Miller brings Calder Cup home to the Soo

Photo: Greyhounds Governor Dr. George Shunock with Colin Miller at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie.

Thursday August 13, 2015

Sault Ste. Marie native, and Greyhounds alumnus, Colin Miller returned home last week with the Calder Cup he captured as a member of the American Hockey League champion Manchester Monarchs.

Miller greeted fans at the Essar Centre posing for pictures and signing autographs throughout the afternoon.

“I want to give the community the opportunity to enjoy the Calder Cup,” Miller said prior to the event. “I am looking forward to the day and being able to celebrate the moment with the Greyhounds organization and the City of Sault Ste. Marie.”

Miller originally signed with the Greyhounds as a free agent in 2010 and played three seasons with the club serving as captain in his overage year.  That season he scored 20 goals and 35 assists for 55 points and was honoured with the Mickey Renaud Captain’s Trophy at the OHL Awards Ceremony for his leadership qualities on and off the ice. 

Shortly after the 2012-13 season, Miller signed his entry-level contract with the Los Angeles Kings who selected him in the fifth round of the 2012 NHL Draft.  The 22-year-old defenceman recently completed his second professional campaign scoring 19 goals and 33 assists for 52 points in 70 regular season games with the Monarchs before adding another 10 points in 19 playoff games alongside eight other OHL grads who hoisted the prestigious Calder Cup.

He also represented his Eastern Conference squad at the AHL All-Star Classic and turned heads during the annual Skills Competition winning the Fastest Skater crown as well as the Hardest Shot with a 105.5 mph blast that set a 20-year event record.

“It was a great year,” Miller said. “We had a great group of guys there in Manchester, and it just kind of all came together there in the playoffs. We had a lot of really tough series against the teams there in our conference, and then moving all the way to the other conference.

“We weren’t really too sure what to expect playing Utica because we don’t see them too much throughout the year — we don’t see them at all, actually — so it was kind of going in blind, but they were a great team. They were very skilled; I thought they were very similarly matched to our team in Manchester, and it went in our favour.”

Miller is now a member of the Boston Bruins organization having been part of a June trade giving him a fresh opportunity to crack an NHL lineup.

“He did have a breakout year,” said Bruins GM Don Sweeney. “His game was really loose, he had offensive instincts, he’s got a good shot from the offensive blueline. There’s some structure in Colin’s game now that goes along with those offensive instincts. [He] is willing to transition pucks, and he is a guy that we identified as a group that has sort of emerged — and hopefully will come in and challenge — because he’s got a lot of upside.”

Whether he earns a spot on the Bruins or returns to the AHL with Providence, Miller is ready for the next chapter of his career.

“We had a good run there, so it was a lot of fun, and it’s kind of nice now looking back that that was the way it was able to kind of end there for me in Manchester, and with the Kings.”

WATCH: CTV Northern Ontario chats with Calder Cup champion Colin Miller in Sault Ste. Marie.

Written with files from soogreyhounds.com and bostonbruins.com.