Rangers Activate J.T. Miller From Injured Reserve
The Rangers have activated forward J.T. Miller from injured reserve ahead of tonight’s clash with the Sabres, Mollie Walker of the New York Post relays. They have an open roster spot, so there’s no need for a corresponding transaction.
Miller hasn’t played since Dec. 20 due to an upper-body injury, keeping him out of a seven-game stretch that included the Winter Classic. Outside of the resounding outdoor victory, the Blueshirts haven’t fared very well without their captain, going 2-3-2 to fall to a 20-18-6 record on the year that has them third-last in the Eastern Conference.
After missing the playoffs last season, the Rangers’ possession game has improved by several degrees under head coach Mike Sullivan, but has been plagued by a lack of finishing ability. Perhaps no player better encapsulates those struggles than Miller, who’s having his worst offensive showing in seven years. The Rangers gave up a first-round pick and young center Filip Chytil to net Miller from the Canucks last year and named him captain at the beginning of this season, but he’s responded with a conservative 10 goals and 22 points in 35 games.
The 32-year-old Miller is seventh on the team in scoring outright and fifth in points per game despite averaging nearly 21 minutes of ice time. He has provided value in other areas, leading the team with a 59.9 faceoff win percentage and ranking fourth with 74 hits, but his -11 rating is second-worst on the team behind William Cuylle.
For a team missing its starting goalie and top defenseman, as well as multiple depth forwards, they’ll take any help they can get, though. Miller will skate as the Rangers’ second-line left winger with Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafrenière in his return, according to Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic.
Injury Notes: Rangers, Capitals, Monahan
Colin Stephenson of Newsday Sports reported that Rangers captain J.T. Miller remains in a red no-contact jersey in practice this morning, while fellow forward Noah Laba was also a limited participant, skating on his own.
Miller has been out since December 20 after sustaining a hit versus Philadelphia, injuring his right shoulder. Subsequently, he was forced to miss the Winter Classic. Initially listed as week-to-week, the 32-year-old’s scoring has taken a step backwards so far this season, with 22 points in 35 games and a -11. However, once healthy, the veteran will lean into his imposing style and leadership on Team USA in the upcoming Olympic Games.
Meanwhile, Laba is also week-to-week with an upper-body injury, after taking a hard hit from Tom Wilson on New Year’s Eve. The rookie was an everyday player before the injury, with 12 points in 42 games on Head Coach Mike Sullivan’s third line. In his absence, 35-year-old depth forward Justin Dowling has slotted in from the AHL, getting to make his Rangers debut under the bright lights in Miami.
New York hosts Utah tomorrow night, and will do so without Miller or Laba. It is safe to assume neither will return for another week or so, but the club hopes their resounding Winter Classic win over Florida will kickstart a playoff push in the New Year.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Tarik El-Bashir of Monumental Sports Network provided several injury updates on the Capitals: Tom Wilson is receiving further evaluation, and a better indication on a return time frame should come tomorrow. Aliaksei Protas is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Finally, Justin Sourdif and Jakob Chychrun are absent, but just due to maintenance. Wilson left last night’s game, seeming to suffer an awkward ankle injury. The team desperately hopes he won’t be out long, as the 31-year-old is possibly having his best season yet, in year 13. Wilson has been a force, leading the team with 42 points in 41 games, while still maintaining his usual wrecking ball physicality. Such output is a new level for the veteran who has a career high of 65 points, coming last season. Protas, on the other hand, missed last night’s game, his first absence of the year. The towering power forward has produced right on track with last season’s 30-goal, 66-point breakout, and thankfully, should return quickly. Washington is right back in action tomorrow night, taking on Anaheim at home, where Wilson and Protas’ presence will be watched closely.
- Ahead of today’s matinee action against Pittsburgh, Columbus will be missing Sean Monahan again, as reported by Jeff Svoboda, official team reporter. The center hasn’t played since December 28, with no official injury designation listed, making today his fourth straight game sidelined. Monahan, 31, had a strong campaign in his first as a Jacket last season, posting 57 points in 54 games. Things have not gone as to plan this year, with 19 in 37 contests, as Monahan has rotated at times with fellow veteran Charlie Coyle between second and third line center duties. As noted by Svoboda, the club hopes Monahan can return sometime this week. Currently at the bottom of a very deep Metropolitan Division, the Blue Jackets face an uphill battle to end their five year postseason drought.
