Nick Merkley

Nick Merkley
Merkley in 2018
Born	(1997-05-23) May 23, 1997 (age 27) Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height	5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight	191 lb (87 kg; 13 st 9 lb)
Position	Forward
Shoots	Right
KHL team Former teams	Dinamo Minsk Arizona Coyotes New Jersey Devils Ässät San Jose Sharks
NHL draft	30th overall, 2015 Arizona Coyotes
Playing career	2017–present

Nicholas Merkley (born May 23, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger currently playing under contract with HC Dinamo Minsk in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Merkley was formerly rated as a top prospect who was widely projected to be a first round selection in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. ^[1] In the said Draft, he was selected 30th overall by the Arizona Coyotes, the final pick of the opening round.

Playing career

Merkley was selected ninth overall by the Kelowna Rockets in the 2012 WHL Bantam Draft. Following a strong first season with the Rockets, ^[2] he was selected as the 2013–14 WHL Rookie of the Year and awarded the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy, ^[3] and during the 2014–15 WHL season he was rewarded for his outstanding play when he was selected to skate in the 2015 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game ^[4] and was also named to the 2014–15 WHL (West) Second All-Star Team after scoring 20 goals and 90 points in 72 games.

On September 3, 2015, Merkley agreed to a three-year entry-level contract with the Arizona Coyotes. ^[5]

He made his NHL debut on December 19, 2017, against the Florida Panthers. ^[6] He played 13 minutes 30 seconds of ice time in a 3–2 loss. He was sent back down to the AHL shortly after. On January 4, 2018, Merkley was selected for the 2018 AHL All-Star Classic Game in Utica, New York. ^{[7] [8]}

During the 2019–20 season while with the Tucson Roadrunners, Merkley was traded by the Coyotes to the New Jersey Devils in a deal involving star forward Taylor Hall on December 16, 2019. ^[9] Merkley joined the Devils' AHL affiliate, the Binghamton Devils, and was instantly productive in collecting 8 goals and 19 points in 28 regular season games. He was later recalled by the New Jersey Devils, adding a goal and an assist in four games, before the regular season was abruptly ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As an impending restricted free agent with the Devils and with the team unable to qualify in the return to play format, Merkley signed a one-year contract with the Finnish Liiga club Ässät on August 27, 2020, in order to stay in game shape. His contract included an NHL-out clause until commencement of the delayed 2020–21 North American season. ^[10]

On July 26, 2021, Merkley was traded to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Christián Jaroš. ^[11] He signed a one-year contract three days later. ^[12] He made his debut for the Sharks on October 30, 2021, in a 2–1 win over the Winnipeg Jets. ^[13] Three days later, he recorded hist first point as an assist in a 5–3 victory against the Buffalo Sabres. ^[14] His first goal came on November 4, 2021, in a 3–5 loss to the St. Louis Blues. ^[15]

On March 21, 2022, Merkley was traded by the Sharks to the New York Rangers in exchange for Anthony Bitetto at the NHL trade deadline. ^[16]

On August 1, 2022, having left the Rangers as a free agent, Merkley agreed to a one-year contract with Belarusian club, HC Dinamo Minsk of the KHL, for the 2022–23 season. ^{[17] [18]}

International play

Merkley helped Team Canada capture the gold medal at the 2014 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament. ^[19]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2012–13	Calgary Buffaloes	AMHL		30	14	19	33	95		11	4	6	10	16
2012–13	Kelowna Rockets	WHL		1	0	0	0	0		7	0	3	3	0
2013–14	Kelowna Rockets	WHL		66	25	33	58	46		14	4	13	17	12
2014–15	Kelowna Rockets	WHL		72	20	70	90	79		19	5	22	27	18
2015–16	Kelowna Rockets	WHL		43	17	31	48	44		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	Kelowna Rockets	WHL		63	23	40	63	73		17	6	13	19	22
2017–18	Tucson Roadrunners	AHL		38	18	21	39	22		—	—	—	—	—
2017–18	Arizona Coyotes	NHL		1	0	0	0	2		—	—	—	—	—
2018–19	Tucson Roadrunners	AHL		45	10	24	34	26		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Tucson Roadrunners	AHL		26	3	13	16	10		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Binghamton Devils	AHL		28	8	11	19	16		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	New Jersey Devils	NHL		4	1	1	2	2		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Ässät	Liiga		19	4	9	13	33		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	New Jersey Devils	NHL		27	2	8	10	7		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Binghamton Devils	AHL		5	1	2	3	4		—	—	—	—	—
2021–22	San Jose Barracuda	AHL		43	11	25	36	28		—	—	—	—	—
2021–22	San Jose Sharks	NHL		9	1	2	3	0		—	—	—	—	—
2021–22	Hartford Wolf Pack	AHL		16	5	6	11	10		—	—	—	—	—
2022–23	Dinamo Minsk	KHL		67	20	20	40	88		5	1	2	3	28
2023–24	Dinamo Minsk	KHL		65	16	16	32	55		6	3	1	4	6
NHL totals				41	4	11	15	11		—	—	—	—	—
KHL totals				132	36	36	72	143		11	4	3	7	34

