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Merzlikins stopped 22 of 24 shots in Friday's 4-2 win over the Blackhawks.
Merzlikins earned his 10th win of the season and his fourth victory in his last five outings with this performance. The Blackhawks' top line accounted for both goals against, but Charlie Coyle's hat trick was plenty of help for Merzlikins and the Blue Jackets. On the season, Merzlikins is 10-8-1 with a 3.67 GAA and an .883 save percentage over 20 appearances. The Blue Jackets will likely turn to Jet Greaves for Saturday's game in St. Louis, but Merzlikins has done well to work himself back into a timeshare in the crease.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Facing Blackhawks
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Merzlikins will defend the road cage in Chicago on Friday, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.
Merzlikins will make his second straight start, as he stopped 24 shots in a 5-3 win over Philadelphia on Wednesday. The netminder is 9-8-1 with poor peripherals, including a 3.76 GAA and an .882 save percentage across 19 appearances this season. The Blackhawks are 26th in NHL scoring, tallying 143 goals in 54 games.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Gets win over Flyers
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Merzlikins stopped 24 of 27 shots in Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Flyers.
Merzlikins was originally scheduled to start Monday versus the Kings before that game was postponed due to severe winter weather. The extra time off didn't hurt Merzlikins, as he picked up his third win in four outings despite giving up a hat trick to Travis Konecny in this contest. Merzlikins is now 9-8-1 with a 3.76 GAA and an .882 save percentage over 19 starts this season. The Blue Jackets have a road back-to-back up next with games in Chicago on Friday and St. Louis on Saturday. Expect Merzlikins and Jet Greaves to split those starts.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Exits ice first Wednesday
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Merzlikins was the first goalie to leave the ice Wednesday, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports, indicating he'll guard the cage at home versus the Flyers.
Marzlikins had his scheduled start for Monday's home game against the Kings postponed due to severe winter weather. However, he will get a chance in Wednesday's matchup to continue his recent success. He has won two of his last three starts while stopping 64 of 70 shots. With a road back-to-back versus Chicago and St. Louis on Friday and Saturday, respectively, Merzlikins figures to split those two contests with Jet Greaves.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Game against Los Angeles postponed
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Merzlikins and the Blue Jackets won't play against the Kings on Monday since the game was postponed due to severe winter weather in the Columbus area.
Merzlikins was slated to draw the start at home Monday, but the game will be rescheduled for March 9. The next game on the Blue Jackets' schedule is a home matchup against the Flyers on Wednesday, but it's not yet clear who will start in net during that game.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Set to start Monday
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Merzlikins was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, according to Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers, indicating he will protect the home net against the Kings on Monday.
Merzlikins is poised to return to the crease after leaving Tuesday's 4-1 loss to Ottawa because of an illness. He has been healthy enough to be in the lineup as Jet Greaves' backup for the last two games. The 31-year-old Merzlikins has gone 8-8-1 with a 3.81 GAA and an .882 save percentage across 18 appearances this campaign. Los Angeles is tied for 28th in the league with 2.60 goals per game this campaign.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Backing up Thursday
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Merzlikins (illness) is well enough Thursday to back up Jet Greaves versus Dallas, according to Columbus sports reporter Dave Maetzold.
Merzlikins was forced to leave Tuesday's tilt versus Ottawa after the first stanza due to his illness. Merzlikins was saddled with the loss, giving up two goals on seven shots in a 4-1 defeat. He is 8-8-1 with a 3.81 GAA and an .882 save percentage across 18 games this season.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Questionable to return
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Merzlikins (illness) is questionable to return to Tuesday's game versus the Senators.
Merzlikins exited the game after the first period. He allowed two goals on seven shots before he was replaced by Jet Greaves. Merzlikins likely won't be back in the contest unless Greaves gets injured, and the former should be considered day-to-day ahead of Thursday's game versus the Stars.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Looking for third straight win
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Merzlikins is drawing the home start Tuesday against the Senators, per Julian McKenzie of The Athletic.
Merzlikins will be making his third straight start Tuesday, as he's getting more work with new head coach Rick Bowness. The 31-year-old Merzlikins has won back-to-back starts while turning aside a combined 59 of 63 shots (.937 save percentage) in victories over the Canucks and Penguins. The Senators have lost back-to-back games and six of their last eight (2-4-2), but they had success against Merzlikins earlier in the season, chasing him for three goals on five shots in Ottawa's 6-3 win over Columbus on Dec. 11.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Hangs on for shootout win
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Merzlikins stopped 29 shots in regulation and overtime and three of four shootout attempts in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Penguins.
