I see him getting maybe 20 goals and probably close to 50 pts while playing top 6 mins. All we can do is pray he finds chemistry with Bo or Elias. Basically a more useful Sven Baertschi.
Ranger fan stopping by to just share my thoughts on Miller. I didn't watch a ton of him while he was with Tampa the last year but I watched every game he played for the Rangers (Reg Season and Playoff).
The above post is very accurate in my opinion in regards to a reasonable expectation of Miller from a production standpoint.
I've always liked Miller as a player. I didn't agree with us swapping him for Namestikov within the McDonagh trade. Miller was a very polarizing figure within the Ranger fan base. Miller and Kevin Hayes had a similar developmental time line with the Rangers. They seemed to track parallel to each other in regards to joining the team and evolving into important players for us. They also had similar growing pains in regards to maturity. They both seemed to grow up while they were with the Rangers and learned what they had to do to be NHL pro's. Living through those maturity issues as a fan wasn't easy at times. Especially with Miller. Ideally, you won't have to live through those maturity issues since you are getting a heading into his prime, several years of NHL experience under his belt player that has hopefully learned from past mistakes.
If I was to describe Miller as a player it would be a tremendously confident player in his ability which at times puts him in positions to do some unwise things. When Miller is on one of his hot streaks and things are clicking for him, you will watch him and wonder how he isn't a perennial 65-70 point player. He has every physical tool you would want in a player. Tremendous vision of the ice, strong on the puck, sneaky good shot and toughness when needed. You can actually sense his confidence on the ice with some of the things he tries to do. He plays somewhat cocky but in a good way. That attitude however leads to some poor decisions, at some critical moments as well.
I think one of the things that made him such a polarizing figure within the Ranger fan base was that you could see his tremendous potential. Which led to a level of frustration that it wasn't more consistent. He would kind of disappear for stretches and you would wonder how it was possible with his skill set. Kreider had/has a similar issue. Where you would wonder how this player isn't noticeable for periods of time considering how talented he is. I always thought of Miller as a player that should be a 1st liner but could never quite get there. I think Vancouver is a really good fit for him. I hope he flourishes with you guys and realizes his full potential.
In regards to his contract value. I think he is a really good value at 5.25 for 4 years. Even if he doesn't realize his full potential, if he just stays at his current level that he was when he was with the Rangers, that is a solid contract in comparison to what other players who are comparable to him are getting paid.
In regards to his lack of playoff goals. I simply don't have a good answer for this. I'm really not sure. I wouldn't say he was a bad playoff performer at all, he had a bit of Rick Nash disease when it came to scoring goals in the playoffs. Unfortunately, some of the unwise decisions I detailed above would take place at some not ideal times in the playoffs.
Hopefully the above gave you some insight into the player you just got from someone who has watched a lot of his career. In summary, I think you are going to be pleasantly surprised in what Miller brings to your team. Good luck!
