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NHL notebook: Canucks reject intriguing offer for Miller, 2007 NHL Draft class comes up clutch in OT

Photo credit: Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images
Welcome back to NHL notebook, the series here at The Leafs Nation where we deliver you news and notes from around the National Hockey League — often through a Toronto Maple Leafs-tinted lens.
Canucks reportedly turn down Zibanejad-for-Miller proposal from Rangers
The apparent feud between Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller rages onward, and there may not be an easy fix. Vancouver reportedly rejected an offer from the New York Rangers, which would’ve sent Mika Zibanejad to the Canucks, in exchange for Miller, The Athletic’s Josh Yohe reports. New York has been on a free fall since getting out to a 12-4-1 start and this trade would’ve solved problems for both teams.
Pettersson and Miller have both denied there’s an active feud between them and in this corner of the internet, we tend to agree, but perception can blend into reality, especially with this notion being propelled for several weeks.
Zibanejad has recorded eight goals and 25 points in 40 games, two seasons removed from a 91-point campaign. Miller has recorded eight goals and 29 points in 29 games, returning to the team after a leave of absence for personal reasons in November. Both players have no-movement clauses attached to their current contracts, making the possibility of a trade a lot trickier than it would appear on first glance.
Both clubs seem to be in a state of flux, and a blockbuster trade between two teams desperately seeking a change would’ve revived a dormant trade market. It does raise the question, however: what exactly are the Canucks looking for in a potential package for Miller?
The 2007 NHL Draft class comes up huge in the clutch
Patrick Kane and Jamie Benn are the two highest scorers from the 2007 NHL Draft class and nearly 20 years after being selected at the podium, they’re still making an impact in crunch time.
Kane led the Detroit Red Wings to a 3-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday, scoring the overtime winner. The 36-year-old wired a shot past Anton Forsberg as Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin won the faceoff, and Kane made no mistake. Kane went to one of his patented celebrations after notching the power play marker and while he isn’t close to the same player that he was in his peak, he’s still capable of scoring in clutch scenarios.
Benn also scored on the power play, securing a 5-4 victory for the Dallas Stars against the New York Rangers. The 35-year-old worked his way to the net-front, pushed Adam Fox out of the way and re-directed a Jason Robertson feed for the game-winning goal. Benn has a goal in each of the Stars’ three games to start the 2025 calendar year, where he’s been finding his offence after a slow start to the year.
Benn and Kane won the Art Ross Trophy in consecutive seasons, and while they aren’t the same players they were a decade ago, you have to take account of their offensive flair at all times, especially with the game on the line.
Breaking News
- Gavin McKenna reflects on potentially going 1st overall to Leafs: ‘I’d be pretty fortunate to go there’
- Hockey Hall of Famer, former Maple Leafs general manager Cliff Fletcher dies at 90
- What we can infer about the Maple Leafs’ draft strategy from John Chayka’s media availability
- Maple Leafs GM John Chayka calls Gavin McKenna ‘a really nice young man’ after visit to Whitehorse
- Chris Pronger didn’t like the Leafs’ reported Knies trade return: Leafs Morning Take
