SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) announced today that the club has acquired the rights to forward Nick Merkley (@merkdaddy4) from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for the rights to defenseman Christian Jaros.
“Nick is a competitive and skilled forward who was a first round draft selection in 2015,” said Sharks Assistant General Manager and San Jose Barracuda General Manager Joe Will. “He has shown good progression in his young career and adds versatility to our organization’s forward depth.”
Merkley, 24, appeared in 27 games with the Devils last season, posting ten points (two goals, eight assists) and seven penalty minutes. He set career highs in games played, goals, assists and points. Merkley also appeared in five games for the Binghamton Devils in the American Hockey League (AHL).
Over the course of his professional career, Merkley has appeared in 32 career NHL games, scoring 12 points (three goals, nine assists) with the Arizona Coyotes and New Jersey. In the AHL, he has appeared in 142 games, scoring 11 points (40 goals, 71 assists), and was named to the 2017-18 AHL All-Star game.
Prior to his professional career, he appeared in parts of five seasons with the Kelowna Rockets in the Western Hockey League (WHL) and recorded 259 career points (85 goals, 174 assists) in 245 games. During the 2014-15 season, he helped Kelowna to a WHL Championship, leading the league in postseason assists (22) and finished third in points (27). He was named to the WHL West Second All-Star Team and the CHL Memorial Cup All-Star team, after registering five points (two goals, three assists) in five games. He also helped Canada win a gold medal at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup. In the 2013-14 season, he was named WHL Rookie of the Year, finishing third in goals (25) and points (58).
The five-foot-eleven, 194-pound native of Calgary, Alberta was originally selected by Arizona in the 2015 NHL Draft (first round, 30th overall).
