NHL Pacific

J.T. Miller is reportedly headed back to Manhattan.

The New York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks agreed to a trade that will bring Miller back to where his NHL career began in 2013, per the Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli.

The Canucks are also sending defenseman Erik Brännström and NCAA prospect Jackson Dorrington to New York, per Larry Brooks of the New York Post.

In return the Canucks will receive veteran center Filip Chytil, rookie defenseman Victor Mancini and a protected 2025 first-round pick, according to Brooks, Seravalli and ESPN's Emily Kaplan.

The pick is top-13 protected and could potentially slide to 2026, per Seravalli.

Miller is expected to join the Rangers for Saturday night's game against the Boston Bruins, per Kaplan.

The report comes after The Athletic's Rick Dhaliwal said Miller would be scratched for the Canucks' Friday night road game against the Dallas Stars.

Miller had a full no-move clause on his contract, which he would have had to waive to facilitate the deal.

The alternate captain has been at the center of trade rumors this season amid a reported rift between himself and Canucks defenseman Elias Pettersson. Miller has previously told reporters the feud was "created" by the media.

The Athletic's Josh Yohe reported in early January the Canucks had turned down a trade offer for Miller that would have sent Mika Zibanejad to Vancouver. Friedman later added that the talks stalled because the Canucks didn't include Braden Schneider in the deal.

Miller was almost held out of a home game against the Edmonton Oilers on Jan. 18 because of a potential trade with the New York Rangers, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. The deal "would have involved multiple players and draft picks," per ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.

The Canucks had also discussed trade scenarios involving Pettersson, according to Wyshynski. But after the latest round of negotiations with the Rangers proved more successful, it will ultimately be Miller leaving Vancouver less than one year after leading the Canucks to the second round with the best season of his career.

Miller paced the Canucks with 103 points in 81 regular-season games in 2023-24 to help Vancouver win 50 games for the first time since the Henrik and Daniel Sedin era.

Although the Canucks were eliminated in seven games by the Edmonton Oilers on their way to the Stanley Cup Finals, the hope was that Quinn Hughes' team would regroup and go on a deeper run in 2025.

But bad injury luck including the extended absence of starting netminder Thatcher Demko, combined with the scrutiny surrounding the relationship between Miller and Pettersson, have exacerbated what has already been a difficult start to the 2024-25 season. The reigning Pacific Division leaders are fighting for a wild card spot as the trade deadline approaches.

Miller has played for the Canucks since he was traded to Vancouver by the Tampa Bay Lightning ahead of the 2019-20 season.

After three straight 30-goal seasons, his production dipped early in the 2024-25 campaign to nine goals and 26 assists for 35 points in 40 games.

The center, who turns 32 in March, made his NHL debut with the Rangers in 2013. He played 341 regular-season games and 40 postseason contests for the franchise prior to his 2018 trade to the Lightning.

Having grown into as a second-line center in Vancouver, Miller will likely be taking on a larger role in New York this time around.

Like the Canucks, the Rangers have fallen into a race for a Wild Card spot after an underwhelming start to the season. The team will hope reworking their top six can help spark a playoff push over the second half of the season.

Adding Miller's contract means yet another long-term contract commitment added to New York's crowded salary cap. Miller is signed through the 2029-30 season, with a full no-trade clause through 2026-27 and a 15-team no-trade list over the final three years of the deal, according to Spotrac.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman indicated Connor McDavid's three-game suspension is part of the league's efforts to crack down on hits to the head.

"I think in terms of supplemental discipline, cross-check to the face or the head has to be dealt with," Bettman told reporters Thursday (h/t The Athletic's Michael Russo and Joe Smith.)

The suspension involved an incident that took place on Jan. 19, when Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland appeared to hold McDavid down during the final 30 seconds of a one-goal game. The Edmonton Oilers captain retaliated by hitting Garland in the face.

McDavid is set to serve the third game of his suspension when the Oilers take on the Buffalo Sabres Saturday at home.

This marks the second time McDavid has been suspended by the league. He was previously assessed a two-game suspension, also for an illegal check to the head, which took place during a February 2019 game against the New York Islanders.

Between the two suspensions, McDavid has forfeited a total of more than $329,000 in missed salary.

As was the case with his 2019 suspension, both the Oilers and McDavid expressed displeasure with the NHL's recent decision to suspend the star.

