'That's his town' | Coaches, teammates discuss Miller's time in Buffalo

Ryan Miller walked onto the KeyBank Center floor in June and looked up at the video board, where a message from Rick Jeanneret awaited him.
"Ryan, for five-plus decades, no player has worn the Buffalo Sabres sweater with more authenticity, intensity, and pride than you did for 12 unforgettable years," Jeanneret said.
Jeanneret went on to announce what will finally come to fruition tonight. Miller will be inducted into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame and have his number retired to the KeyBank Center rafters, alongside Jeanneret and the goaltender who preceded him in Buffalo, Dominik Hasek.
The words of the Sabres' Hall-of-Fame broadcaster are echoed by those who played alongside Miller as well as those who watched him throughout his decorated career with the Sabres, during which he became the franchise's all-time leader in wins by a goaltender and earned the Vezina Trophy in 2009-10.

Miller is being honored both for his accomplishments on the ice and for his commitment to the region he arrived in as a 22-year-old in 2002, three years removed from his selection by the Sabres as with the 138th pick in the NHL Entry Draft.
In advance of the ceremony, Miller's teammates, coaches, and others who worked alongside him reflected on his career in Buffalo.

The early days

Miller played three seasons at the Michigan State University after the Sabres drafted him in 1999. His play during that time made him more intriguing than the average fifth-round pick.
Miller won the Hobey Baker Award as the best player in college hockey as a sophomore. He was a finalist for the award again as a junior. Jason Pominville was aware of Miller's success by the time they met at training camp the following season.
"I had never met him but heard he was really talented," Pominville recalled. "My first impression was, man, he's not a big kid. Skinny, tall. But then you see him on the ice and you're very impressed right away in his ability to compete and move and how agile he is.
"How much of a competitor he was just caught your eye right away. But then you see him off the ice and you're like, 'He might need to put on a few pounds.'"
Pominville would learn as well as anyone not to underestimate Miller. The two would spend the next 11 seasons as teammates in Rochester and Buffalo. For years, they sat next to each other on flights, Miller pouring through film of the game they had just played with goalie coach Jim Corsi.

Corsi quickly recognized the potential in Miller upon his arrival to the Sabres, though success was far from instantaneous. The Sabres were only two years removed from the era of Dominik Hasek. They had two first-round candidates to replace Hasek on their roster in Mika Noronen and Martin Biron.
Still, there was something about Miller that screamed success.
"It looked like he had a plan," Corsi said. "There was the real pedigree of a competitor."
Miller made his NHL debut that very first season, against another legendary No. 30 in Martin Brodeur and the New Jersey Devils. The Sabres carried a 2-0 lead into the third period, then Miller allowed three goals in the third. The Devils won 4-3 in overtime.
The Associate Press headline on that November night in 2002: "Miller breaks down in third under pressure from Devils."
So began a pattern for Miller in his early days. He played 15 games for the Sabres that first season. The following season, 2003-04, he played three games - allowing a combined 13 goals in the latter two. He spent the remainder of that year in Rochester.
Still, Corsi believed. He compared the development of a great goaltender to the aging of a fine wine. In those days, he would call the Rochester coaching staff after games and urge them to remind Miller, "Smell the wine."
"We sent him back down to Rochester, he was as fiery as I'd ever seen him," Corsi said. "He wanted to be very good. He wanted to check every box to be very good. That kind of intensity is invaluable. It's what gets you over the top."

Miller Time

Sabres faithful know what happened next. The NHL was locked out in 2004-05, and Miller - alongside Pominville, Thomas Vanek, and several others who would form the core of one of the most beloved eras in franchise history - spent a full season developing in Rochester. He was named the AHL' s top goalie.
The Ryan Miller era officially began in 2005-06, coinciding with the Sabres' magical run to the Eastern Conference Final.
"He took the net and never let it go," Corsi said.
Miller had a .914 save percentage in 48 regular-season games that season. He played 18 games in the playoffs, as the Sabres marched their way to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final against Carolina.
"He was a pressure player," Biron said. "The more pressure he had on, the better he performed. More pressure he wanted so that it would push him that way, whether it was playoffs or Olympics. He always responded to the pressure. There's another level that some players can get to.
"Ryan Miller in 05-06, in those playoff series, he reached those other levels. We had a great team, but without him there's no way we're even talking about Game 7 of the conference finals."
Danny Briere was the co-captain of that team and the next won, which won a Presidents' Trophy in 2006-07.
"Ryan Miller was the backbone of our team," Briere said.
Miller became a fixture in Buffalo in the ensuing years. He created an iconic image when he made the decision to wear a hockey sock over his mask at the inaugural Winter Classic in Orchard Park, setting the precedent for goaltenders to wear toques in outdoor games. (In true Miller fashion, the decision was inspired by charity. The sock was auctioned off to benefit his Steadfast Foundation.)

