K’Andre Miller looking to take on greater role for Rangers

NHL

By Larry Brooks

Somehow, K’Andre Miller is already entering his fourth NHL season.

And if Young Amigos Filip Chytil, Kaapo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere are pushing for more responsibility up front, the same holds true for Miller on the back end for the Rangers.

Except for this: Miller has been entrusted with significant responsibility pretty much from Day 1 in his rookie 2020-21 season.

He has played on the third pair exactly twice, those the second and third games of his NHL career while teamed with Brendan Smith.

Miller settled in quickly with Jacob Trouba on his right and has been one half of the 1A-1B shutdown tandem for the past two years, and was second to Adam Fox last season in average ice time (21:57) while posting personal bests in goals (9), assists (34) and points (43). Maybe next, an assignment on Power Play II?

“I think every player wants that and to be out there and succeed and do what they can to help the team,” Miller said Saturday, when asked if he would like to be granted more responsibility. “I’m just trying to do my job here, push my team to succeed every day and make myself better every day.”

Miller is entering the two-year deal he signed over the summer, worth an average annual value of $3.872 million, as a restricted free agent.

That represents another stage in his developing career.

“I’d say so. I kind of know what’s expected and have a little more comfortability in the league,” he said. “There are a lot of ups and downs during the year, and [you have] to manage that, knowing that it’s a long season, and you’re going to have to deal with those hills of highs and lows, and go through them with a good mindset and good attitude.”

Peter Laviolette is Miller’s third coach in his four seasons, following David Quinn for a year and Gerard Gallant for two.

That is another type of learning curve.

“They’ve been breaking down video for us very well, which is huge, obviously, with new coaches, new systems, a little bit different style,” Miller said. “You just try to get familiar with that, asking as many questions as you can and gather as much information as you can.”

The Blueshirts worked on defensive structure and in the neutral zone defense, which seems to be Laviolette’s variation of the left wing lock.

But there will be a difference in the defensive zone as well.

“The biggest thing I guess in the D-zone for me is staying a little bit tighter, staying close to the net, with everybody more compact so you have that little bit more comfortability with support and moving pucks to guys who are maybe five-feet away instead of seven-, eight-feet away from you up the wall,” Miller said….