Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins said his late teammate, Matiss Kivlenieks, helped saved lives before his death in a fireworks-related accident on The Fourth of July.
Merzlikins revealed that he and his pregnant wife were 20 to 30-feet behind Kivlenieks, and implied that Kivlenieks saved them from potentially being injured from a fireworks shell. The shell hit Kivlenieks instead, killing him.
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Merzlikins also announced his son’s middle name would be “Matiss” in honor of Kivlenieks.
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