$7,744,000 NY Rangers defensemen makes his feelings known about team's "new mindset" after Christmas break

New York Rangers defenseman K’Andre Miller recently shared his thoughts on the team’s mindset after the Christmas break. Miller has been activated from injured reserve and could play against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.

NHL reporter Mollie Walker tweeted Miller's response.

“I think this could really be the turn to our season," Miller said on Saturday. "Everybody’s rested. Everybody’s ready to go. Kind of a new mindset.”

Miller signed a two-year $7,744,000 contract with the Rangers in July 2023. The deal has a cap hit of $3,872,000 per season. He has been an important part of the team’s defense and is expected to help them get back on track.

New York started the season strong with a 12-4-1 record. However, they’ve struggled since and are 16-17-1. Their goals per game have dropped to 2.82, and they are allowing 3.00 goals. The team has made changes, including trading Jacob Trouba and Kaapo Kakko, in hopes of improving.

Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said that Miller looked good in practice and is making progress.

“He looked good, that was his first practice,” Laviolette said on Saturday, via Yahoo! Sports. “We haven't had a lot of practice time inside of the schedule. That’s just where we are at in the year, coming off of three games in three and a half days. It was a good practice for him and a good step in the right direction.”

The New York Rangers are on a two-game losing skid heading into the game against Tampa Bay. They lost 3-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes and were shutout by the New Jersey Devils.

NY Rangers lost to the Devils via a shutout

The New York Rangers lost to the New Jersey Devils 5-0 on Monday at Prudential Center. The Devils scored early, with Jack Hughes making it 1-0 at 4:29 in the first period with a wrist shot. In the second period, Timo Meier added a power-play goal at 4:41. Hughes scored again on the power play at 11:13 to make it 3-0.

In the third period, Stefan Noesen extended the lead with a goal at 8:00. Dawson Mercer finished the scoring with another power-play goal at 12:35 for a 5-0 win.

New York coach Peter Laviolette said the team played better defensively in the second period.

"I thought in the second period, from a 5-on-5 standpoint, we held them in check but didn't generate enough ourselves," Laviolette said, via NHL.com.

The Rangers couldn’t capitalize on their power play, going 0-for-4, while the Devils went 3-for-4.