J.T. Miller thrives through Vancouver boos to show Connor Hellebuyck how to handle hostile return

J.T. Miller silenced a hostile Rogers Arena crowd with two assists as the New York Rangers crushed the Vancouver Canucks 5-1 on Friday night, showing Connor Hellebuyck how to handle a return to a former home.

If you're a hockey fan, you probably heard about the little controversy sparked by the New Jersey Devils when they decided to publicly announce that their new star goaltender would not be playing in his return to his former home in Winnipeg because doing so would somehow lower their win probability (they lost anyway).

This led to a lot of thoughts from fans across the league about Hellebuyck's... let's say "fortitude," or lack thereof. But can you blame him? His unceremonious exit from the Jets would've had the home crowd heckling him nonstop. What kind of person would choose to put themselves in that position?

JT Miller. That's who.

Miller Thrives Amid Relentless Boos at Rogers Arena

Miller was traded to the Rangers from Vancouver after the first half of his final season with the Canucks proved to be tumultuous, to say the least. So, when Miller and the New York Rangers took the ice at Rogers Arena last night, they surely expected Miller to be hounded by fans in his second return back to Vancouver.

That's exactly what happened. Boos rained down on the Rangers' captain all game every time he touched the puck. This was very similar to how the Calgary crowd treated one-time Flame Adam Fox during the Blueshirts' previous game.

They only seemed to get louder as the game went on. It hit a fever pitch during a Rangers power play about nine minutes into the second period with the game tied at 1. Miller handled the puck so often during the shift, it almost seemed as if his teammates were feeding him on purpose. And every time the puck landed on his stick, the crowd booed as if they had gotten together and rehearsed it before the game.

It was almost comical. But no one in the stands was laughing when Miller eventually found the perfect cross-ice pass to Oliver Bjorkstrand, who buried the puck in the back of the net for a power-play goal that gave New York its first lead of the game at 2-1.

Rangers color commentator Dave Maloney summed it up as only he could following the impressive sequence, gleefully inviting Vancouver fans to "Boo this."

Four-Goal Second Period Fuels Rangers 5-1 Rout

Bjorkstrand's seventh goal of the season opened the floodgates for New York in the second period.

Just a few minutes later, British Columbia native Glenn Gawdin picked off a clearing error to notch his first career NHL goal and make it 3-1, before deflecting a Vladislav Gavrikov point shot later in the period for his second. The Blueshirts scored four goals in total during that frame, with Alexis Lafrenière tallying his 10th of the season in between to round out the outburst.

Miller ended the night with two assists as New York cruised to a 5-1 victory, capping off a West Coast trip in which the team went 3-1-0 and is now 5-1-0 in its last six.

One thing's for sure. Miller's flight home is going to be far more pleasant than Hellebuyck's was.

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