His greatest act came in 2009-10. Miller started an incredible 67 games for the Sabres that season while posting a .929 save percentage, leading the Sabres to a Northeast Division title and winning the Vezina Trophy as the NHL's top goaltender. That alone might have earned him the distinction of best goalie on the planet, but his play in the Vancouver Olympic Games transcended NHL success.
"He had the huge challenge of playing for the United States and this new team that he had been thrust upon and the spotlight of the Olympics," Corsi said. "There was an increasing amount of pressure that I felt, 'Oh my. This is going to tell us if we've done the right thing by Millsie.'
"When he came to the Olympics, he started to just blossom."
Miller posted a .946 save percentage in six games at the Olympics. He was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament despite falling short in the Gold Medal Game.
Jonathan Quick was Miller's backup at that year's Olympics and usurped Miller as the starter during the 2014 Sochi Games. Quick still refers to Miller as the greatest American goaltender of all-time.
"Just every night, he stood on his head," Quick said.
The essence of what made Miller great showed itself the following season. Miller, coming off one of the great years a goaltender had ever had, arrived to training camp and asked Corsi about making a tweak to his glove positioning, shifting it slightly more upright.
"Rotating it, I don't know, 10 degrees," Corsi said. "But it was cunning. It was where the game was headed. ... "Ryan's biggest strength was the way he could interpret the game and always forever pushing himself to try something different."
Miller would remain a workhorse for the duration of his career in Buffalo. He played 66 games in 2010-11 and 61 in 2011-12. He played in 40 of 48 games during the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season.
His coach, Lindy Ruff, jokes now that he could have been punished for abuse.
"That's a special group of goaltenders who can keep themselves in a game and play that many games in an 82-game season," Ruff said.

His town

Miller's numbers alone make him a worthy candidate for the Sabres Hall of Fame. His commitment to Buffalo created the enduring bond that will be recognized with a banner in the rafters.
Miller felt he owed it to the people in Western New York to reciprocate some of the energy they provided the Sabres. He made it a point to be an active member in the community through small gestures - joining the local co-op, for example - and through larger charitable endeavors.
Miller started his Steadfast Foundation early in his career. His "Catwalk for Charity" events became an annual staple, bringing teammates and fans together for a fashion-inspired night that raised money for the Courage of Carly Fund at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center.
"Genuine," Pominville said when asked to describe his friend and former teammate. "Down to Earth. Would give time to whoever needed time. He would do a lot of work with charity, which is pretty impressive. And everything he did was fun."

Miller dedicated his time outside the public eye, too. Robin Nusbaum coordinated events for the Courage of Carly Fund in those days, the pediatric program at Roswell Park. She would receive spur-of-the-moment texts from Miller asking to visit on an off day, and likewise felt comfortable asking him to attend any of their weekly events.
"He was just Ryan," she said after Miller's retirement in 2021. "He was so down to Earth, and he would just chat like a normal guy to all of the kids and all their parents. They started to get to know him more as Ryan the person rather than Ryan the goalie or Ryan the hockey player. It was really unique to see that because they had personal stories, they had personal relationships. They had a unique connection that a lot of people maybe weren't privy to.
"He was just a really cool guy that wanted to come by and visit the hospital. In a way, he just happened to be a really awesome hockey player."
When Miller returned to Buffalo as a visiting player with the Vancouver Canucks, he made a trip to Roswell Park. When he held an equipment auction in 2020, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, he dedicated a portion of proceeds to organizations in Western New York.
Miller left Buffalo, but his heart never did.
"That's his town," Corsi said. "That's his town. He puts the mantle on happily and wants to bring success."
"This is where it all began," Ruff added. "Represented the city so well. I think his work ethic represented the city so well also. And it was a fit for him. Ryan Miller was a Buffalo person."
Michelle Girardi Zumwalt contributed to this story.