According to a report from Josh Yohe of The Athletic, the Vancouver Canucks turned down a trade offer from the New York Rangers that featured a swap of forwards Mika Zibanejad for JT Miller.
From Yohe:
Earlier this season, the Rangers offered struggling center Mika Zibanejad to Vancouver in return for Miller.
The Canucks turned down the offer.
It’s no secret that the Rangers are very interested in Miller, who was drafted by New York in 2011 and played his first six NHL seasons there.- Josh Yohe
Both Zibanejad and Miller have featured in trade rumors all season long and it might make sense from the outside for the two players to switch places, but the fact is that Miller is a much better, more complete player than Zibanejad. It's notable that while Miller is having a down season, he's still a point per game player with 8 goals and 29 points in 30 games. He managed a career high 37 goals and 103 points last season, but has been mired by apparent personal issues and a rumored dispute with teammate Elias Pettersson this season. All of this is to say that Miller is the better player of the two, so it's not entirely surprising that Canucks GM Patrik Allvin turned down this 1 for 1 swap.
It's also not surprising though that Rangers GM Chris Drury offered up Zibanejad in an effort to acquire Miller because it's becoming increasingly clear that Zibanejad's time in The Big Apple is drawing to a close. His play is apathetic and the coach, management and even the fans appear to have soured on him this season. He's just two seasons removed from a 39 goal, 91 point performance but has managed just 8 goals and 24 points in 39 games for the struggling Rangers this season.
So... where do we go from here?
It's not like Zibanejad is washed up and devoid of trade value. It's also not like Miller is a complete untouchable. In my opinion, there's the basis for a fair and even trade featuring these two players. The real question is, what would the Rangers have to add in order to entice the Canucks? Or, maybe Drury himself doesn't feel like he needs to add anything. Again, Zibanejad is still a quality player and he could reignite his career with a fresh start. Maybe Drury and the Rangers simply wait this out? Wait for the situation in Vancouver to get so toxic that the Canucks have to reconsider his offer?
Whatever ends up happening, this is a fascinating proposition from a team and a GM that's looking to make serious changes and isn't afraid to make a risky move.