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2014	Canada Pacific	U17			6	2	3	5	14
2014	Canada	IH18			5	0	4	4	8
Junior totals					11	2	7	9	22

Awards and honours

Honours	Year
Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy – WHL Rookie of the Year	2013–14	[20]
Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament Gold Medal	2014	[21]
CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game	2015	[22]
WHL (West) Second All-Star Team	2015	[23]
CHL Memorial Cup All-Star Team	2015	[24]
American Hockey League All-Star Game	2018	[8]

References

1. "Merkley Rockets' next top NHL draft pick". Sportsnet.ca. March 12, 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
2. "Kelowna Rockets rookie Nick Merkley blossoming quickly". Yahoo! Sports . February 14, 2015. Retrieved February 14, 2015.
3. "Early draft watch includes Rockets trio". okanagansportpage.com. November 14, 2014. Retrieved November 14, 2014.
4. "Kelowna's Nick Merkley proves cream rises to the top for NHL draft". Yahoo! Sports . June 27, 2015. Retrieved June 27, 2015.
5. "Coyotes sign Merkley to entry-level contract". Arizona Coyotes. September 3, 2015. Retrieved September 3, 2015.
6. "Merkley's NHL debut memorable despite Arizona's loss". kelownanow.com. December 19, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
7. "ROSTERS ANNOUNCED FOR 2018 AHL ALL-STAR CLASSIC". theahl.com. Springfield, Mass. January 4, 2018. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
8. Layman, Matt (January 4, 2018). "Coyotes prospects Dylan Strome, Nick Merkley make AHL All-Star team". arizonasports.com. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
9. "RELEASE: Devils acquire picks and players in exchange for Hall, Speers". National Hockey League. December 15, 2019. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
10. "Ässät announce first signing with Nick Merkley" (in Finnish). Ässät. August 27, 2020. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
11. "Sharks Acquire Rights to Forward Nick Merkley from Devils". National Hockey League. July 26, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
12. "Sharks Sign Forward Nick Merkley". National Hockey League. July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
13. "Sharks top Jets in OT after coach, seven players put in COVID-19 protocol". National Hockey League. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
14. "Hertl has three points for Sharks in victory against Sabres". National Hockey League. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
15. "Brandon Saad scores twice, leads Blues past Sharks 5–3". ESPN. Retrieved November 4, 2021.
16. "Rangers trade Anthony Bitetto to Sharks for Nick Merkley". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
17. "Nick Merkley - Dinamo Minsk player". Sportnaviny.com. August 1, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
18. "Nick Merkley - Dinamo Minsk player" (in Belarusian). HC Dinamo Minsk. August 1, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
19. "Merkley helps team Canada u18's claim gold". Kelowna Rockets. October 12, 2014. Retrieved October 12, 2014.
20. "Nick Merkley vaults into lead scoring race". Calgary Herald . April 1, 2014. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
21. "NHL draft prospect Nick Merkley is making a statement". The Hockey News . February 3, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
22. "Rockets forward selected to Prospects Game". kelownacapnews.com. June 1, 2015. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
23. "Bowey, Chartier, Merkley, Morrissey named to All-Star teams". Kelowna Rockets. April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
24. "Memorial Cup awards and All-Stars". Memorial Cup. June 1, 2015. Retrieved June 2, 2015.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  Hockey-Reference.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Dylan Strome	Arizona Coyotes first round draft pick 2015	Succeeded by Clayton Keller