Player Discussion Georgii Merkulov

[hrdpuk]

He's an excellent hockey player that shines when playing with other excellent hockey players

 

[Hookslide]

He's an excellent hockey player that shines when playing with other excellent hockey players

I think you might be right that his time to shine will come, but I did not see anything from him that now is the time.

 

[dangermike]

He's an excellent hockey player that shines when playing with other excellent hockey players

...he plays with boquist who cant stick in the nhl

i think montgomery could and should have done a better job with merk while he was up here but the dude cant win a faceoff - how would that have worked with zacha and pasta if they never got the puck bc they were hemmed in their zone??- and we refused to play him on the wing.

not a fan of the 4th line stuff but im not sure sensationalizing merkulovs game is the way to go here

not a fair shake by any means but this isnt a monty villain arc

 

[Saxon Eric]

...he plays with boquist who cant stick in the nhl

i think montgomery could and should have done a better job with merk while he was up here but the dude cant win a faceoff - how would that have worked with zacha and pasta if they never got the puck bc they were hemmed in their zone??- and we refused to play him on the wing.

not a fan of the 4th line stuff but im not sure sensationalizing merkulovs game is the way to go here

not a fair shake by any means but this isnt a monty villain arc

At the time of his call up Merkulov was the best player in the AHL so I think there should be some sensationalism
Merkulov played 9 shifts Thursday, you're supposed to put the player in the best position to succeed, Monty did the complete opposite
This is the season to f*** around and find out but Monty wants to pretend it's still 2023

 

[dangermike]

At the time of his call up Merkulov was the best player in the AHL so I think there should be some sensationalism
Merkulov played 9 shifts Thursday, you're supposed to put the player in the best position to succeed, Monty did the complete opposite
This is the season to f*** around and find out but Monty wants to pretend it's still 2023

I don’t really disagree with any of that. I had a little issue with the shines with excellent players bit tho

 

[FU Shoresy]

At the time of his call up Merkulov was the best player in the AHL so I think there should be some sensationalism
Merkulov played 9 shifts Thursday, you're supposed to put the player in the best position to succeed, Monty did the complete opposite
This is the season to f*** around and find out but Monty wants to pretend it's still 2023

Unfortunately this team got off to a great start. Giving people the false sense of security. To think they're cup contenders. This is the year to let the kids show what they have.

 

[Aussie Bruin]

At the time of his call up Merkulov was the best player in the AHL so I think there should be some sensationalism
Merkulov played 9 shifts Thursday, you're supposed to put the player in the best position to succeed, Monty did the complete opposite
This is the season to f*** around and find out but Monty wants to pretend it's still 2023

Wants to or needs to? That's the part I can't figure out.

 

[Saxon Eric]

Wants to or needs to? That's the part I can't figure out.

Probably both

 

[quietbruinfan]

As I mentioned, he has impressed me some in his limited time. He has decent speed and hands, seems to have a decent compete level and a good understanding what to do in all three zones. He probably needs work in his own zone, as I have not noticed much of him there. Who knows? He looks like a bottom sixer, but they could use a good bottom sixer for sure.

 

[vjcsmoke]

I hope he gets more than 10m of ice time which is what he's currently getting. Kid probably needs at least 15-20m to show something. But maybe the coach wants to make him 'earn' those minutes? Who knows, it's clear we're desperately in need of center help so you should be seeing if the kid can play there or if his future is at wing like we found out with Frederic.

 

[ODAAT]

I might be one of the rare fans that, other than putting him on the 4th line last game, didn`t have massive issues with the way Monty handled Merkulov. I was really looking forward to seeing the kid play due to the fact I hadn`t seen any PB games and it felt like he lit it up every game.

While I certainly wasn`t expecting him to do that at the NHL level, personally, outside of a few nice plays here and there, I didn`t see a kid that if I were behind the bench, I would have allotted more ice time to myself. I think there is/was nothing more Monty would have liked than Merk showing he was comfortable on that 3rd line to the point that Monty didn`t have to shorten the bench as quickly as he did

Let us also not forget, the kids are most likely to make mistakes that hurt a team, this team has plenty of warts and the margin for error is slim, gotta put out on the ice who you think would best help put those pts in the bank and I don`t think I would have been comfortable with Merkulov out there to preserve leads either

Not a worry , kid is young, he`ll only get better from this experience

 

[22Brad Park]

I might be one of the rare fans that, other than putting him on the 4th line last game, didn`t have massive issues with the way Monty handled Merkulov. I was really looking forward to seeing the kid play due to the fact I hadn`t seen any PB games and it felt like he lit it up every game.

While I certainly wasn`t expecting him to do that at the NHL level, personally, outside of a few nice plays here and there, I didn`t see a kid that if I were behind the bench, I would have allotted more ice time to myself. I think there is/was nothing more Monty would have liked than Merk showing he was comfortable on that 3rd line to the point that Monty didn`t have to shorten the bench as quickly as he did

Let us also not forget, the kids are most likely to make mistakes that hurt a team, this team has plenty of warts and the margin for error is slim, gotta put out on the ice who you think would best help put those pts in the bank and I don`t think I would have been comfortable with Merkulov out there to preserve leads either

Not a worry , kid is young, he`ll only get better from this experience

You can't be dressing players your not going to use and tax the rest of the lineup the way he has been though.

