Why Legendary Bruins Enforcer Jay Miller Always Loved Playing Canadiens

BOSTON — When retired tough guy Jay Miller entered the TD Garden on Saturday ahead of the Boston Bruins’ matchup against the Montreal Canadiens he said he put his game face on.

The rivalry between the Bruins and Canadiens has existed since the mid-1930s with the two teams meeting 936 times since Boston entered the league in 1924.

“We’re playing the Montreal Canadiens,” Miller told reporters before the game. “If you’re a Boston Bruin, you know any of the folklore of this. We played (them) eight times, and it was the most exciting time for all the other players but myself and (Lydon Byers) … and we all know why.

“I enjoyed the heck out of it because I knew I busted the Montreal Canadiens fans because I did pretty good against them,” Miller said. “But they were always very cordial to us. I couldn’t wait to pound some faces. That, and fear, was my biggest asset, as they say.”

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Miller said one of the best things about playing the Canadiens eight times in a season was the fights could carry over into the next game if the players felt they weren’t completed, or if their opponent got the better of them.

“When we played four home and four away, and you do a back-to-back, you might have averaged out a fight,” Miller explained. “You had the next night to get that guy back. That was the cool part. Now, you going to wait six months to get a guy back.”

Playing hockey for the Bruins as a local kid who grew up in New England, Miller appreciated what it meant to play in Boston.

“I enjoyed being a local kid, coming from 20 miles from west of the Mass Pike,” Miller said. “How could you not? Driving up the ramp of the old Garden. The fans, you can smell the cigarettes and the chants from Erie Pub.”

In the three and a half seasons Miller suited up for the Bruins, he was mainly known for his many fights with Chris Nilan and John Kordic.

“It was an exciting time in my life, and I always enjoyed playing the Canadiens. I knew I had a combatant with Chris Nilan, John Kordic.”

Miller admitted he still watches the game today but doesn’t follow it as closely when it comes to scoring or standings.

“I kind of watch it just for the camaraderie and watch it because I was a Bruin at one time,” Miller said.

The physical aspect of the game has changed over the years, and it’s something Miller misses.

“I miss the rough stuff,” Miller said. “I know they can’t bring it back, which is fine. But losing it, it was part of my game that I missed and it made my career.”

Miller lit the lamp 13 times, added 20 assists and served 858 penalty minutes in 216 games for Boston. In the 1987-88 season, he sat in the sin bin for a career-high 304 minutes.