Evening Notes: Horvat, Miller, Avalanche, Anderson
The New York Islanders are dealing with some additional concerns from their difficult loss to the Utah Mammoth earlier today. According to Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News, center Bo Horvat was apparently doubled over in pain on the bench and left the game in the third period.
The Islanders didn’t offer any updates to Horvat’s status after the game. Still, Andrew Gross of Newsday relayed a note from head coach Patrick Roy that Horvat is expected to meet with the team’s medical staff tomorrow.
Any more missed time by Horvat would obviously hurt New York’s competitive chances leading up to the Olympic Break in February. Tonight was Horvat’s third game back since returning from a separate injury, when he missed five games in mid-December. The team went 2-2-1 in his absence.
Other evening updates:
- After sharing that Matthew Tkachuk wouldn’t be available for the Winter Classic tomorrow, the visiting team will also be without one of their better forwards. According to Mollie Walker of the New York Post, the New York Rangers captain J.T. Miller won’t be able to return from his upper-body injury for tomorrow’s game. Miller, who hasn’t played since December 20th, was given a week-to-week recovery timeline, which would have made a potential return tomorrow relatively early.
- The Colorado Avalanche may be without a few depth forwards for their upcoming road trip through the Southeastern United States. Earlier today, Corey Misiak of the Denver Post passed along an update from head coach Jared Bednar, who shared that Gavin Brindley and Joel Kiviranta are each dealing with lower-body injuries. Neither injury is considered long-term, though Bednar admitted that the team may need to recall an extra forward for the three-game trip.
- In tonight’s chaotic matchup between the Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens, the latter is dealing with some injury concerns up front. The Canadiens announced that Josh Anderson had exited the game due to injury. The veteran winger scored one goal on his only shot of the game, skating in 9:36 of the action.
Rangers’ J.T. Miller Out Week-To-Week
12/22/25: The Rangers dropped their first game since Miller’s injury by a 2-1 score to the Nashville Predators yesterday, but after the game The Athletic’s Vince Z. Mercogliano provided some additional reporting on Miller’s status. He wrote that Miller is out “with a suspected right-shoulder injury” and cited a league source who “stressed [Miller would] be back before the Olympic break in February and available to play for Team USA if selected.”
That’s something that was indicated yesterday in the original coverage of Miller’s injury, but today it’s only been further underscored that Miller’s availability for the upcoming Olympic tournament does not appear to be in much doubt.
What appears to be in a little bit more doubt is Miller’s odds of selection for the tournament, rather than his chances of being healthy. The Athletic’s Peter Baugh covered the topic last week, listing Miller at the time as “likely” to be selected, adding that the fact that Team USA head coach Mike Sullivan is also the Rangers head coach “certainly doesn’t hurt his chances.”
12/21/25: The injuries continue to pile up for the New York Rangers. Captain J.T. Miller is expected to miss a few weeks with an upper-body injury sustained on Saturday, per NHL.com’s Dan Rosen. The injury occured on a reverse hit from Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Nick Seeler that seemed to catch Miller near his right shoulder. Despite the multi-week timeline, the Rangers aren’t concerned that this injury will effect Miller’s availability for the Winter Olympics. That’s great news, as he’s sure to be a prime option to assume a center role in Team USA’s bottom-six.
Miller has helped buoy the offense in the wake of injury to defenseman Adam Fox and illness to star winger Artemi Panarin. The captain has four points in his last five games and 22 points in 35 games this season. He ranks fourth on the Rangers in scoring behind Panarin, Fox, and Mika Zibanejad. Panarin returned to the lineup on Saturday, though Fox is still on the mend. That will continue the rotating door of star injuries in New York, who will have to now lean on Panarin and Zibanejad to boost a Rangers offense that has only scored two goals in their last three games.
