Joe Miller

Joseph Anthony Miller (October 6, 1898 – August 1, 1963) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and a Grey Cup champion Canadian football player. Miller was a goaltender for the New York Americans, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Quakers between 1927 and 1931. Miller was a member of the 1928 New York Rangers Stanley Cup championship team.

Ice hockey

Joe Miller, a native of Morrisburg, Ontario, first came onto the ice hockey scene with the Pittsburgh Athletic Association (PAA) in 1916–17, playing 40 games for the club before heading back to Canada where he would play for seven years with Renfrew and the Ottawa New Edinburghs. He then reappeared in Pittsburgh for the 1924–25 season, to play with the Fort Pitt Hornets in the United States Amateur Hockey Association, and then the two following seasons he played with the St. Paul Saints in Minnesota.

Miller played for the New York Americans in 1928 when he was sent to the minors after being waived by the Americans. By an interesting set of circumstances his Stanley Cup opportunity arose. His season with Niagara Falls over, Miller was at home in Ottawa when New York Rangers goaltender Lorne Chabot was injured in the second game of the Stanley Cup Final. Rangers coach and General manager Lester Patrick asked the Americans and the Maroons for permission to use Miller for the remainder of the series. The Americans agreed but Montreal Maroons head coach Eddie Gerard forced Lester Patrick to play goal for the rest of that game. Miller was the designated backup for all NHL teams at the time, and he was loaned to the Rangers. Miller played three games for the Rangers, winning the Stanley Cup.

Later he played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Philadelphia Quakers. He wore uniform number 1.

Football Miller was a skilled multi-sport athlete and was an accomplished elite football player. Suiting up for three seasons with the Ottawa Senators (an interim name for the Ottawa Rough Riders) he was a star player and part of two Grey Cup championship teams. In 1925 he was integral to his team's success, but missed the Grey Cup due to his hockey commitment in St. Paul. He was the star of the 14th Grey Cup in 1926, scoring three vital late games "rouges" (single points) and staving off two critical potential turnovers.

Stanley Cup and Grey Cup legacy Miller's two sport championship achievement makes him one of only three people to have their names engraved on both of Canada's premier sport trophies, the Stanley Cup and the Grey Cup, as players. The others are Lionel Conacher and Carl Voss.

In 1967 Joseph ‘Joe’ A. Miller was inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP W L T Min GA SO GAA GP W L T Min GA SO GAA 1916–17 Pittsburgh Athletic Association Exhib 40 37 3 0 2447 63 5 1.54 — — — — — — — — 1917–18 Renfrew Creamery Kings Exhib 7 4 3 0 432 16 0 2.22 — — — — — — — — 1918–19 Ottawa New Edinburghs OCHL 4 3 1 0 240 5 2 1.25 — — — — — — — — 1919–20 Ottawa New Edinburghs OCHL 7 4 2 0 400 10 1 1.50 — — — — — — — — 1920–21 Ottawa New Edinburghs OCHL 11 4 6 1 675 25 0 2.22 — — — — — — — — 1921–22 Ottawa New Edinburghs OCHL 13 4 7 2 780 30 2 2.31 — — — — — — — — 1922–23 Ottawa New Edinburghs OCHL 18 10 6 2 1200 43 2 2.15 5 1 3 1 340 8 1 1.41 1923–24 Ottawa New Edinburghs OCHL 12 9 3 0 720 18 1 1.50 2 0 2 0 120 5 0 2.50 1924–25 Fort Pitt Hornets USAHA 22 17 5 0 1020 39 1 1.72 4 1 3 0 220 9 0 2.45 1925–26 St. Paul Saints CHL 38 — — — 2280 70 6 1.84 — — — — — — — — 1926–27 St. Paul Saints AHA 30 13 12 5 1850 54 10 1.75 — — — — — — — — 1927–28 New York Americans NHL 28 8 16 4 1721 77 5 2.68 — — — — — — — — 1927–28 Niagara Falls Cataracts Can-Pro 13 — — — 780 30 2 2.31 — — — — — — — — 1927–28 New York Rangers NHL — — — — — — — — 3 2 1 0 180 3 1 1.00 1928–29 Pittsburgh Pirates NHL 44 9 27 8 2780 80 11 1.73 — — — — — — — — 1929–30 Pittsburgh Pirates NHL 43 5 35 3 2630 179 0 4.08 — — — — — — — — 1930–31 Philadelphia Quakers NHL 15 2 11 1 821 47 0 3.43 — — — — — — — — 1929–30 New York Americans NHL 1 0 0 1 70 1 0 0.86 — — — — — — — — 1931–32 Syracuse Stars IHL 20 5 11 4 1260 51 3 2.43 — — — — — — — — NHL totals 130 24 89 16 7952 383 16 2.89 3 2 1 0 180 3 1 1.00