J.T. Miller embraces Rangers’ ‘fresh slate’ after trying 2025-26 season

J.T. Miller was measured. Thursday, after all, was just the first day of training camp for the Rangers, and it’ll take weeks’ and months’ worth of games to change the franchise’s trajectory. There were no playoff declarations. No bold proclamations that the Blueshirts are better than last year after an offseason of change. No dissection of roster moves by the front office to overhaul parts of the roster, even. 

“We’re not gonna get ahead of ourselves,” Miller, now back in his old No. 10 jersey, said. 

But, Miller admitted, this all “seems like a nice reset for us.” A time for the Rangers to “turn the past from last year.” His injury-filled campaign of 2025-26 started in the preseason and continued with three stints of missed time — and two trips to injured reserve — during the regular season. His 17 goals and 53 points marked his fewest in both categories since 2018-19 with the Lightning. And it all unfolded during his first year as captain, stepping into the elevated role and trying to not force himself to do more than he normally would. 

This year, the Rangers will get a chance to move past their dismal 77-point campaign of last year. It’ll be different from the start, with no Vincent Trocheck (traded in the offseason) and no Artemi Panarin (traded before the Olympic roster freeze) here at this training camp. But at the crux of it all, of course, will be Miller, who gets a chance to move past his own woes of 2025-26 while occupying a critical role as the second-line center — skating alongside dynamic acquisition Pavel Dorofeyev for now — with Trocheck now in Utah. 

New York Rangers center J.T. Miller (8) shoots on goal against the Los Angeles Kings during the third period at Crypto.com Arena. Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

“It was a lot last year,” Miller said. “Just a little bit of distraction everywhere, it seemed like, around our team. Obviously with The Letter coming out, I was hurt a lot of the year, I was at the Olympics — just a busy season, and I feel like it’s kinda hard to evaluate. 

“But certainly not satisfied and saying that that’s the standard for myself. I mean, we didn’t get to where we want to be, and I took a lot of ownership of that. I just feel fresh right now. I feel good. And I’m excited that we get another crack at it this year with a fresh slate.” 

The stakes will always be high for Miller. That’s the pressure that comes with the “C” sewn on his chest, just as it did for Jacob Trouba and Ryan McDonagh and Ryan Callahan and Mark Messier and all the other past Blueshirts captains. Miller said he expects more from himself as a leader this year. He said he learned from mistakes last season, which quickly spiraled into selling at the trade deadline and a reality where president and general manager Chris Drury dropped The Letter 2.0. 

Miller spent time at both center and wing last year in the 68 games he did appear in, and when the Rangers’ first group — with mostly NHL players — skated Thursday, Miller, 33, was positioned between Dorofeyev and Oliver Bjorkstrand. Dorofeyev collected more than 30 goals the past two seasons with the Golden Knights. He was the draft-day splash by the Blueshirts, the hyped acquisition during a public retool who could be the missing piece that tips the Rangers toward being a playoff team in April.

J.T. Miller will captain a Rangers squad that has undergone a number of roster changes over the past few months. JASON SZENES FOR THE NEW YORK POST

Head coach Mike Sullivan said that Miller’s play-making ability with the puck is “probably undervalued by some,” and Sullivan expressed a belief in Miller being able to serve as the Rangers’ second-line center, indirectly doubling as a belief that his skill set can complement Dorofeyev if they break camp still paired together. 

“He has the ability to distribute the puck,” Sullivan said of Miller. “I think J.T. brings a physical element and a down-low game, a grind game that I think he can drag his linemates into a little bit so they can create some offense different ways. I think [Dorofeyev is] a guy that obviously can score goals, and so we wanted to see what that looks like.” 

That role will only add to the pressure facing Miller this season. To the expectations that he can avoid the struggles from last year reappearing again and becoming a norm for his second Blueshirts stint. For one day, those stakes faded with the arrival of a new training camp, where “vibe” and “excitement” and anything else that described palpable energy were the buzzwords of his press conference that captured the emotion of the Rangers’ entire session. 

“I feel very hungry,” Miller said. “I mean, after a year like last year, I just think in general I think I’m naturally competitive — I’d like to be better, I want the team to play better, I want better results.”