Miller’s Olympic availability will be a central story as he recovers from this new injury. He played in all four games at the 2025 Four-Nations Face-Off but didn’t manage any scoring. That was just the first time that Miller has joined USA’s Men’s team for an international tournament – though he did play one game with Team North America at the 2017 World Cup, with no scoring. The 32-year-old center has been an electric scorer in the NHL, though, with 354 points in 314 games since 2022. That includes a 99-point season and a career-high 103-point season, both recorded during his six years with the Vancouver Canucks. He is now back where he started his career, and will look to rise back to that point-per-game scoring on the other side of an end-of-year injury.
East Injury Updates: Miller, Quick, Maple Leafs
As the New York Rangers attempt to spark a push up the Eastern Conference standings tonight during their game against the St. Louis Blues, they’ll need to do so without the on-ice help of captain J.T. Miller. Newsday’s Colin Stephenson reported today that Miller remains out with an upper-body injury on a day-to-day timeline. While the injury appears highly unlikely to keep Miller out of action for very long, it is a discouraging development nonetheless in what has been a troubling start to the season for both Miller and the Rangers as a whole. The Rangers traded two promising young players in Filip Chytil and Victor Mancini, as well as a first-round pick, to the Vancouver Canucks to acquire Miller, and at the time the move seemed easily defensible as Miller had very recently scored 37 goals and 103 points. Centers capable of that level of production are very rarely made available, and since the Rangers already had a cornerstone defenseman (Adam Fox) and franchise goalie (Igor Shesterkin), paying that price to add a true number-one center was seen as a “win” for the team.
But since Miller has arrived in New York, he’s only been able to match the level of play he set in Vancouver on a sporadic basis. Miller scored a solid 35 points in 32 games last season, but the Rangers failed to reach the playoffs. So far this year, Miller has struggled to produce as consistently, and has just 12 points in 22 games. That’s a 45-point 82-game pace. For a player making $8MM against the cap with the clear expectation to be a leading scorer on a playoff team, that’s simply not enough production for the Rangers to get where they want to go as a team. While this injury will sideline Miller for a short while, it won’t rob him of his chance to turn around his season whenever he recovers and returns to the ice. For the Rangers to restore their status as true Stanley Cup contenders, a status they lived up to by reaching two Eastern Conference Finals in three seasons, they’ll need Miller healthy and firing on all cylinders.
Other injury notes from the Eastern Conference:
- Stephenson also reported that veteran Rangers backup goalie Jonathan Quick has a lower-body injury and is still being evaluated. While the Rangers have a young, capable No. 3 goalie in their organization in the form of Dylan Garand, who was an AHL All-Star last season, any extended absence faced by Quick would damage the Rangers’ ability to turn around their season. Through six games played this year, Quick has turned back the clock, putting forward performances reminiscent of his prime years backstopping the Los Angeles Kings to Stanley Cup championships. Quick is 3-3-0 in his six starts with a .944 save percentage and 1.69 goals-against-average. While he’s 39 years old and a pending UFA, he’s making the case to remain the Rangers’ backup for next season with his form early in 2025-26. His current lower-body injury threatens the momentum he’s built so far this year, though, and the Rangers are likely hoping his absence is a brief one.
- Toronto Maple Leafs blueliners Chris Tanev and Marshall Rifai were on the ice before practice today, according to The Hockey News’ Nick Barden. Tanev, 35, hasn’t played since he was helped off the ice in the team’s Nov. 1 game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Tanev remains without a firm recovery timeline, though he is not expected to return anytime soon. Rifai, 27, has spent most of his time in the Maple Leafs organization at the AHL level, save for two games in 2023-24. He’s working his way back from wrist surgery and will likely be assigned to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies whenever his recovery concludes.
Metropolitan Notes: Rangers, Dowd, Grebenkin
The Rangers will be without a key forward tonight against Utah as Peter Baugh of The Athletic relays (Twitter link) that center J.T. Miller is listed as out day-to-day due to an upper-body injury. In his first full season back with New York following a midseason trade in 2024-25, the 32-year-old is logging 20:41 per game and taking a regular turn on both special teams units. However, as has been the case for a lot of the team so far, offense has been hard to come by as he has just six goals and six assists in 22 games despite seeing a lot of ice time on the top line.
