J. T. Miller jokes about past Vancouver Canucks tension

During a recent golf outing with the Spittin' Chiclets crew, New York Rangers forward J. T. Miller made light of his past tensions with former Vancouver Canucks teammate Elias Pettersson. When Paul Bissonnette joked that Miller was being “bullied more than Petey on the Canucks,” Miller jokingly responded, “Petey in my backswing is crazy. . . I went to rehab for that.”

This comment references the period during the 2024-25 season when Miller and Pettersson experienced a well-documented rift both on and off the ice. During that time, Miller took a leave of absence from the Canucks for personal reasons, missing 10 games between November and December before eventually being traded to the New York Rangers.

While Miller’s joke implies rehabilitation, reports from the time indicated his leave was intended as a mental reset rather than treatment for substance or alcohol abuse, following a period of poor performance and internal team friction.