Confirmed Trade: [MTL/DET] Jon Merrill for Hayden Verbeek and 2021 5th round pick

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

You sure about that? This moves screams redundancy, and I like Merrill.

That is a pretty good example of sometimes the advanced analytics...

A) Lacking context.
B) Not really saying anything.

Detroit sucks this year. Like, really bad.
Montreal doesn't suck this year. Not as much as last year, anyway.
Those scores don't measure that.

And looking at those metrics I'm pretty sure that their transition grading is pretty far off on Merrill. One of the reasons Detroit isn't hemmed into its zone for 3 minutes at a time is because Merrill has been pretty good on the breakout. If he's not headmanning the puck to a forward he's passing to his partner who then passes the puck to a forward.

Merrill's job is to play simple, smart hockey. He's done that really well this season. And I'd have rather held onto him for the remainder of the year and resigned him than given him up for a 5th rounder. The guy was worth more than Patrick Nemeth and was the better player of the two in most games this year.

 

[NK94]

That is a pretty good example of sometimes the advanced analytics...

A) Lacking context.
B) Not really saying anything.

Detroit sucks this year. Like, really bad.
Montreal doesn't suck this year. Not as much as last year, anyway.
Those scores don't measure that.

And looking at those metrics I'm pretty sure that their transition grading is pretty far off on Merrill. One of the reasons Detroit isn't hemmed into its zone for 3 minutes at a time is because Merrill has been pretty good on the breakout. If he's not headmanning the puck to a forward he's passing to his partner who then passes the puck to a forward.

Merrill's job is to play simple, smart hockey. He's done that really well this season. And I'd have rather held onto him for the remainder of the year and resigned him than given him up for a 5th rounder. The guy was worth more than Patrick Nemeth and was the better player of the two in most games this year.

These results are also isolated... so.

And Mete would be a pretty adequate replacement for Merrill if he falls to Detroit imo.

 

[HabsQC]

This is Bergevin's last season mark my words. Thanks for getting Anderson and Toffoli before leaving, but let someone else take it from here please.
Not a knock on Merill though, I think he's definetly an NHL dman.

 

[Lockin17]

i rather Mete by far , Mete's got speed and a great fisrt pass , ahh well

 

[sansabri]

i rather Mete by far , Mete's got speed and a great fisrt pass , ahh well

he doesn't possess that

 

[Rude Dog]

Subtle trade but I like it for the Habs.

 

[glenbuis]

I'm not sure which top-4 young, fast PMD Habs fans were expecting Bergevin to acquire at the deadline this year.

Yeah it’s tough considering there are very very very FEW out there .

 

[Grand Admiral Thrawn]

Jon Merrill... would have preferred Meryl Streep.

 

[glenbuis]

This is Bergevin's last season mark my words. Thanks for getting Anderson and Toffoli before leaving, but let someone else take it from here please.
Not a knock on Merill though, I think he's definetly an NHL dman.

I bet you it’s not

 

[Grand Admiral Thrawn]

Red Wings writer seems to like him quite a bit.

Is this Max Buttman legit?

 

[robert ethan]

Waiving a better d-man, then giving up assets for a useless piece? Why MB?

Mete the Mascot?

 

[robert ethan]

Lol all these habs fans acting like they've watched Merrill. The guy is more than decent. A 5th round pick is a bad return, but it's better than nothing.

Some Habs fans think that little gerbil Mete was the greatest thing.

 

[Simarino]

Is this Max Buttman legit?

Wings beat writer

 

[Spearmint Rhino]

Well I expected we’d get a Wings LD but guessed MStaal. Either way it’s another spare tire when the transmission is f***ed

 

[Sasha Orlov]

i rather Mete by far , Mete's got speed and a great fisrt pass , ahh well

This sounds like you’ve never seen him play

 

[abo9]

This is Bergevin's last season mark my words. Thanks for getting Anderson and Toffoli before leaving, but let someone else take it from here please.
Not a knock on Merill though, I think he's definetly an NHL dman.

Only if he misses the playoffs...

If he makes them on the back of his acquisitions (Anderson, Toffoli for example), playoffs are an improvement over the bottom 10 and Molson will praise him for it. Watch it

 

[Gaylord Q Tinkledink]

Is this Max Buttman legit?

He seems like he doesn't get it.

 

[Spearmint Rhino]

Only if he misses the playoffs...

If he makes them on the back of his acquisitions (Anderson, Toffoli for example), playoffs are an improvement over the bottom 10 and Molson will praise him for it. Watch it

Saved by Covid again, on pace for a 93 pt season that any other year would see them finish out of the playoffs

 

[VanJack]

It's still a day early in the NHL trade deadline cycle, but based on the deals so far it's definitely a buyers market. Some decent NHL players are moving for the equivalent of a bag of pucks.

I suppose with revenues depressed by COVID and a draft that's looking like a complete crap-shoot, we should have anticipated this. But Merrill is a nice pickup for the Habs, for basically a 'C-level' prospect and a fifth rounder. Hard to argue with that.

 

[HabsAddict]

I'm absolutely thrilled to lose a 5th rounder then blowing our brains out on Ekholm or another better LHD.

Mete is simply too small to be useful in a tough series. He can skate but that's kind of useless if he's on his butt or getting tossed around like a m....umm.....size challenged person. Is it called "size challenged person airtravel" these days?

Getting a top 4 LHD is going to be too expensive. Losing Guhle and a 1st to get someone line Ekholm is pure nonsense.

Welcome to Montreal Merrill.....

 

[Favster]

i rather Mete by far , Mete's got speed and a great fisrt pass , ahh well

With all the qualities he has, Mete simply cannot deal with an NHL cycle. Everytime the opposing team sets up in the Habs zone and he's defending, they get a good scoring chance.

 

[Bondurant]

Farewell to the best hockey hair in the NHL.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

With all the qualities he has, Mete simply cannot deal with an NHL cycle. Everytime the opposing team sets up in the Habs zone and he's defending, they get a good scoring chance.

You don't have to worry about that with Merrill. Opposing players are often in awe of his manly mane and pornstache that they fire the puck out of play from point blank.

Also rumor has it that his mullet is a sentient alien creature that will block shots.

 

[DatsDeking]

With all the qualities he has, Mete simply cannot deal with an NHL cycle. Everytime the opposing team sets up in the Habs zone and he's defending, they get a good scoring chance.

He’ll be a fine addition to our collection

 

[shello]

You know, I'm not thrilled the Habs haven't addressed their puck moving needs yet either but adding Merrill for pretty much nothing is a solid trade. Merrill doesn't make much and you know he's reliable, which Mete never really was.