Meanwhile, Baugh also noted that defenseman William Borgen remains listed as day-to-day with his upper-body injury which suggests he’ll miss a second straight game. He has been a regular on the second pairing for the Rangers this season, picking up three points, 24 blocks, and 26 hits in 19 outings.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Capitals center Nic Dowd was a full participant in practice today but will miss his third straight game tonight, relays Sammi Silber of The Hockey News. The 35-year-old has missed the last two contests due to an upper-body injury. Dowd has a goal and four assists in 19 games so far this season while logging over 15 minutes per night of playing time. Sonny Milano has played the last two games in Dowd’s absence and is expected to stay in the lineup for their game tonight against Tampa Bay.
- The hope was that Flyers winger Nikita Grebenkin would be able to grab a hold of a full-time spot in the lineup this season. However, he has been scratched in seven of 19 games so far and has played just 9:35 per night in the dozen appearances he has made. However, Jackie Spiegel of the Philadelphia Inquirer mentions that the organization is okay with how the 22-year-old has been handled, even with the limited action. Grebenkin is waiver-exempt so if it’s decided that he could benefit from a bigger role and more ice time, they will be able to assign him to AHL Lehigh Valley to get him that opportunity.
Evening Notes: Knoblauch, Wood, Miller, Rangers
Edmonton GM Stan Bowman told Ryan Rishaug of TSN that extension talks with Head Coach Kris Knoblauch continue, with no foreseen issues ahead. Having taken the Oilers to new heights, and with a window still as open as ever, keeping Connor McDavid‘s former OHL coach around is a no-brainer.
Speaking of the Oilers’ mega star, Bowman did not provide any updates on McDavid, other than that they’re happy to play the long game if needed, and talk consistently with his agent, Judd Moldaver.
Having acquired Connor Ingram earlier today, Bowman touched on the goalie front as well. Apparently, no talks have emerged with Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard yet, and that Ingram has been brought in as another good option for the club.
It’s fair to say that running it back with Skinner and Pickard again this year has been a bit unexpected. Yet it appears Bowman will keep a close eye on each, evaluating their long-term prospects in Edmonton, especially with an intriguing addition coming into the fold.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Brooks Bratten, Nashville’s beat reporter, shared today that top prospect Matthew Wood is week-to-week with a lower-body injury, an ailment sustained in the team’s Gold Star Showcase scrimmage last week. The 2023 first-round-pick has made a strong case to remain with the big club so far in camp, after a six-game trial fresh out of the NCAA last season. Now set to miss time, eyes turn to fellow key prospects Brady Martin and Joakim Kemell, who become more likely to make the team given Wood’s injury. Additionally, the Predators claimed Tyson Jost on waivers today.
- Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic updated today that J.T. Miller remains sidelined since an unassuming lower body injury sustained in practice two days ago. Thankfully, the captain’s ailment isn’t thought to be serious, so perhaps the Rangers are content with being patient. Meanwhile, Sam Carrick was seen back in a red no-contact jersey, and Casey Fitzgerald was absent, but due to being waived today rather than injury. The former Sabres defenseman is expected to be a key piece for AHL Hartford for the second straight season.
Metro Notes: Miller, Ovechkin, Milano
A concerning story emerged out of New York today, as J.T. Miller left practice after an apparent leg injury. The new Rangers captain was seen lunging after a loose puck and came up favoring his leg, in a video posted by Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic.
Fortunately, Peter Baugh of The Athletic updated this evening that Miller is expected to be fine, a few days missed at worst. The 32-year-old will be relied on heavily in his second stint with the Rangers, as they seek a big turnaround this season, as outlined earlier today.
Meanwhile, the Capitals had a pair of key updates on their forward core today. Bailey Johnson of The Washington Post confirmed Alex Ovechkin has been fully cleared for contact and was a regular participant in practice. Head coach Spencer Carbery told Johnson that the legend had no setbacks and looked the part.
Carbery does not expect Ovechkin to appear in tomorrow’s preseason tilt against the Blue Jackets, but he could do so in the last two tune-up games for the Capitals.
Johnson also noted that Sonny Milano is sidelined with an upper-body injury, which is unrelated to the ailment that cost Milano almost the entirety of last season. It is unfortunate timing for the 29-year-old former top prospect as he looks to return to the Capitals lineup, having carved a role as a solid contributor in the last few seasons.