The Oilers said in a statement that the franchise was "disappointed" in the NHL's decision, while McDavid said the incident could have been avoided had referees blown the play dead to penalize Garland when he held McDavid down to the ice.

"The longer it goes, the more you're thinking there's going to be something," McDavid said about the penalty not being called on Garland, per Jamie Umbach of EdmontonOilers.com.

McDavid continued, per Umbach:

I think every player across the league just wants to see the game called [consistently.] A penalty in the first is a penalty in the third. A penalty in October is a penalty in April. So I think guys just want that standard and that consistency.

I would say a big part of it is just the consistency, which is tough to ask for. That goes from game to game, ref to ref, so as I said, the refs have a hard job. I have nothing but the utmost respect for the refs and the work that they do. It's a thankless job. It really is. But with that being said, just call the game [consistent] to start the season."

Bettman provided his own view on the incident when asked how the NHL analyzed its own officiating.

Per Russo and Smith, Bettman said the officials decided not to whistle down Garland's play in part because the puck was in the offensive zone for the trailing Oilers:

Every call is a judgment call, and it's situational. And I believe the referees in that situation — what was it, 10 seconds left to go? — decided they didn't want to blow the whistle at that point in time, when two guys were tangled because there were a lot of things that could have happened, which a whistle would have worked at Edmonton's detriment.

I'm not endorsing it or not. I'm just simply saying you've got to look at the context of the whole thing. I understand the frustration, and it's something we're going to continue to monitor.

McDavid will be eligible to return Monday to face the visiting Seattle Kraken.

Getting McDavid back will be a boost for an team looking to oust the Vegas Golden Knights from the top of the Pacific Division. The Oilers captain has been typically dominant when available, racking 65 points (20 goals, 45 assists) through 43 games to start the season.

Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid believes the NHL might have been a bit excessive in issuing him a three-game suspension for cross-checking Vancouver Canucks winger Conor Garland during Saturday's 3-2 loss.

In fact, he said the league was a "little bit harsh" with the penalty, although he also accepted responsibility.

"Obviously, there's lots of holding and holding down—he holds my head down for a little bit—but I can't have that reaction," McDavid said, per Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic. "I know that. Everyone knows that. Not the reaction that I'm proud of or that anyone wants to see out of me, and I understand that."

Garland and McDavid became entangled during the closing stretch of Saturday's contest, and the Oilers captain found his head pinned to the ice and held. He responded with the cross-check that drew the suspension.

He wasn't the only one punished from that game, as Vancouver defenseman Tyler Myers was given a three-game suspension for cross-checking Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard in the aftermath of McDavid's penalty.

McDavid missed Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Washington Capitals and will sit out Thursday's rematch against the Canucks and Saturday's game against the Buffalo Sabres.

He will be eligible to return for Monday's game against the Seattle Kraken.

On Tuesday, ESPN's Greg Wyshynski reported McDavid and the NHLPA decided not to appeal the penalty partially out of concern the timing of such an appeal would mean he could miss the three games regardless of the ruling.

The future Hall of Famer was also suspended two games in 2019 for an illegal check to the head of New York Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy. Nugent-Bowman noted he was not suspended for a hit to the head of Minnesota Wild winger Marcus Johansson on Jan. 15.

Johansson has not played since the incident.

"It's tough to skate with your arms tucked in," McDavid said. "I'm not trying to get him at all. That's extremely unfortunate. I feel awful about that. The league alluded to history in the suspension. I'm not sure I have a history of being a dirty player.

"Obviously, I'm not trying to hurt guys. Every game I go out there, I'm thinking, 'How am I going to score? How am I going to make plays? How am I going to help the team win?' It's not, 'Who am I going to elbow next?' That's not who I am. I don't think anyone here thinks that. It's an unfortunate week."

Edmonton has lost two straight, although it is still 29-15-3 and sitting in second place in the Pacific Division behind only the Vegas Golden Knights.

Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid and the NHLPA won't appeal his three-game suspension for a cross-check to the head of Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland, per ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.

According to Wyshynski, McDavid's camp decided not to appeal "with the understanding that the timeline for appeal might not have prevented him from missing the next three games." His camp also made the decision with the understanding that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman rarely changes suspensions made by the NHL Department of Player Safety.

