Ryan Miller

At 44 years old, Ryan Miller has this physical status:

Ryan Dean Miller (born July 17, 1980) is an American professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Miller was drafted 138th overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft.

In 2010, he won the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender.

On February 17, 2019, Miller became the winningest American-born goalie in NHL history. He was selected to play for the United States in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver as the team's starting goaltender.

He won a silver medal with the team and was named most valuable player of the tournament.

Four years later, he was selected for the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Miller is one of 30 goaltenders in NHL history to win 300 games in his career. Miller is known for his hybrid style of goaltending.

He is the older brother of Drew Miller.

Early life

Miller grew up in East Lansing, Michigan. He started playing youth hockey in California. In youth hockey, Miller originally played as a forward, however, Miller became frustrated with the poor play of his team's goaltender, so he begged his coach as well as his father, Dean Miller, to let him try it out. His father told him that if he could get two goals and three assists the next game he would buy Ryan a catching glove. Miller finished the game with two goals and three assists in the win. His brother Drew and cousins Kelly, Kevin and Kip all played in the NHL. All five attended Michigan State University, where Ryan Miller played goaltender for three years.

Personal life

Miller married actress Noureen DeWulf on September 3, 2011. On September 11, 2014, it was announced that the couple were expecting their first child. Their son was born in March 2015, in Vancouver, British Columbia. Their daughter was born in April 2022 in Los Angeles, California.

In 2006, Miller, along with his father Dean, started the Steadfast Foundation which supports cancer patients and their families. Miller began the foundation after his cousin was diagnosed with leukaemia.

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Playing career

Miller, a college student for the Michigan State University Spartans, set a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) record of 26 shutouts in his career, including a NCAA record of.950 percent, save percentage, and shutouts in 2001, where he led the nation in wins, winning percentage, save percentage, and shutouts (an NCAA record 10) and shutouts.

Miller played outdoors in the Cold War, a game between Michigan and Michigan State held in 2001. Miller was named as the 2001 Big Ten-Jesse Owens Men's Athlete of the Year.

Miller was the CCHA's Goaltender of the Year for three years, and he was the league's overall MVP twice. The Spartans' family, including his grandfather, father, uncle, five cousins (including Kelly, Kevin and Kip Miller), as well as his younger brother Drew, have played college hockey. In 1990, Kip Miller received the Hobey Baker Award. Miller, a close friend of the Buffalo Bills fullback and a fellow MSU alumnus Jehu Caulcrick, was a close friend of Jehuu Caulcrick.

Miller played for the Rochester Americans, a franchise in Michigan State, from the 2002–03 season to the 2004–05 season. He appeared in 15 Buffalo regular season games from 2002-2003. He won 41 games for the Americans in the 2004–05 season, tying Gerry Cheevers' record. He finished the season with a 2.45 GAA.

In 2004-2005, the Americans were the North Division and Regular Season champions in the AHL. They did not qualify in the division finals, but the Manitoba Moose lost.

Miller began his 2005-06 season as the Sabres' starting goaltender. He ranked 11th among NHL goaltenders with a 2.60 GAA and ninth in a save percentage with.914. Miller led the Sabres to a magical season in 1998, winning 30 games and qualifying to the conference finals.

Miller became a restricted free agent and waived his right to arbitration after the 2005–2006 season. Miller's rep, Mike Liut, continued to talk to the Sabres throughout the summer. The Sabres announced on September 8, 2006, that they had re-signed Miller to a three-year contract.

The 2006-07 season would be a fruitful one. Miller and his staff were the first ten games in a row in his first season as a coach. Miller was voted the starting goaltender for the 2007 NHL All-Star Game in the Eastern Conference. Miller played the first period and allowed three goals in a 12–9 loss. Miller also cultivated a reputation as a shootout specialist by his method of pushing the shooter outside the crease. He was 10–4 in shootouts last season, with Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils being his closest competitor with ten wins and six losses. Miller had a 91 percent save percentage and a 2.72 GAA backing a more offensively focused squad in 63 games played this season.

The Sabres reached their second conference finals in as many years this year, losing to the Ottawa Senators in five games. In the playoffs, Miller had a 922% save percentage and a 2.22 GAA.

With a 6–0 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers on October 11, the Sabres won their second home game of the 2007–08 season. In a game involving his 18-year-old cousin, Matt, who died the Monday after a bone-marrow transplant, Miller earned a shutout, stopping 20 shots. Miller waved his stick to the home crowd at the conclusion of the game and was given an award for his efforts in net.

