NHL Rumors: J.T. Miller turned down major Colorado Avalanche trade ahead of NY Rangers move

J.T. Miller reportedly turned down a trade to the Colorado Avalanche before joining the New York Rangers, according to insider Renaud Lavoie. After trading Mikko Rantanen to Carolina, the Avalanche expected to get Miller and believed he would be their second-line center. But Miller wanted to return to the Eastern Conference and blocked the move.

On Tuesday's episode of BPM Sports' podcast, Lavoie said (translated from French):

"In their minds, they made the trade because J.T. Miller was coming to Colorado. They were convinced that J.T. Miller would be traded from the Canucks to the Avalanche, and from what I'm told, J.T. raised his hand and said, 'I'm not playing in Denver.'"

Following this incident, the Canucks traded him to the Rangers. They received Filip Chytil, prospect Victor Mancini, and a first-round pick in return. Since rejoining New York, Miller has recorded 10 points in nine games.

The Avalanche was left without Miller and now has salary cap space but fewer trade options. They probably need to find another center before the trade deadline.

J.T. Miller was happy to get traded to the New York Rangers

After his trade to the NY Rangers, J.T. Miller was quite happy. Fans and teammates gave him a warm welcome upon his return to the team.

"Tons of friends around the area and the welcoming I got coming back was astounding," Miller told the media in Feb. "Just so much support from my family and I just feel crazy lucky everything worked out the way it did."

One of the reasons behind Miller's interest in joining the Rangers was his close friendship with some of the players in the franchise. Miller and Vincent Trocheck have been best friends since childhood. They grew up in Pittsburgh and played youth hockey together.

Even Trocheck was excited about Miller’s return and called it a "pipe dream" finally coming true.

Their families are also close, and following the trade, Miller stayed at Trocheck's house.

Now, Miller has finally settled into the New York lineup. On Friday, he contributed an assist in the Rangers' 3-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Rangers will try to bounce back in their next game against the Nashville Predators on Sunday.