Elvis Merzlikins Reveals Personal Trauma, Struggles with Blue Jackets' Goal Cannon
Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merlikins told reporters during his exit interviews that he struggled at the start of the season when he heard the team's goal cannon go off. This was due to the loss of his friend and teammate Matiss Kivlenieks in a fireworks accident last summer.
Merzlikins said he had a tough time throughout the entire team without his friend.
"I'm gonna be honest, there was a couple games I was just going out there, and I didn't care, because I wasn't there," Merzlikins said. "I was playing hockey. The guys (on the opposing team) are coming (at) me, and I'm thinking, 'Gosh, last year he was here with me, and this year, there's gonna be an empty seat at my table.' It was hard. But they helped me to go through it. Manny helped me a lot to go through that. It's always nice when you have somebody with (whom) you can cry together. That hug that hug is helping you. I think this is a really nice and important thing for me, to have such a good friend as Manny."
When discussing the trauma he was dealing with, including how he felt when the cannon went off after his team scored, Merzlikins said:
"I'm gonna be honest, for the opening night, I didn't have time (to prepare)," Merzlikins said. "We all know what happened to him. When I heard the cannon, my heart I felt my heart. I never heard in my life my heart beating that alive. That was a really weird feeling, what I had."
He added, "I'm gonna be honest even when we scored goals, I was always closing my eyes and getting myself ready. I think that's just the trauma, but it went away. Obviously, now when I hear the cannon, I'm happy. But that was the feeling I had in the start of the season."
He added, "I'm gonna be honest even when we scored goals, I was always closing my eyes and getting myself ready. I think that's just the trauma, but it went away. Obviously, now when I hear the cannon, I'm happy. But that was the feeling I had in the start of the season."
It's never easy losing anyone, especially a close friend as Kivlenieks was to Merzlikins. We hope that Merzlikins is able to heal and find peace during times of difficulty.
Source: Sportsnet.
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JUNE 6, 2026
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