Rangers Face Loss of JT Miller Due to Injury

SALT LAKE CITY — The Rangers had to play without JT Miller during Saturday night’s game against the Mammoth due to an upper-body injury.

When asked whether Miller might miss several games, head coach Mike Sullivan responded, “We’ll take it as it comes.” He added, “Right now, he’s day-to-day. He’s a tough guy to replace. Even when he’s not scoring, his presence affects the game. The other night, he managed to get on the scoresheet, which is great, but replacing him isn’t easy.”

Miller had previously sat out the end of training camp after sustaining a non-contact lower-body injury while skating before a preseason game on Long Island on September 29.

Despite missing the last couple of exhibition games and some practices, Miller was part of the Blueshirts’ opening lineup and played in all of the first 22 games this season.

Saturday’s game against Utah marked the first regular-season game the 32-year-old has missed this season.

When questioned if the injury was something lingering or a new issue from the game against Colorado, Sullivan confirmed it was the latter.

Miller had a rocky start to his 2025-26 season, with only three goals and four assists in the first 12 games.

This led to some speculation suggesting he might not be fully recovered from his earlier lower-body injury.

However, he seemed to improve, contributing three goals and four points over the past five games.

His two goals against the Avalanche on Thursday represented his first multi-goal game this season.

With Miller out, the Rangers’ first line included Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck, and Alexis Lafreniere.

The second unit featured Will Quill, Mika Zibanejad, and Johnny Brodzinski.

Quill stepped in for Miller on the top power-play unit, joining Panarin, Trocheck, Zibanejad, and Adam Fox. This change pushed Lafreniere down to the second group alongside Brodzinski, Connor Sheary, Taylor Radish, and Scott Morrow.