eventually have on what kind of player he becomes, but I can respect the effort regardless.


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