Jeff Marek just validated every angry feeling Rangers fans have had about J.T. Miller

New York Rangers fans are understandably frustrated with the current state of their team. Players like Artemi Panarin and Carson Soucy have been traded away without getting grand returns, despite New York being in the midst of a rebuild (or retool, depending on who you ask).

One player who won't be on the move is the one fans want to see moved the most: team captain J.T. Miller.

He was named captain at the start of the season and has been the face of a struggling roster. It truly has been a far cry of a season for Miller, who joined the team last year via a trade from the Vancouver Canucks, in hopes he'd help elevate the Rangers for the foreseeable future.

NHL personality Jeff Marek had some damning comments on the most recent episode of DFO Rundown. Marek says that the Miller trade will go down as the worst in NHL history because it not only "sabotaged" the Rangers, but also the Canucks.

Jeff Marek rips J.T. Miller trade between Rangers, Canucks as worst in NHL history

"I think we have now officially seen the worst trade in the history of the NHL, which means it completely sabotaged both teams. And the effects of it, you're seeing this season," said Marek. "...The Rangers are worse since getting him. The Vancouver Canucks are worse since letting him go. One's in 32nd place in the NHL as we speak today and that is, of course, the Vancouver Canucks. The other is 30th...Can you think of a bigger trade that went as far as this trade did to completely unravel two franchises? I've been racking my brain about this one for a while What's the worst trade? Because this trade helped take down two teams."

Marek did cite the Wayne Gretzky trade from the Los Angeles Kings to the St. Louis Blues back in 1996 as a potential worst trade, considering it did nothing for either side. However, he believes he hasn't seen a trade that tanked both franchises like the Miller trade from the Canucks to the Rangers.

Miller's exit from Vancouver was ugly, considering he had issues with teammate Elias Pettersson, to the point where Canucks President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford publicly expressed that there was no way they could keep both players happy on the same team. That's how ugly the rift was between Miller and Pettersson. The Rangers were happy to bring in Miller, trading away Filip Chytil, Victor Mancini, and a 2025 first-round pick to Vancouver.

There was hope after the 2024-25 season, as Miller was productive in his limited time. Through 32 games, Miller scored 13 goals and recorded 22 assists. Just before the start of training camp, the Rangers announced that Miller was the new captain. It was surprising, given his exit from Vancouver, but that was the decision General Manager Chris Drury and Head Coach Mike Sullivan made.

Miller has dealt with a varitey of injuries through the preseason and regular season. He's not nearly as productive as he was last season, posting 14 goals and 22 assists in 48 games. But it's his demeanor as the losses keep piling up that have ticked off Rangers fans. It certainly doesn't help matters that Miller's postgame comments don't exactly exude "leadership energy." For example, when asked what message he had for the Rangers entering the Olympic break, Miller said "I don't know."

As for the Canucks, they entered a free fall ever since the season started and were open for business on the trade market early, looking to rebuild. They traded away star defender Quinn Hughes to the Minnesota Wild and forward Keifer Sherwood to the San Jose Sharks. Now, they are the favorites to win the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery.

The Rangers aren't too far behind, having the third-best odds to win the No. 1 pick. Now, fans are waiting to see what other players Drury can trade before the March 6 deadline. They certainly are hoping they can get better trade returns than they did for Panarin.

Maybe Miller can turn things around during the duration of his current contract, which runs out after the 20230-31 season. But so far, Miller hasn't endeared himself to a frustrated fanbase.