Ansar Khan of MLive reports that the Detroit Red Wings have re-signed forward Drew Miller to a one-year contract extension at $1.025MM. The Red Wings also announced the deal.
Miller was an unrestricted free agent. Injuries limited Miller to just 28 games last season where he had 2 points (1-1). The move is a curious one only in that the Wings are still waiting to hear from speedy center Darren Helm, and expected to make a serious run at Steven Stamkos, as well as other marquee free agents should Stamkos be retained by Tampa Bay or sign elsewhere. Additionally, it seemed that the Wings were more willing to embrace the youth movement they’ve been hinting at for several seasons. Miller would conceivably take ice time away from the younger players Detroit intends on giving greater opportunities–specifically Andreas Athanasiou, Tomas Jurco, Teemu Pulkkinen, and Anthony Mantha. The re-signing of Miller could very well be a depth move and nothing more. However, the Wings insistence on playing veterans–despite many of them being past their best years–says otherwise.
Miller is known for his penalty killing capabilities, but brings little else to the table in terms of goal scoring or other production as his numbers have fallen since his career high of 25 points (14-11) in 2011-12. The financial deal is slightly below the $1.35MM Miller earned in his last contract, which was a three-year deal signed before the 2013-14 season.