Looking back at when JT Miller was reportedly almost traded to the NY Islanders from the Vancouver Canucks

Probably the most discussed NHL topic at the water cooler these days is the JT Miller saga brewing in Vancouver. The 31-year-old forward and Canucks star Elias Pettersson have not seen eye-to-eye, and it looks like Miller will be shipped out of Vancouver before long.

There were reports that the Canucks were close to a deal to send Miller back to the NY Rangers, the team that drafted him 15th overall in 2011, for a package that centered around Filip Chytil and Ryan Lindgren, but the deal ultimately fell apart.

JT Miller nearly became a NY Islanders player (allegedly)

Looking back at the 2022 NHL Draft, there was plenty of smoke that Miller was incredibly close to becoming a member of the NY Islanders.

Coming off a disappointing season where the team missed the playoffs after being ravaged by COVID in the early part of the season, the Islanders were only a year removed from pushing the Tampa Bay Lightning to the brink in the Eastern Conference Finals, losing to the eventual Stanley Cup Champions 1-0 in Game 7.

Without a natural goal scorer to complement Mat Barzal, Lou Lamoriello had his eyes set on Miller to fortify the Islanders' top line.

Before the Montreal Canadiens took the podium to select Juraj Slafkovsky first overall, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said on X, "As we wait for the first pick: not sure of the particulars, but believe something is up with VAN and NYI."

When Gary Bettman approached the podium to announce a trade, there was a belief it would officially mean Miller was being sent to the Islanders. He ultimately announced that Alexander Romanov was headed to the Islanders in exchange for the 13th overall pick.

A trade never came to fruition but both franchise's GMs had something to say about the rumors (sort of).

Canucks GM Patrik Allvin seemed surprised at the rumors, saying "There was definitely nothing going on (with the Islanders)."

On the other hand, the usually tight-lipped Lamoriello said, "Talk to Vancouver," when asked about the trade.

Was there ever a trade actually on the table? Was Lou upset that someone in the Canucks organization leaked a potential deal so he pulled the plug? We may never know, but there was nearly a scenario where Miller was a member of the Islanders instead of later trading for Bo Horvat.