Does Traveling Merchant's move effect trigger if it is killed during the showdown when attempting to move to a battlefield?

Ruling: Traveling Merchant triggers before the showdown begins, so the discard/draw effect resolves before the opponent has a chance to kill it with cards like Hextech Ray.

Sequence:

• Player attempts to conquer with Traveling Merchant
• Merchant's move effect triggers and resolves (discard/draw)
• Showdown begins
• Opponent can now respond with cards like Hextech Ray