During the Oilers' Jan. 18 game against the Canucks, Garland held McDavid down in the final seconds, leading to frustration and ultimately a cross-check. McDavid earned a match penalty as a result of the play.

The NHL's Department of Player Safety announced the suspension on Monday. He was also fined $195,312.51, which will go to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund. Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers earned a three-game suspension for cross-checking Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard moments after McDavid's cross-check.

After the suspension was announced on Monday, Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said McDavid has to deal with hard defense like that which was played against him on Saturday and said he "puts up with more than the average player."

"There was a lot of frustration. [McDavid] plays through a lot," Knoblauch told reporters. "Ironically, he doesn't draw very many penalties. Our team doesn't draw that many penalties for that matter, which is kind of ironic because we usually have the puck and the other team's defending more."

"He's under the microscope every time he's on the ice because he's dangerous," he continued. "[Opponents] don't give him room, give him another shot, hold him a little bit, tug on his jersey, get in his way. All those little things that maybe could be called penalties, but maybe not. If you called every single one, you're changing the game. It's a fine line. But I definitely believe that he puts up [with] more than the average player."

McDavid is fifth in the league in both assists (45) and points (65) and has 20 goals this season. He will miss the Oilers' games against the Washington Capitals, Canucks and Buffalo Sabres this week.

The NHL's Department of Player Safety announced Monday that Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid has been suspended three games for his cross-check on Vancouver Canucks winger Conor Garland during Saturday's matchup between the teams

Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers was given a matching three-game suspension for his cross-check on Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard in the aftermath of McDavid's hit. Both players were penalized at the time.

McDavid was clearly frustrated after Garland held him for an extended duration in the waning moments of Saturday's game, a 3-2 win for the Canucks.

"There was a lot of frustration. [McDavid] plays through a lot," Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters on Monday after the suspension was announced. "Ironically, he doesn't draw very many penalties. Our team doesn't draw that many penalties for that matter, which is kind of ironic because we usually have the puck and the other team's defending more."

"He's under the microscope every time he's on the ice because he's dangerous," he continued. "[Opponents] don't give him room, give him another shot, hold him a little bit, tug on his jersey, get in his way. All those little things that maybe could be called penalties, but maybe not. If you called every single one, you're changing the game. It's a fine line. But I definitely believe that he puts up [with] more than the average player."

Garland probably should have been called for holding on the play in question. Regardless, the Oilers will now be without the three-time Hart Trophy winner for the next three contests.

That's a big loss. McDavid is fourth in the NHL with 65 points and fourth with 45 assists, remaining a menace in the attack. The Oilers, in turn, are tied with the Vegas Golden Knights atop the Western Conference's Pacific Division with 61 points as they look to return to the Stanley Cup Finals for the second straight season.

They fell one game short of a title last season, losing in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Florida Panthers.

Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid and Vancouver Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers will have disciplinary hearings with the NHL—and are facing possible suspensions—for a pair of cross-checking penalties in the final seconds of Saturday's 3-2 win for the Canucks.

McDavid got tied up with Vancouver's Conor Garland and cross-checked him in the head, while Myers cross-checked Edmonton's Evan Bouchard. Both were penalized in the game.

Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch offered a defense of McDavid after the game, feeling as though the play should have been called dead far earlier due to McDavid being held by Garland.

"Connor gets frustrated, and he gets his stick up," he told reporters. "He's frustrated because we're down one goal and the best player in the league is getting held for 15 seconds. There's frustration that that's allowed to happen."

A number of former NHL players sided with McDavid as well:

"It's hockey. It happens. It's intense," fellow Oilers' star Leon Draisaitl told reporters. "We couldn't get one, and then a little bit of fisticuffs. Nothing major."

Losing McDavid for any stretch of time would be an enormous loss for Edmonton. The three-time Hart Trophy winner has posted 20 goals and 45 assists through 43 games this season, ranking fourth in the NHL with 65 points.

And he's generally available. Since 2016-17, McDavid has never missed more than seven games in a season. He's only been suspended once, a two-game ban in 2019 after checking New York Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy in the head. And before Saturday's 15 penalty minutes, he had only been penalized 14 minutes this season.

Meyers has had pair of three-game suspensions during his NHL career and 54 penalty minutes this season. He has two goals and 11 assists for the Canucks this season.