Miller appeared with the Sabres in the AMP Energy NHL Winter Classic, the first outdoor NHL game to be held in the United States, on January 1, 2008. In Orchard Park, New York, the game was played at Ralph Wilson Stadium, home to the National Football League's Buffalo Bills. The Sabres lost in a shoot-out to the Pittsburgh Penguins, but Miller allowed just one goal (out of 25 shots) in regulation. Miller played in his 73rd game of the season on March 28, breaking the Sabres' record for most games played in a season, beating Grant Fuhr, Dominik Haek, and Martin Biron. Miller played in 76 games last season, with a 2.64 GAA and a.906 save percentage.

Miller's five-year deal contract extension with the Sabres costing $31.25 million on July 18, 2008. The agreement went into operation at the start of the 2009–10 season. Miller sustained a high-end ankle sprain against the New York Rangers on February 22, 2009, which kept him out of action until late March. Despite Miller's strong 34-18–6 record during the 2008–09 season, the Sabres barely escaped from qualifying for a playoff spot.

Miller's fame in both Buffalo and American hockey has earned him several nicknames, including "Miller Time" (after the Miller brewing company's advertising slogan), while Toronto's media has dubbed him "Leaf Killer Ryan Miller" for his outstanding success against one of the Sabres top opponents, the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Miller's GAA was above average in the 2009–2010 season, with a GAA of under 2.00 before the Olympic break. He finished the season with a 2.22 GAA and a.929 save percentage. He led the Buffalo Sabres to a Northeast Division championship with 41 victories, breaking their previous record of 40 wins set in 2006–07. After being nominated for the Vezina Trophy for the league's top goaltender, his game became more popular around the United States. Miller was named the 2010 Vezina Trophy winner at the 2010 NHL Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas, Nevada, beating New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur and Phoenix Coyotes goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov on June 23, 2010. Miller was also the first American player to receive the NHL Foundation Player Award on the same night.

Miller sustained what was later identified as a "upper body injury" during a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 29, 2011. Initial reports into Miller's injury ranged from a concussion that rang off his mask to a bruised collarbone from a Dion Phaneuf shot. Miller defeated Dominik Haek in a 4–3 shootout victory over the New York Islanders on February 4, 2012. Miller achieved this feat in six-and-a-half years as Buffalo's starting goaltender, though Havetch took nine years.

The 2012–13 NHL season did not go well for the Sabres, who finished 12th in the Eastern Conference and failed to qualify for the playoffs for the second year in a row. Miller finished the season with a 2.81 GAA and a 0.915 save percentage.

Miller and forward Steve Ott were traded from the Sabres to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Jaroslav Halák, Chris Stewart, William Carrier, and two future draft picks. In a 4–2 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes, he will make his Blues debut alongside Ott on March 3. Miller and the Blues were disqualified in the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs to the Chicago Blackhawks, the defending 2013 Stanley Cup champions.

Elliott was signed by Brian Elliott to a three-year deal, and Blues General Manager Doug Armstrong revealed that Elliott would join Jake Allen to form their goaltending team. Miller was not fired because he was not re-signed.

Miller signed a three-year, $18 million contract to be the Vancouver Canucks' starting goaltender. Miller became the 30th goaltender in NHL history to reach 300 career victories on October 28. As the Canucks defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 4–1, he made 29 saves. Miller defeated every team in the NHL at least once on January 30, 2015, after beating his former team, the Buffalo Sabres, 5–2. However, Miller sustained a serious injury after Jannik Hansen crashed into him on February 22, putting an end to his night as he and Eddie Lack combined for a shutout over the New York Islanders. He will be out of the next 21 games. Miller returned to action in the Canucks' last game of the regular season after 22 games without being on ice for the first time in the season. Edmonton Oilers defeated the Edmonton Oilers 6–5.

Miller left as a free agent and signed a two-year, $4 million deal with the Anaheim Ducks after concluding his three-year deal with the Canucks. Due to a lingering wrist injury, he started the 2017–18 season on the injured reserve list. Miller was able to make his Ducks debut in a 4–3 shootout victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on October 29, 2017.

Miller was re-signed by the Ducks for a third season with the club on June 20, 2019, promising to a one-year $2.235 million contract extension. Miller was re-signed by the Ducks on December 23, 2020, on a one-year deal.

Miller announced on April 29, 2021, that he would retire from the NHL at the end of the 2020-2021 season. Miller played his final NHL game, a 4–3 loss to the Minnesota Wild, in which Victor Rask scored the game winning goal 2:46 into the overtime period on May 8, 2021. The Buffalo Sabres will display their number after he announced that he would not return on January 19, 2023.

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