K'Andre Miller growing into role on Rangers' blue line
K'Andre Miller of the Rangers checks Gabriel Landeskog of the Avalanche during the first period at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 8, 2021. Credit: Jim McIsaac
RALEIGH, N.C. — K’Andre Miller turned 22 on Friday. He spent his birthday playing in a first-place matchup between the Metropolitan Division-leading Rangers and second-place Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena, and lately he’s seemed to be more and more comfortable in his role as a top-four defenseman on a top-five NHL team.
"I’m getting into it a little bit more this year,’’ the native of St. Paul, Minnesota, said this week. "I’m being asked to do a little bit more, and I think just trying to find my game overall and bringing that same consistency every night has been my biggest takeaway from this year.’’
Miller, the second of three first-round picks by the Rangers in the 2018 NHL Draft and the only one of the three currently on the team, broke in impressively in the weird 56-game COVID season of 2020-21. After just a few games, he moved up to the second defense pair with Jacob Trouba and spent the rest of the season in that role.
He was more than solid, finishing with five goals, seven assists and a plus-9 rating in 53 games. His performance was enough to land him on the NHL’s All-Rookie team.
His numbers have dipped a little this season — he entered Friday with two goals, five assists and a minus-1 rating in 40 games — and he’s probably made a few more mistakes than he did last season. But one of the concerns observers had about him, his sometimes untimely turnovers, are down. Entering Friday, he’d been charged with 20 giveaways. Last season he had 45.
His ice time is down slightly under first-year coach Gerard Gallant, mostly because he doesn’t kill penalties as much as he did last season under coach David Quinn. But his ice time might go up now that Gallant recently put him on the power play, inserting him on the second unit after rookie Nils Lundkvist was sent to the minor leagues.
"I talked to K’Andre earlier in the year, and I said, ‘In those power-play meetings, make sure you’re there,’ ’’ Gallant said. " ‘You’re going to get some opportunities. Not a whole lot right now, but make sure you’re available, because you’re this big guy that can shoot the puck. You’ve got some skill back there.’ ’’
"Getting out there and being able to produce with that extra guy’s definitely huge,’’ Miller said. "I think I’ve been able to show a little bit more offense since being on the power play, but I think overall, just keeping it simple and being reliable in all three zones has been my biggest thing.’’
He said it has helped that on the power play, he’s on the ice with Trouba, with whom he said he has great chemistry. Trouba has served as a mentor of sorts for the entire time Miller has been in the league.
"Troubs is a great role model, somebody I really look up to,’’ he said. "Obviously, he’s had a lot of games [556 entering Friday], so I go to him with, really, any questions I have [regarding] games, life.’’
Miller said he’s been working all season to keep "adding little things here and there’’ to his game. He said he’s pushed himself to work on improving both offensively and defensively. With practice time limited this season because of the Rangers’ hectic schedule, he’s had to work on specific things whenever he can, at morning skates and sometimes before practice.
Asked if he believes his efforts have paid off and he’s improved as a player this season, Miller said, "I would like to think so.’’
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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