Wednesday night's game between the Los Angeles Kings and visiting Calgary Flames has been postponed due to ongoing wildfires in the Los Angeles area.

Puck drop at Crypto.com arena was scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET.

"The thoughts of the entire NHL family are with the Kings, hockey fans and the people of the Los Angeles area during this difficult time," the NHL said in a statement.

Sportsnet's Eric Francis reported that the air quality inside the arena had been impacted as of Wednesday morning.

The Kings are scheduled to play their next five games on the road, starting Friday against the Winnipeg Jets and followed by a Saturday game in Calgary.

Their next home game is currently scheduled to take place against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday, Jan. 20.

The NFL schedule could also be impacted by the wildfires ahead of the Wild Card game between the Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Rams scheduled for Monday night in Inglewood.

The NFL said in a statement on Wednesday the league "continues to closely monitor developments in the area and will remain in contact with both clubs and the NFLPA."

At least two people have died in the ongoing wildfires, which were caused by "dry conditions and powerful winds," according to NBC News.

The fires had forced 70,000 people to evacuate and destroyed at least 1,000 structures as of Wednesday, Reuters reported.

The Vancouver Canucks reportedly turned down an offer from the New York Rangers to trade Mika Zibanejad for J.T. Miller earlier this season, according to The Athletic's Josh Yohe.

Both Miller and Zibanejad hold a no-move clauses. Even if the Canucks had pursued the trade, both players would have had to agree to the swap.

Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos did recently report he believes Miller would be willing to waive his no-move clause in order to go to the Rangers.

Despite a goalscoring slump Miller is having the more productive season of the pair, with 29 points (eight goals, 21 assists) in 29 contests. Zibanejad has meanwhile recorded 24 points (eight goals, 16 assists) while skating in ten more games.

Rangers general manager Chris Drury has been open about his willingness to trade core players this season. Drury went so far as to send a memo to all 31 teams advertising the availability of roster members in November, as reported by Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman and confirmed by multiple sources.

The Rangers have since traded captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks and forward Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken.

Those deals have yet to spark a resurgence for a team that went into the season expecting to be a playoff contender. The Rangers headed into the New Year outside of the playoff bubble and trailing only the Buffalo Sabres for the most regulation losses (20) in the Eastern Conference.

The Canucks are looking for a deadline shakeup of their own, according to Friedman. The NHL insider recently said on an episode of The FAN Hockey Show that tension between Miller and Canucks forward Elias Pettersson "has begun to spill over elsewhere into the organization."

Pettersson does not have a no-trade clause, although his contract will present a challenge should the Canucks decide to turn to a trade to resolve the reported split. The forward is in the first year of an eight-year, $92.8 million deal that has him set to remain on the books through the 2031-32 season.

The Canucks and Rangers both made it to the second round last season, with the Rangers getting as far as the Eastern Conference Final. Given that neither team currently looks on track for a deeper run, there's still a chance they could look to shake things up by moving Miller or Zibanejad before the March 7 trade deadline.

The only known sealed case of O-Pee-Chee Hockey wax boxes from Wayne Gretzky's rookie season sold on Thursday for a record $2.52 million at Heritage Auctions.

The sale set a record for the most expensive unopened trading cards package in auction history, according to The Athletic's Brooks Peck.

The box contains 10,752 trading cards from Gretzky's rookie season, according to Heritage. The auction house estimated that the case will contain 27 Gretzky rookie cards.

There have been 13,887 Gretzky rookie cards graded by PSA, according to CLLCT's Will Stern. Just two of those cards have received the highest possible rating, a Gem Mint 10.

Should a third mint condition card be discovered in the box, it could potentially set a new record for the most expensive NHL card ever sold. A 1979 OPC Gretzky rookie card graded at a Gem Mint 10 level by PSA set the current hockey card record in 2021 when Heritage sold it for $3.75 million.

A Gretzky rookie card in slightly less than mint condition would be significantly less valuable. There have been 95 Gretzky rookie cards graded a PSA 9, and one was most recently sold for $122,000, per Stern and Peck.

The OPC case fetched $1.2 million less than when it was last at auction. Heritage sold the case in February for a record $3.72 million to Ontario real estate agent Jack Arshawsky.

The case was put back on auction after Arshawsky did not complete his payments to Heritage. Because of the difference in sale prices, Arshawsky could potentially take legal action against the auction house, Peck reported.