 

[Mr. Make-Believe]

I didn’t like the decision to play him on the fourth line either. I don’t believe in breaking a guy in there if his skill set doesn’t match the expectations of the unit.

I would have slotted a different C lower (one with a track record of being successful while starting most often in the defensive zone) and let Merkulov play on a tertiary scoring unit. He wouldn’t have to take every shift the line does (if you are being cognizant of his minutes), but every shift should be with players he could compliment.

I don’t think Merkulov looked good in his call-up. But I also don’t think he was afforded the opportunity to impress.

 

[Eegs]

Hey guys, I come in peace! Please disregard the avatar if at all possible!

What do you think is the plan with Merkulov for the upcoming season? Any chance he makes the team out of camp?

I've always liked what I have seen of him in the AHL, really surprised he hasn't gotten a more legit chance with you guys.

 

[JoeIsAStud]

Hey guys, I come in peace! Please disregard the avatar if at all possible!

What do you think is the plan with Merkulov for the upcoming season? Any chance he makes the team out of camp?

I've always liked what I have seen of him in the AHL, really surprised he hasn't gotten a more legit chance with you guys.

I don't think there is a path for him to get an opportunity at Center in this org. There is a wing spot available that he will compete with Lysell and others for in the fall. I do like the player, unfortunately so far he has been better at center than wing, but I would be very surprised to see him get a real look at C.

 

[Beesfan]

Hey guys, I come in peace! Please disregard the avatar if at all possible!

What do you think is the plan with Merkulov for the upcoming season? Any chance he makes the team out of camp?

I've always liked what I have seen of him in the AHL, really surprised he hasn't gotten a more legit chance with you guys.

I tend to doubt Merkulov makes it out of camp. He is one of those players that never looks great in training camp. I find it more likely he will get called up at some point in the season.

There are two past Bruins prospects Merkulov reminds me of: David Krejci and Alex Khokhlachev. Merkulov looked soft and slow in his first NHL stint, but so did Krejci.

 

[yazmybaby]

I tend to doubt Merkulov makes it out of camp. He is one of those players that never looks great in training camp. I find it more likely he will get called up at some point in the season.

There are two past Bruins prospects Merkulov reminds me of: David Krejci and Alex Khokhlachev. Merkulov looked soft and slow in his first NHL stint, but so did Krejci.

I agree with you, he looked very slow and out of place during the NHL games I watched him play.
Maybe it's a confidence issue with him?
No way he makes the team at Center, he needs to play wing.
Brazeau,Geekie and Pasty are locks for three RW spots.
Marchand,Frederic,Zacha are locks at LW.
With 2 spots open and lots of competition, he will have to impress at camp and exhibition games.
My darkhorse to push for a spot this year is Riley Duran.

 

[Raleighfern]

he was tasked playing mostly 4th line minutes during his call up last year. he was ok, hit a post and had/created a few chances. there doesn't look to be a path for him unless he beats out poitras. I've watched him at providence. he's got skills for sure.

 

[DominicT]

he was tasked playing mostly 4th line minutes during his call up last year. he was ok, hit a post and had/created a few chances. there doesn't look to be a path for him unless he beats out poitras. I've watched him at providence. he's got skills for sure.

Merkulov was called up to replace Matthew Poitras on the third line.

His most frequent linemates were JVR and Frederic.

When it didn't work, he was moved to the fourth line at the end of game 3 and then game 4 with Steen and Lauko with a whopping 8:58 TOI

 

[Raleighfern]

Merkulov was called up to replace Matthew Poitras on the third line.

His most frequent linemates were JVR and Frederic.

When it didn't work, he was moved to the fourth line at the end of game 3 and then game 4 with Steen and Lauko with a whopping 8:58 TOI

thanks dom. he's fun to watch. crafty.

 

[DominicT]

thanks dom. he's fun to watch. crafty.

That I will agree with.

I think he will battle Poitras for third line C. I know people are giving him a shot at 2RW but I can't find anywhere that he has played RW 5v5 and I went back to his MHL days.

 

[4ORRBRUIN]

Hey guys, I come in peace! Please disregard the avatar if at all possible!

What do you think is the plan with Merkulov for the upcoming season? Any chance he makes the team out of camp?

I've always liked what I have seen of him in the AHL, really surprised he hasn't gotten a more legit chance with you guys.

How and where was he going to get more of a legit chance? No room at the inn and as much as some poster feel he has a chance to make the team out of camp I don't.

I think he's to slow for the NHL pace

 

[Blowfish]

Congrats first NHL point. A beauty!

 

[chizzler]

Here we go!

 

[DominicT]

Congrats first NHL point. A beauty!

Honest question:

Why was that a beauty?

It was a deflection on net that Binnington misplayed and put the rebound right on the tape of Frederic's stick.

If a Bruins goalie had done that we'd be all over him. It was more luck then anything.