Trent Merrin feared his representative rugby league career was finished after he was overlooked for NSW in this years State of Origin series.But the star Penrith back-rower now has the chance to establish himself as a long-term No.13 for Australia in Saturdays Test against New Zealand in Perth.Merrin, 27 made his Test debut for Australia in the Anzac Test in May last year, but hasnt been part of the rugby league rep scene since.It was the toughest part of my career so far, Merrin said on Tuesday.The best thing about it is I have learnt so much about myself and how to combat it and how to work through it and know what it is like to miss out on something like thatIt is something that really hurts but there was a lesson there.There were personal challenges I faced during it. You start to doubt yourself and a lot of negatives come into the mind about not playing in the rep scene again and it is really a mentally challenging position.Corey Parker was passed over for selection in coach Mal Meningas 24-man Four Nations squad after announcing his NRL retirement. That leaves his Kangaroos lock spot up for grabs. Merrin will be chosen there for the nib Stadium clash against the Kiwis and it is a spot he wants to make his own.That is my goal and that is my dream, to be the next No.13 for Australia, Merrin said.That is something I really want to make my own.I just have to have a humble approach to it all and work really hard and prepare well and take it out there on Saturday night.Merrin produced some of the best footy of his career in helping the Panthers to the second week of the NRL finals after moving from St George Illawarra in the off-season.He said he has now learned not to take anything for granted.Loz (NSW coach Laurie Daley) had a chat with me and said they wanted to head in a different direction this year, Merrin said.There are no hard feelings there. It was a tough pill to swallow but I just went away and worked on the things I needed to.Once I got comfortable with the uncomfortable (of missing selection) I started to play the footy I know I am capable of and gained a lot of confidence mid season.What that tough period has also highlighted for me is that once you are back in this position you want, to make the most of it. Cheap Diamondbacks Jerseys . Toronto has dropped games to Indiana and Miami since a five-game winning streak and closed out a three-game road trip at 1-2. Arizona Diamondbacks Pro Shop . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before. https://www.cheapdiamondbacksjerseys.us/ . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. Arizona Diamondbacks Store . The Cincinnati Reds remain perfect with their speedy rookie outfielder in the starting lineup. Wholesale Diamondbacks Jerseys . The Vancouver coach and an announced sellout crowd of 18,910 watched in dismay as the Canucks lost 7-4 to the New York Islanders on Monday night by squandering a 3-0 lead in the third period.SAN JOSE, Calif. -- San Jose Sharks forward Marty Havlat has undergone surgery to help repair the injured groin that sidelined him during the playoffs and will not be an option to be bought out of the final two years of his contract this summer. General manager Doug Wilson said Monday that Havlat had a bilateral pelvic floor reconstruction earlier this month and will be sidelined indefinitely. "Its not an uncommon injury for hockey players," Wilson said. "The severity, both sides, time will tell. I dont have a crystal ball to it. That was the diagnosis, that was the procedure, and there was not a timeline to the back end of it." With Havlat injured, the Sharks will not be able to use one of the two compliance buyouts in the new collective bargaining agreement to get out of the final two years of his $30 million, six-year contract. Wilson had previously not said whether the team would use a buyout this summer. He said Monday he does not expect that to happen as the team looks to build on a strong finish to the season that ended with a Game 7 loss in the second round to Los Angeles. "The big thing now is just to maintain the momentum that we have from doing our reset on the fly," Wilson said. Wilson would not commit to Havlat being on the team next season, saying no decisions can be made until he is healthy again. Havlat has been mostly a disappointment since being acquired from Minnesota in a deal for Dany Heatley two years ago. Havlat has missed 51 regular season games with various injuries during his two seasons in San Jose, posting 15 goals and 30 assists in 79 games. Known as a strong playoff performer, Havlat played only briefly in the post-season this season because of the groin injury. He got hurt in the first period of the opening game in the first round against Vancouver and tried to come back in Game 3 of the second round against Los Angeles. He left again in the first period with a similar injury and did not play again as San Jose was knocked out in seven games by the Kings. Wilson said Havlat needs to change his game a bit to become more of a "north-south" player to fit the Sharks aggressive style but thought he could have been a valuable contributor against a team like Chicago in the playoffs. "When he played the right way he was a very effective player," Wilson said. "Hes a playoff type player in certain seriees.dddddddddddd." Wilson has already been busy this off-season, having agreed to a five-year contract extension with star centre Logan Couture that will keep him off the free-agent market next summer. That contract cant be announced until July 5 when Couture enters the final year of his current deal. The Sharks also signed forward Raffi Torres last week to a three-year, $6 million deal that prevented him from being an unrestricted free agent July 5 and signed a deal with Czech prospect and 2012 first-round pick Tomas Hertl to join the team next season. San Jose also gave a contract extension to coach Todd McLellan, who has led the Sharks to the playoffs all five seasons that hes been at the helm. McLellan has a 220-108-48 record and has guided San Jose to three Pacific Division titles and two trips to the Western Conference finals since taking over before the 2008-09 season. The team still needs to decide what to do with Brent Burns, who was acquired two years ago to be a dominant defenceman but excelled after being moved to forward midway through last season. Wilson said a decision would likely be made next week on where Burns will play next season. The Sharks currently have more depth at defence but there could be a major hole for a power-play defenceman when Dan Boyle is eligible to be an unrestricted free agent next summer. "(Burns) can be a dominant defenceman in this league. Hes proven that in the past," Wilson said. "Its where we need to use him. The timing of that, this year was we needed to use him up front, and he filled a great need for us. We wanted to play an attacking game. Shoot, I dont know how you defend against him because he doesnt know what hes doing so how do they know? But that was part of how we wanted to play. Were coming after you, were attacking, and he fit perfectly." The Sharks also have plenty of picks in what Wilson believes is a very strong draft coming up Sunday following some late-season trades that moved Douglas Murray, Michal Handzus and Ryane Clowe. San Jose has its own first-round pick, three second-round picks, a fourth-rounder, a fifth-rounder and two seventh-round picks. NOTES: D Justin Braun had an operation on his injured left hand, which bothered him all season. ... USA Hockey announced that the San Jose Jr. Sharks program was one of four programs picked as a USA Hockey Model Association Program. ' ' '