Wayne Merrick

{{Short description|Canadian ice hockey player (born 1952)}} {{Infobox ice hockey player |image=File:Wayne Merrick 1973.jpg | played_for = '''NHL'''<br />St. Louis Blues<br />California Seals<br />Cleveland Barons<br />New York Islanders | position = Centre | shoots = Left | height_ft = 6 | height_in = 1 | weight_lb = 190 | ntl_team = CAN | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1952|4|23|mf=y}} | birth_place = Sarnia, Ontario, Canada | draft = 9th overall | draft_year = 1972 | draft_team = St. Louis Blues | career_start = 1972 | career_end = 1984 }} '''Leonard Wayne Merrick''' (born April 23, 1952) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 774 career National Hockey League games for the St. Louis Blues, California Seals, Cleveland Barons and New York Islanders.

==Playing career== thumb|1983 photo of Merrick for New York Islanders Wayne Merrick helped provide toughness and grit to the talent-laden New York Islanders of the late 1970s and early 1980s, acquired from the Cleveland Barons in exchange for J.P. Parise and Jean Potvin during the 1977–78 season.<ref name="dreams">{{cite news |last1=Anderson |first1=Dave |title=By Sports of The Times; The Cup Embodies Merrick's Dreams |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/19/sports/by-sports-of-the-times-the-cup-embodies-merrick-s-dreams.html |newspaper=The New York Times |accessdate=10 August 2018 |language=en |date=19 May 1981}}</ref> He played on the famed "Banana Line" centering John Tonelli and Bob Nystrom.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hockey's All-Time Classic Lines |url=https://www.si.com/nhl/photos/2012/03/12hockeys-all-time-classic-lines#10 |website=SI.com |publisher=Sports Illustrated |accessdate=10 August 2018 |language=en |date=12 March 2012}}</ref> He won four Stanley Cups with the Islanders between 1980 and 1983.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brooks |first1=Larry |title=DYNASTY IN THE DARK – NO CHEERS FOR ISLANDERS 25 YEARS AFTER FIRST CUP |url=https://nypost.com/2005/05/22/dynasty-in-the-dark-no-cheers-for-islanders-25-years-after-first-cup/ |website=New York Post |publisher=New York Post |accessdate=10 August 2018 |date=22 May 2005}}</ref> He scored the Cup-clinching goal in Game Five of the 1981 Stanley Cup Finals.<ref>{{cite web |title=Stanley Cup Champions 1980-1989 |url=https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-stanley-cup-champions-1980-1989/c-287938780 |website=NHL.com |accessdate=10 August 2018 |date=1 January 2017}}</ref>

==Career statistics== ===Regular season and playoffs=== {| border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" style="text-align:center; width:60em" |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff" | ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" | ! colspan="5" | Regular season ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" | ! colspan="5" | Playoffs |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Season ! Team ! League ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM |- | 1969–70 | Ottawa 67's | OHA-Jr. | 51 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1970–71 | Ottawa 67's | OHA-Jr. | 62 | 34 | 42 | 76 | 41 | 11 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 4 |- | 1971–72 | Ottawa 67's | OHA-Jr. | 62 | 39 | 56 | 95 | 21 | 18 | 13 | 6 | 19 | 0 |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1972–73 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 50 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |- | 1972–73 | Denver Spurs | WHL | 22 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1973–74 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 64 | 20 | 23 | 43 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — |- | 1974–75 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 76 | 28 | 37 | 65 | 57 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1975–76 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 19 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |- | 1975–76 | California Golden Seals | NHL | 56 | 25 | 27 | 52 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1976–77 | Cleveland Barons | NHL | 80 | 18 | 38 | 56 | 25 | — | — | — | — | — |- | 1977–78 | Cleveland Barons | NHL | 18 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1977–78 | New York Islanders | NHL | 37 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |- | 1978–79 | New York Islanders | NHL | 75 | 20 | 21 | 41 | 24 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1979–80 | New York Islanders | NHL | 70 | 13 | 22 | 35 | 16 | 21 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 |- | 1980–81 | New York Islanders | NHL | 71 | 16 | 15 | 31 | 30 | 18 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 8 |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1981–82 | New York Islanders | NHL | 68 | 12 | 27 | 39 | 20 | 19 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 6 |- | 1982–83 | New York Islanders | NHL | 59 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 27 | 19 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 |- style="background:#f0f0f0;" | 1983–84 | New York Islanders | NHL | 31 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |- style="background:#e0e0e0;" ! colspan="3" | NHL totals ! 774 ! 191 ! 265 ! 456 ! 303 ! 102 ! 19 ! 30 ! 49 ! 30 |}

===International=== {| border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" ID="Table3" style="text-align:center; width:40em" |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Year ! Team ! Event ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" | ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM |- | 1977 | Canada | WC | 10 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 10 |}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== *{{Ice hockey stats}}

{{s-start}} {{s-ach}} {{succession box | before = Gene Carr | title = St. Louis Blues first-round draft pick | years = 1972 | after = John Davidson}} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merrick, Wayne}} Category:1952 births Category:Living people Category:California Golden Seals players Category:Canadian ice hockey centres Category:Cleveland Barons (NHL) players Category:20th-century Canadian sportsmen Category:Denver Spurs (WHL) players Category:Ice hockey people from Sarnia Category:NHL first-round draft picks Category:New York Islanders players Category:Ottawa 67's players Category:St. Louis Blues draft picks Category:St. Louis Blues players Category:Stanley Cup champions Category:Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States