Skip to content
Ice Lab

Defence · #4

Jon Merrill

New Jersey Devils Vegas Golden Knights Detroit Red Wings Montréal Canadiens Minnesota Wild(traded during the season)
Age
34
Shoots
Left
Height
191 cm
Weight
93 kg
Born
Oklahoma City, USA
Draft
2010, round 2, #38 (NJD)

Career · 2013–14 to 2024–25

Games
682
Goals
24
Points
115
TOI per game
16:56
xGF% (5v5)
50.3%
Goals above expected
−0.1

Season by season

The regular-season line for each season, with the total, by team for traded players.

2013–14NJD522911−319:14454.4%22.252.7%
2014–15NJD6621214−1420:33474.3%42.344.6%
2015–16NJD47145−1516:54303.3%11.148.3%
2016–17NJD51156−918:34482.1%01.949.0%
2017–18VGK34123+716:05303.3%01.052.7%
2018–19VGK5731215+1617:53724.2%03.359.8%
2019–20VGK49257+918:09375.4%02.156.4%
2020–21DET36055+219:41350.0%01.247.3%
2020–21MTL13000−1114:1860.0%00.443.3%
2020–21All teams49055−918:15410.0%01.546.3%
2021–22MIN6941620+1517:07596.8%02.150.8%
2022–23MIN7321012−215:09434.7%02.047.3%
2023–24MIN654711012:47429.5%02.549.6%
2024–25MIN70246−814:06474.3%02.046.1%
Total5 teams6822491115−1316:565414.4%724.150.3%

Form

Rolling averages smooth out single games so the trend shows.

Form, ten-game rolling

Points and individual expected goals per game (left scale), averaged over the previous ten games. Ice time is on the second chart.

Points per gameixG per gameTOI per game (minutes)
00.10.20.30.40.50.6100200300400500600
10m15m20m25m100200300400500600Game

Player card

Model-based

How 2013–14 to 2024–25 compares with everyone else at the position over the same seasons, and the players with the most similar profile.

Overall rating

3rd pair

43rd percentile among qualified defencemen, blending scoring 30%, play-driving 50%, usage 20%.

  1. 1st pair
  2. 2nd pair
  3. 3rd pair
  4. Extra / AHL

Scoring

Extra / AHL
  • Goals /600.1230th pct
  • Assists /600.4725th pct
  • ixG /600.1319th pct
  • Shots /602.8112th pct

Play-driving

2nd pair
  • xGF% (5v5)50.3%67th pct
  • CF% (5v5)49.2%50th pct
  • Relative xGF%−0.946th pct
  • xGA /60 (lower is better)2.1688th pct

Usage

3rd pair
  • TOI per game16:5647th pct
  • PP time share6.9%48th pct
  • PK time share23.2%47th pct
  • Quality of competition23.7%24th pct

Percentiles among defencemen with 200+ minutes at 5-on-5 and 20+ games. Ratings rank each column's average percentile among the same players and read it as a role on a depth chart (how).

Most similar players this season

  1. Brian LashoffDET0.84
  2. Scott HannanSJS0.84
  3. Andrej SustrTBL0.83
  4. Ryan SheaPIT0.81
  5. Martin MarincinEDM/TOR0.78
  6. Vincent DesharnaisEDM/VAN0.75

Finishing

Model-based

Did the goals match the chances?

Goals against expected goals

Cumulative goals (solid) and individual xG (dashed) through the season. The gap is finishing: above the dashed line, the player scored more than an average shooter would from the same chances.

−0.1 goals above expected

0510152025100200300400500600Game

Goals above expected, everyone at the same position with 20+ games

−200+20+40+60

Speed and tracking

From the NHL's EDGE tracking system (2021–22 on): skating speed, shot speed, distance and zone time, for the selected seasons and then every tracked season, to show improvement or decline.

Tracking data (NHL EDGE)

Values from the NHL's puck and player tracking, with the NHL's own league percentile for each. Missing values mean the player wasn't tracked enough.

Tracking

  • Top skating speed32.9 km/h12th pct
  • Speed bursts over 20 mph521st pct
  • Hardest shot140.7 km/h31st pct
  • Distance skated217 km47th pct
  • Offensive-zone time41.3%45th pct
Tracking, season by season

Each season against the other defencemen that season with 20+ games. A season in progress appears once half its games are played, as provisional: season bests only grow. Bursts and distance are per 60 minutes of ice time, so seasons with fewer games still compare. Percentiles are on these rates, so they can differ from the NHL's, which are on season totals.

This playerMedian defencemanMiddle half (25th–75th percentile)Hollow dot: too few games to rank, or a season in progress (*, dashed). Dotted line: no NHL games that season.

Top skating speed

32.9 km/h3rd pct

▼ −1.0 km/h since 2023–24

32333435363721–2222–2323–2424–252021–22: 36.0 km/h, 75th percentile (69 games)2022–23: 33.2 km/h, 3rd percentile (73 games)2023–24: 33.8 km/h, 10th percentile (65 games)2024–25: 32.9 km/h, 3rd percentile (70 games)

Bursts over 20 mph per 60

0.34th pct

▼ −0.1 since 2023–24

012321–2222–2323–2424–252021–22: 0.5, 13th percentile (69 games)2022–23: 0.3, 3rd percentile (73 games)2023–24: 0.4, 5th percentile (65 games)2024–25: 0.3, 4th percentile (70 games)

Distance skated per 60

13.2 km15th pct

▲ +0.2 km since 2023–24

1212.51313.51414.521–2222–2323–2424–252021–22: 12.5 km, 3rd percentile (69 games)2022–23: 13.1 km, 21st percentile (73 games)2023–24: 13.0 km, 12th percentile (65 games)2024–25: 13.2 km, 15th percentile (70 games)

Hardest shot

140.7 km/h20th pct

▼ −1.6 km/h since 2023–24

13514014515015516021–2222–2323–2424–252021–22: 148.4 km/h, 35th percentile (69 games)2022–23: 147.8 km/h, 38th percentile (73 games)2023–24: 142.3 km/h, 19th percentile (65 games)2024–25: 140.7 km/h, 20th percentile (70 games)

Offensive-zone time

41.3%44th pct

▼ −2.6 points since 2023–24

38%40%42%44%46%21–2222–2323–2424–252021–22: 40.4%, 30th percentile (69 games)2022–23: 41.7%, 51st percentile (73 games)2023–24: 43.9%, 77th percentile (65 games)2024–25: 41.3%, 44th percentile (70 games)