Miller is scheduled to arrive in Vancouver this morning and sign a one-year contract worth $1.5 million with the Canucks, quite a score for a player looking for a legitimate chance at winning the Stanley Cup and a team on the rise looking for a veteran who can assist in guiding them there.

At age 36 and coming off the first season in his career in which he played all 82 games, Miller isn’t going to lift all boats in Vancouver. He’ll be there to help prevent them from sinking. There’s no telling whether the West Seneca native will play beyond this season, so this could be his final year to win his first championship as a professional.

And Gleason points out something else that most of us have already noticed; that Dave Nonis hasn’t strayed far from his mentor Brian Burke in these last years:

The Canucks are copying Anaheim’s blueprint, wrapping role players around a terrific defense corps and good goaltending. The Canucks’ blue line was strong before Miller arrived. Goalie Roberto Luongo is one of the best players in the league.

Miller is short on speed, but long on smarts and has played in big games so he should help the Canucks’ title quest.

Well, here’s to praying…

And so a new season of hopes and dreams feels just a little bit closer.