DETROIT, MICH — The Red Wings have announced that forward Drew Miller will be brought back on a one-year deal worth $1.025 million:
UPDATE: #RedWings sign Drew Miller to a one-year contract extension: https://t.co/uKzx2D9hz6 pic.twitter.com/YHANrpKaXF
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) June 27, 2016
Why? Who knows. Drew Miller is a one-dimensional forward that they consider to be a “shutdown” player, and a penalty kill specialist. My guess is that not only did the team really want him back, Miller was also sidelined with an injury for basically the entirety of the 2015-2016 regular season.
I’ll say this, I like Drew Miller, he’s a good guy. Our silverfox. But if he’s used as anything outside of a 14th forward, I will be very unpleased. The Red Wings are in a spot where they need to improve the roster, not bring back old, tired faces. Additionally, I would have preferred this to be a salary that could end up eligible to be completely buried in the AHL, but for whatever reason Ken Holland chose to go a different direction.
I could rant on for 1,200 words about why Drew Miller isn’t very good – Just look at the numbers. Advanced, or basic… They’re all pretty dreadful. Anyways, woo offseason!
More from the Red Wings:
Miller, 32, has tallied 100 points (51-49-100) in 449 games with the Red Wings since joining the team in 2009-10. In 516 career NHL games with the Red Wings, Anaheim Ducks and Tampa Bay Lightning, the 6-foot-2, 180-lb., forward has registered 115 points (57-58-115) and 118 penalty minutes. He has also skated in 60 Stanley Cup playoff games, notching 13 points (6-7-13) and skating in three games with Anaheim as a first-year pro in 2007, helping the team to a Stanley Cup championship. After appearing in all 82 regular-season games for the Red Wings in 2013-14 and 2014-15 and holding the team’s ironman streak at 190 games, Miller was limited to just 28 games played this season due to jaw and knee injuries.
Originally drafted by Anaheim in the sixth round (186th overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, Miller skated in 163 American Hockey League games for the Portland Pirates and Iowa Chops from 2005-09, notching 110 points (55-55-110) and 73 penalty minutes. Born in Dover, N.J., but raised in East Lansing, Mich., Miller spent three seasons with the CCHA’s Michigan State Spartans from 2003-06, recording 86 points (39-47-86) in 125 games. He was named the CCHA’s Best Defensive Forward and won the CCHA Humanitarian Award in 2006. He also skated in 25 games for the Braehead Clan in the United Kingdom’s top professional league in 2012-13, racking up 30 points (15-15-30).
