In Georgii Merkulov, Bruins hope they’ve found a much-needed offensive conduit in prospect pipeline

When he first arrived in the United States back in November 2019, Georgii Merkulov was well aware of the growing pains that awaited him. 

Of course, every young hockey player who travels overseas from Europe is prepped for the challenges that await — be it an elevation in competition or the adjustment that comes with operating on a smaller surface of ice in North American rinks.

But for Merkulov, the first hurdle he needed to clear upon landing with the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms wasn’t on the frozen sheet. Rather, it was the language barrier standing between the Ryazan, Russia native and a majority of his teammates and coaches.  

“It was bad. I knew a couple of words,” Merkulov said Tuesday of his initial handling of the English language. … I had my phone all the time to translate.”

It was a gradual process for the now 21-year-old forward, who set down a daily task of learning 50 new words a day, along with watching hours and hours of “The Big Bang Theory” and YouTube videos to nail down what was a foreign tongue. 

More than two years later, he’s made significant strides in the language department, no doubt. 

But even in those early days in which most of his interactions were filtered through a Google Translate app, the O-zone talents were easy to glean in Merkulov’s game. 

And those silky mitts and accurate wrister are why the Bruins are hopeful that the uber-skilled forward can inject some much-needed scoring pop into their prospect pool moving forward.

"Super skilled,” Bruins player development coordinator Adam McQuaid said of Merkulov. “I think he's pretty competitive. We had him in Providence at the end of the year and it was a fairly seamless transition … The skill level is there — things that you can’t teach. So that's what excites us about him for sure.”

Since making the trek over from Russia, Merkulov has been a productive forward at every stop of his young career, putting him on the radar of many NHL clubs after leading Ohio State with 20 goals and posting 34 points over 36 games in his freshman campaign in 2021-22. 

Still, with just one year logged in the collegiate ranks, Merkulov wasn’t exactly tabbed as a potential college free-agent target this spring, given that most of those players are upperclassmen. 

But when the Bruins came knocking after the Buckeyes’ season came to a close, Merkulov believed it was too good of an offer to pass up. 

“I was impressed, to be honest with you, that Boston offered me,” Merkulov said following the second day of the Bruins’ development camp. “I talked to scouts, talked to coaches, talked to my parents. I wasn’t drafted in the NHL, so for me it would have been a risk coming back for my sophomore year. I thought if I come back and don’t have a good year, or get injured, I might not have a second chance to sign.”

During his cup of coffee with Providence after inking his entry-level deal, Merkulov was once again as advertised when it came to his offensive production (one goal, five total points over eight games). 

However, much like his early days in the States, Merkulov remains a work in progress. For as much as the forward’s offensive talents are well-established, he will need to round out his overall game in order to move his way up the ladder and potentially earn reps in the NHL ranks.

“That’s been an issue since I was like 13 years old,” Merkulov said of his lapses in the D-zone. “I’ve been working on that in school, in juniors. Even when I played for Youngstown, the coaches would say scouts always ask about you but they don’t like how you play in the D-zone so you have to be better and you will have success.. Same as here in Boston. They always say ‘D-zone, D-zone, D-zone.’”

Merkulov was candid about the areas he needs to improve on, noting a habit of cheating and forcing plays in an effort to get the puck and generate a fruitful O-zone look. It’s a flaw that’s not necessarily a surprise for any young, offensively-gifted prospect — and one that the young forward is committed to correcting in the years ahead. 

"I think it'll be somewhat of a daily process for him,” McQuaid said of Merkulov’s efforts toward rounding out his game.  He's playing the middle of the ice, you know, especially here, you have to be good in your own end to play in the middle of the ice and play that 200-foot game. So those will be things that the staff here will be working with him moving forward. And it's nice that he's recognized it himself, and he wants to work at it. So seems like it'd be a good fit that way.”

Merkulov knows what the bread and butter of his game is, but is fully cognizant of the steps he needs to take in order to get the seal of approval from Boston's top brass. 

Merkulov’s favorite player growing up was the uber-skilled (and three-time Selke Trophy winner) Pavel Datsyuk. But if he’s looking for some more D-zone pointers moving forward, he could have a pretty useful resource in the B’s dressing room once training camp rolls around. 

“I hope sometime this training camp I will,” Merkulov said of meeting Patrice Bergeron. “Because he’s a master of the D-zone.”