Rangers Name J.T. Miller Captain
After parting ways with their previous captain via trade, the Rangers have found their new one the same way. J.T. Miller will wear the “C” for New York this season after last year’s midseason pickup, Vince Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic relays.
Miller, 32, will be the 29th captain in franchise history as he begins his first full season in his second stint with the team. He’ll be just their second captain since 2018. The team went without one for over four years after trading away Ryan McDonagh at the deadline before anointing Jacob Trouba ahead of the 2022-23 season. They’d spent the last nine months with the position vacant after dealing Trouba to the Ducks in December.
“Since his arrival last season, J.T. immediately became a leader for our group and exemplifies how we want to conduct ourselves both on and off the ice,” general manager Chris Drury said. “Congratulations to J.T. and his entire family on an incredibly meaningful achievement and we’re confident he will continue to represent our organization with class, commitment, and integrity.”
Miller, a first-round pick by the Blueshirts back in 2011, looked rejuvenated after they re-acquired him in a blockbuster trade with the Canucks in January. After three straight seasons with Vancouver above a point per game, he dipped back below the mark to start the season amid a leave of absence and a reported feud with fellow star forward Elias Pettersson. But after being put in the middle of a unit with William Cuylle and Mika Zibanejad in Manhattan, Miller finished the year with a 13-22–35 line in 32 appearances while recording 76 hits and winning 57.6% of his faceoffs.
The high-energy pivot will now be entrusted as the emotional focal point of the club as they enter a pivotal campaign. The club has a new head coach in Mike Sullivan and is looking for a more stable long-term outlook following a 12-month window that saw them drop from regular-season champs to missing the playoffs entirely. They’re also facing the potential loss of star winger Artemi Panarin to unrestricted free agency at the end of the year.
He isn’t the team’s only leadership change. The club also said Vincent Trocheck has been added as an alternate captain, replacing Chris Kreider, who was dealt to Anaheim earlier in the offseason. Panarin, Adam Fox, and Mika Zibanejad will continue holding ‘A’s alongside him.
Image courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images.
Mika Zibanejad Embraces Move To Wing
For a team in transition — including a new head coach in Mike Sullivan and the trade of longtime fan-favorite Chris Kreider — the New York Rangers are also looking to determine what position former 90-point forward Mika Zibanejad will play this upcoming season.
NHL.com’s Dan Rosen reports that Zibanejad will likely start training camp as a right wing alongside center J.T. Miller. As Rosen outlines, Zibanejad and Sullivan met in the player’s native Sweden, where Zibanejad expressed both his developing chemistry with Miller and his desire to continue playing alongside him.
“As part of that conversation, one of the things he expressed to me is even though he lined up on the wing on the face-offs, he felt they were interchangeable in the sense that they could read off each other,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan added that both players are comfortable handling faceoffs regardless of their position on the ice and playing down low in the defensive zone. To that point, Zibanejad won faceoffs last season at a 52 percent clip, one of the highest marks of his career. However, that percentage pales in comparison to Miller’s 54.3 percent career win rate, which included a 57.6 percent mark last year. Both players have also established themselves as effective penalty killers with the ability to score shorthanded goals.
And while Sullivan acknowledged a desire for Zibanejad and Miller to continue building on their pre-existing chemistry, he also noted that each centering their own line, along with Vincent Trocheck, could create a solid foundation for the top three lines.
“Those are three pretty high-quality centermen,” Sullivan said. “I think it’s going to play itself out, but certainly the conversations I’ve had with Mika to this point I would envision us exploring keeping Mika with J.T.”
Zibanejad played in all 82 games last season, recording his fifth consecutive 20-goal campaign. However, his 62 points were his lowest total since the injury-shortened 2020-21 season. The 32-year-old also produced a -22 rating (the second lowest of his career), and his average ice time of 18:46 per game was his lowest since the 2017-18 season.
Zibanejad has spent nine seasons in the Big Apple and currently ranks eighth all-time in franchise history in goals (250) and points (589). He’s also tied for sixth in franchise history with 11 shorthanded goals and tied for second with seven hat tricks.
However, the forward isn’t just a franchise fixture. He continues to produce and is only two seasons removed from a 39-goal, 91-point campaign. A return to that form, whether at center or on the wing, would go a long way toward the franchise’s goal of returning to contention.