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The Edmonton Eskimos climbed aboard the transaction train on Wednesday, waiting until one minute prior to the NHL’s 1 p.m. trade deadline to officially announce the release of veteran fullback and reigning Canadian Football League special-teams tackler Mike Miller.

He is the second Canadian player in three days to be released by the team, following defensive tackle Eddie Steele on Monday.

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The six-foot, 215-pound Acadia product out of Riverview, N.B., originally joined the club as an undrafted free agent in 2011 as a linebacker but crossed the line of scrimmage and switched to fullback.

But it was on special teams where he performed most of his work, earning 116 tackles for an average of 19 per season. Last year, he led the way with a league-high 27 special-teams tackles.

It appears Miller’s fate was sealed when the Eskimos opened free agency on Feb. 14 by signing six-foot-three, 243-pound fullback Alexandre Dupuis.

The native of Montreal was drafted in the fourth round by the Toronto Argonauts in 2014, when current Eskimos head coach Jason Maas was an assistant coach on Toronto’s staff.

Miller saw work on offence last season when veteran fullback Calvin McCarty missed seven games with a broken leg.

“Thank you, Edmonton, for giving me the opportunity six years ago,” Miller posted on Twitter Wednesday morning. “Would like to thank my teammates and the fans. Nothing but love for you all. Cheers.”

gmoddejonge@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @SunModdejonge