The NHL offseason continues, and the Stanley Cup Final is just around the corner. We now know both teams, and it will be the Florida Panthers against the Edmonton Oilers. Connor McDavid will finally get to chase the Stanley Cup that has eluded him for seasons. The Minnesota Wild recently made news with the firing of long-time assistant coach Darby Hendrickson, but other than that, things have been quiet since the end of the 2024 IIHF World Championship.
That means it’s time for another Wild report card and continuing with the defensemen; Jon Merrill is up next. Like Alex Goligoski, he struggled throughout the season and was in and out of the lineup numerous times due to inconsistent play and others doing better. We’ll take a quick look at a rough part of his game, a strong part of his game, and his overall grade. We’ll start with his lack of defensive involvement and go from there.
Merrill Lacked Involvement
While Merrill has never been the most offensive defenseman, instead being the typical stay-at-home defenseman, he struggled in that area this past season. The biggest area of concern was his minimal blocked shots, which should be a stay-at-home defenseman’s best stat when they’re the last line of defense before the goaltender.
He had just 57 blocked shots this season in 65 games played after having 107 blocks in 73 games played the season before. This season is the lowest he’s had since having 42 for the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017-18 when he played just 34 games, and before that, it was his rookie season in 2013-14 with the New Jersey Devils when he had 41 blocked shots in 52 games. He didn’t want to stand in the puck’s path this season, which cost his team several times.
It was clear when watching his play that he struggled to keep up with his teammates and often seemed lost in the play. While that could’ve been because of less playing time, the entire team practices together, so he knows what his teammates play like. His inconsistent play caused him to be the odd man out for several Wild games, and with the up-and-coming young defensemen, the Wild may have to find a way to trade him.
Merrill’s Good Areas
Merrill struggled a bit this season but did well in several areas. The first was that his turnovers were the fewest since his rookie season. He turned the puck over 12 times in 65 games, which is pretty decent. As a defenseman, it’s typically their job to break the puck out of their zone by getting it to their forwards who are waiting near the half wall, and those passes can be picked off quite easily if they aren’t careful.
Merrill did okay in that area when actively participating and getting the puck out to his forwards without turning it over too many times. He still had issues with his play, but his turnovers were okay. The other part of his game that he did decently was his offense; although it was low, it was still present.
Related: Wild Have a Lot of Free Agent Decisions to Make
He had 11 points this season, with four goals and seven assists. He also helped set up seven goals besides the four he scored himself. It wasn’t much, but it was at least something. If he’s on the Wild roster next season, he’ll need to find a way to contribute more.
Merrill’s Overall Grade
After looking over everything from the rough part of his game to the good part and everything in between, while he lacked playing time compared to seasons past, he had enough time to show his true potential. He earned a D for his season grade. It wasn’t higher because of his struggles when he did play, but it also wasn’t lower because he did find ways to contribute, just not consistently.
The Wild needed more from him when he was in the lineup, and while he did some, it needed to be more. During this offseason, they’ll have to look closely at their financial situation and contemplate what to do with his spot. It’ll be interesting to see if Merrill has donned a Wild jersey for the final time.
