Star Canucks forward takes an unexpected leave of absence

The Vancouver Canucks announced on Tuesday that star forward J.T. Miller, who was benched by Rick Tocchet at the end of Sunday's 5-3 loss to the Nashville Predators, has requested and been granted an indefinite personal leave of absence.

Miller, 31, was on a three-game point streak before the loss to Nashville, posting a goal and four assists during that small streak. Miller has generally been up to his usually high standard of play this season, as he has six goals, 10 assists, and 16 points in 17 games. However, the scoring pace Miller is currently on puts him on track to score 77 points in 82 games, which would be the least productive season of Miller's last four seasons with the Canucks.

The slower start is hardly on Miller's shoulders alone, though. The Canucks as a whole have not been a very impressive team, despite their decent overall record. Now that interim starting goalie Kevin Lankinen is starting to fall off the wagon, dismal results have followed.

Canucks reportedly not expecting J.T. Miller to be out long

Canucks insider Rick Dhaliwal reported Tuesday that J.T. Miller is not expected to be away from the team long-term. "Hearing JT Miller leave is about a player who needs a re-set," Dhaliwal wrote on X. "Needs time and space."

Dhaliwal also shared on Bluesky that Miller is not expected to be on the Canucks' upcoming six-game road trip, but his status beyond that is currently unclear.

We wish J.T. the best as he works through some of the issues he is having and hope he can get his mind back in the right space to play the awesome hockey we are all used to seeing. We all have bad days and we can all use a break sometimes.