J.T. Miller shrugged when asked about why he slid to block a shot near the end of the Vancouver Canucks鈥� 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks last Monday.

鈥淚t shouldn鈥檛 matter. It鈥檚 like a mindset thing for the team,鈥� he said after the victory.

鈥淵ou have to want to get in the way of the puck. I had missed one on the penalty kill earlier 鈥� if I had blocked that one it probably doesn鈥檛 end up in the back of the net. There鈥檚 a very fine line there about being in the shot lanes.鈥�

With San Jose on the man advantage in the third period, Miller dropped to a knee in an attempt to block a Calen Addison shot. The puck found its way by him, deflected off a Vancouver player and fell to Tomas Hertl to knock home.

Miller pointed out other examples of teammates blocking shots late in the game and said it shows the buy-in from players on what the coaching staff has asked of them.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a part of our team鈥檚 identity,鈥� he said.

Entering play Friday, Miller has 30 points (13 goals, 17 assists) in 20 games. He鈥檚 just behind teammate Quinn Hughes, who leads the NHL with 31 points this season.

Miller, 30, and the second line he leads have earned praise from the team鈥檚 coaching staff for their playing style and impact.

鈥�(Miller) drives the play. When we鈥檙e playing a little bit slow or we鈥檙e not on our game, he demands the puck by going to areas,鈥� said Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet. 鈥淎 lot of our players understand, you have to drive to whatever area to demand the puck.

鈥淗e drives the play with his attitude and his north style. It鈥檚 infectious.鈥�

Tocchet has cited that willingness for players to put their body on the line as part of the 鈥淏ible鈥� his team follows, which includes clean line changes.

He has also worked to hold his centre accountable, benching Miller for four minutes after taking his third penalty in a 5-2 win over the Nashville Predators on Oct. 31.

鈥淗e鈥檚 an emotional leader for this team and we鈥檙e a quiet team,鈥� Tocchet said at the time. 鈥淲e give him crap sometimes because he鈥檚 got to draw the emotion for a lot of guys. Sometimes, he鈥檒l go over an edge and he got back. I have no problems with his emotions.鈥�

Miller鈥檚 primary linemates this season have also been contributing. Brock Boeser has six power-play goals and 13 goals overall while Phil Di Guiseppe has eight points and a plus-5 rating.

Miller signed a US$56-million, seven-year contract last season after a 99-point campaign (32-67) in 2021-22.

Part of the bump in offensive output this season has developed with a change in how the Canucks operate in front of their opponent鈥檚 net. Miller鈥檚 goal last Monday came from a rebound off a shot by Boeser through traffic in the third period.

鈥淭he (defence) is doing a good job of finding that stick, they鈥檙e not just shooting the puck for the sake of it,鈥� Tocchet said. 鈥淣ow they鈥檙e looking for that play. Those are great plays.鈥�

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