San Jose Sharks’ 2018 first-round draft pick requests trade, report says

NHL: Ryan Merkley was the San Jose Sharks’ first-round draft choice in 2018 under former general manager Doug Wilson and former scouting director Doug Wilson Jr.

San Jose Barracuda defenseman Ryan Merkley has requested a trade from the Sharks organization, according to a Tuesday report.

Merkley, 22, recently made the request and the Sharks are trying to accommodate him, according to Frank Seravalli of dailyfaceoff.com.

The reasons for Merkley’s trade request were not clear, although he was recently benched for a large portion of a game against the Bakersfield Condors on Dec. 27.

Efforts to reach Merkley’s agent, J.P. Barry, were not immediately successful.

Merkley was the Sharks’ first-round draft choice in 2018 under former general manager Doug Wilson and former scouting director Doug Wilson Jr.

Merkley is in the final year of his three-year entry-level contract he signed with the team in 2018, although he didn’t start playing professionally full-time until 2020. He is slated to become a restricted free agent next summer.

With the Sharks, Merkeley has six points in 39 games, all of which came last season after the team was hit with multiple positive COVID-19 cases and other injury issues.

Merkley was once considered the Sharks’ most promising prospect after he was selected 21st overall in 2018 from the Guelph Storm of the OHL. He remained in junior hockey for two more seasons before he turned pro in 2020.

Merkley, though, did not make the Sharks’ roster out of training camp in any of the last three years. In October, new general manager Mike Grier and coach David Quinn took undrafted defenseman Nick Cicek to Europe ahead of Merkley as the team began the regular season with two games against the Nashville Predators.

Merkley’s hands, vision, and playmaking ability, attributes that made him a first-round pick, are unquestioned, but he still had to get used to the speed of the NHL, and sometimes his decision-making suffered as a result. His defensive acumen has also been repeatedly called into question.

Merkley has 44 points in 93 games with the Barracuda. This season, he has collected 14 points, all assists, in 30 games this season. The Barracuda will host the Henderson Silver Knights on Wednesday at Tech CU Arena.

Merkley was once considered the Sharks’ most promising prospect after he was selected 21st overall in 2018 from the Guelph Storm of the OHL. He remained in junior hockey for two more seasons before he turned pro in 2020.

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