The only Pittsburgh player to get a puck past Merzlikins in the shootout was former Columbus teammate Yegor Chinakhov. The 31-year-old netminder was making consecutive starts for the first time since early December, and new coach Rick Bowness appears willing to give him a chance to move back into a timeshare with Jet Greaves. Merzlikins will need to display more consistency, however -- over his last eight outings, he's stumbled to a 4.02 GAA and .871 save percentage.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Starting in Pittsburgh
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Merzlikins will defend the road net against the Penguins on Saturday, per Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers.
Merzlikins is coming off a 30-save performance in Thursday's 4-1 win over Vancouver. He has gone 7-7-1 with a 3.84 GAA and an .882 save percentage across 16 appearances this campaign. Pittsburgh sits 14th in the league with 3.17 goals per game this season.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Sharp in Thursday's win
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Merzlikins stopped 30 shots in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Canucks.
Brock Boeser got a puck past Merzlikins on a Vancouver power play late in the second period, but otherwise the veteran netminder had an answer for everything the Canucks fired at him. It was Merzlikins' first win since Dec. 4, and on the season he's gone 7-7-1 with a rough 3.84 GAA and .882 save percentage, falling firmly behind Jet Greaves on the Columbus depth chart in the process.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Gets starting nod Thursday
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Merzlikins will defend the home cage versus Vancouver on Thursday, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports.
Merzlikins will make a rare start, as he has played only once since Dec. 22, a span of 11 games, while Jet Greaves has been the undisputed No. 1 goaltender in Columbus of late. Merzlikins is 6-7-1 this season with a 4.03 GAA and an .877 save percentage across 15 appearances. The Canucks are generating 2.63 goals per game, which ranks 27th in the NHL this season.
Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Gets no help in Colorado
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Merzlikins turned aside 27 shots in Saturday's 4-0 loss to the Avalanche.
The Blue Jackets' skaters left their offense on the plane in Colorado, giving Merzlikins no margin for error. The 31-year-old netminder was making his first start since Dec. 20, and while he didn't allow any soft goals, this performance won't be enough to loosen Jet Greaves' hammerlock on the starting job for Columbus. On the season, Merzlikins is 6-7-1 in 15 outings with a rough 4.03 GAA and .877 save percentage.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Expected starter for Saturday
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Merzlikins is expected to start on the road against Colorado on Saturday, per Aaron Portzline of The Athletic.
Merzlikins has struggled this campaign with a 6-6-1 record, 4.03 GAA and .877 save percentage in 14 appearances. His last start was Dec. 20, and he's allowed at least three goals in each of his past 11 appearances. The Avalanche are a tough assignment, as they rank first in goals per game with 4.05. They did lose back-to-back games Sunday and Tuesday against Florida and Tampa Bay, respectively, but the Avalanche rebounded with an 8-2 victory over Ottawa on Thursday.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Loses to Ducks
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Merzlikins allowed four goals on 28 shots in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Ducks.
Merzlikins made just his second start in the last seven games, but he didn't have a great performance. He never had a lead to protect, but he allowed a late goal to Pavel Mintyukov that decided the game. Merzlikins has allowed 14 goals on 73 shots over his last three outings, and he hasn't looked all that good in his most recent wins either. Merzlikins is 6-6-1 with a 4.04 GAA and an .877 save percentage in 14 starts. The only thing keeping him in the mix for regular playing time is that fact that Jet Greaves has failed to run away with the starting job so far, but Greaves' numbers are still far better than what Merzlikins has shown. The Blue Jackets' next game is Monday versus the Kings.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Set to start Saturday
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Merzlikins will protect the road goal versus the Ducks on Saturday, Ducks PA Announcer Phil Hulett reports.
Merzlikins was pulled from his last start Dec. 11 versus the Senators, and he hasn't seen the crease since. That will change with this contest, though it's a tough matchup for Merzlikins. The Ducks have scored 13 goals over their last five games, going 1-3-1 in that span, but they still have a top-tier offense that could pose a challenge for Merzlikins.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Gets early hook Thursday
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Merzlikins gave up three goals on five shots before being replaced by Jet Greaves late in the first period of Thursday's 6-3 loss to the Senators.
Poor rebound control contributed to Ottawa's first tally of the night, but Merzlikins simply got beaten by good shots from Drake Batherson and Tim Stutzle for the final two before being lifted by coach Dean Evason. Merzlikins wound up escaping the loss, but it was another ugly line in the box score for the veteran netminder, who's stumbled to a brutal 5.20 GAA and .837 save percentage over his last six outings.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: In goal Thursday
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Merzlikins will get the starting nod at home versus the Senators on Thursday, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Merzlikins has given up five or more goals in four of his last five outings, while posting a 2-2-1 record and .850 save percentage. With the Latvian struggling, he has found himself relegated to the No. 2 role in Columbus behind Jet Greaves. Still, Merzlikins could play his way into a split share of the goaltending duties if he can start to put together some better performances.
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