Miller, 20, was drafted by Arizona in the fourth round of the 2020 draft, but the Coyotes waived his rights for bullying a black classmate with developmental disabilities in high school. Boston signed Miller to an entry-level contract on Friday, prompting sweeping criticism from Bruins players from captain Patrice Bergeron on down, as well as Boston fans. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman also weighed in, saying Miller would not currently be able to play in the league without major changes. “I’m extremely upset that we made a lot of people unhappy with our decision,” Neely said. “I’m proud of the Bruins organization and what we stand for. And that’s where we failed.” The offer to Miller was rescinded late Sunday, with Neely saying in a statement that the Bruins believed Miller’s behavior was an isolated incident and that the team reversed course based on new information — particularly that the team had not spoken with the victim Isaiah Meyer-Crothers or his family. “We didn’t have enough information,” Neely said. “We could have dug deeper.” Mitchell Miller (4) looks to represent the USA at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup tournament in Edmonton. (Codie McLachlan/Canadian Press)
Neely met with Miller, an agent
Neely met with Miller, agent Eustace King and Miller’s mother before signing him. Neely said he shouldn’t have assumed the vetting process also included a meeting with Meyer-Crothers’ family. Asked why that didn’t happen, Neely said, “That’s a great question. Something I need to learn.” Neely reiterated that he felt in his meeting with Miller that he had regrets and that he deserved a chance to play in the NHL. “My impression was that he was a 14-year-old kid who made a really bad decision and did some horrible things,” Neely said. “He’s 20 years old now. So it struck me that in the last six years he’s done a lot of work on himself… I believe in second chances and maybe some people don’t deserve it.” Miller pleaded guilty at age 14 to one count of assault and one count of violating Ohio’s Safe Schools Act. He and another teenager were accused of making Meyer-Crothers eat candy after he wiped it on a bathroom urinal, and surveillance video showed them kicking and punching him. Meyer-Crothers’ mother, Joni told The Arizona Republic that Miller began bullying her son in second grade and used racial epithets. WATCHES | NATIONAL: NHL signee ruled ineligible for extreme bullying:
NHL signee ruled ineligible due to guilty plea to extreme bullying as teenager
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman says newly signed Boston Bruins player Mitchell Miller is ineligible to play in the league. Miller pleaded guilty to assault as a teenager for bullying a classmate.
The Coyotes selected Miller
The Coyotes drafted Miller despite knowing of his assault conviction in 2016. The team parted ways with Miller amid criticism after learning more about the bullying. Miller sent a letter to all 31 NHL teams acknowledging what happened and apologizing for his behavior. Joni Meyer-Crothers said Miller never personally apologized to Isaiah or their family other than in a court-ordered letter. “When I was in eighth grade, I made an extremely bad decision and acted very immaturely,” Miller said in a statement. “I bullied one of my classmates. I deeply regret the incident and apologized to the person. Since the incident, I have come to better understand the far-reaching consequences of my actions, which I failed to recognize and understand nearly seven years ago.” Miller sat out the 2020-21 season before scoring 39 goals with 44 assists for Tri-City of the USHL in 2021-22. He was named the USHL player and defenseman of the year after setting league records for goals and points by a defenseman. Neely again apologized to Meyer-Crothers’ family and said he planned to contact them. “It’s something they shouldn’t have to keep going through,” he said. “We could have done a better job, we should have done a better job.”
