Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Unravels in third period
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Merzlikins stopped 25 of 30 shots in Saturday's 5-4 overtime loss to the Flyers.
Merzlikins had a shutout until the third period when the Flyers' offense burst to life with four goals. Owen Tippett then scored at 3:30 of overtime to complete Merzlikins' collapse. The 30-year-old netminder has allowed at least four goals in four of his last six games. He's down to a 10-9-3 record with a 3.13 GAA and an .889 save percentage through 22 starts. He's had some good moments, but 2024-25 is shaping up to look like the last three years -- mediocre at best. The Blue Jackets host the Canadiens on Monday.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Starting in Philadelphia
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Merzlikins will defend the road net against the Flyers on Saturday, per Adam Kimelman of NHL.com.
Merzlikins is coming off a 40-save performance in Thursday's 4-2 win over New Jersey. He has a 10-9-2 record with one shutout, a 3.05 GAA and an .891 save percentage across 21 appearances this season. Philadelphia sits 20th in the league with 2.94 goals per game in 2024-25.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Brilliant in Thursday's win
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Merzlikins made 40 saves in Thursday's 4-2 win over the Devils.
The 40 stops were a season high for the 30-year-old netminder, and he nearly notched his second shutout of the season, as Luke Hughes didn't get New Jersey on the board until there were less than three minutes left in the third period. Merzlikins remains tough to rely on -- he'd allowed four or more goals in three of his prior four outings -- but he still shows occasional flashes of his early-career form. On the season, Merzlikins is 10-9-2 with a 3.05 GAA and .891 save percentage as Columbus' No. 1 goalie.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Draws start against New Jersey
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Merzlikins will defend the home crease against the Devils on Thursday, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.
Merzlikins has struggled in recent outings, posting a 1-4-0 record, 3.23 GAA and .861 save percentage across his last five starts. He had lost out on some playing time to Jet Greaves recently, but Merzlikins will likely be in line for more looks in the near future after Greaves was sent back to the minors Wednesday.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Struggles against Hurricanes
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Merzlikins allowed four goals on 28 shots in Sunday's 4-1 loss to the Hurricanes.
Merzlikins was given a couple of games off to reset, but he still took his fourth loss in his last five outings. He's allowed 16 goals in that span. The 30-year-old netminder is down to a 9-9-2 record with a 3.11 GAA and an .887 save percentage through 20 outings this season. The Blue Jackets are poised to keep three goalies on the roster for a while -- that could complicate Merzlikins' playing time, especially if Jet Greaves continues to perform at a decent level.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Starting Sunday
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Merzlikins will guard the road net Sunday against the Hurricanes, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Jet Greaves started Columbus' previous two contests after Merzlikins surrendered 10 goals in his last three games. Overall, the 30-year-old Merzlikins is 9-8-2 with an .888 save percentage and 3.06 GAA this season. He'll have a tough assignment against a Carolina team that's averaging 3.59 goals per game.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Played sieve again
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Merzlikins made 19 saves in a 5-3 loss to the Flyers on Tuesday.
Elvis played sieve all night, but that's been part of his game for a long time. He's given up three-plus goals in nine of his last 15 starts (since Nov. 1), and four or more in eight of those nine. Merzlikins is a fantasy anchor. Roster and activate at your own risk.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: In goal Tuesday
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Merzlikins will get the starting nod at home against the Flyers on Tuesday, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.
Merzlikins will make his 10th appearance in the Jackets' last 11 contests, having posted a 6-2-1 record and an .887 save percentage along the way. While the 30-year-old backstop has been far from perfect as evidenced by his sub-.900 save percentage, he has still managed to secure a standings points in seven of his last nine outings. While it will likely be Merzlikins net versus the Caps on Thursday, a back-to-back against Anaheim and Carolina on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, should give Daniil Tarasov the chance to start.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Bounces back with win Sunday
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Merzlikins stopped 24 of 25 shots in Sunday's 4-1 win over Winnipeg.
Merzlikins was outstanding Sunday and managed to get back to winning ways after losing his previous two starts. Merzlikins has posted solid numbers in recent weeks, going 7-2-1 with a 2.89 GAA and an .890 save percentage over his last 10 games. The save percentage could have been higher if he hadn't endured a three-game stretch between Nov. 21 and Nov. 27 in which he gave up 14 goals on 89 shots.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Tending twine Sunday
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Merzlikins will defend the road net against Winnipeg on Sunday, per Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Merzlikins has lost his last two outings, surrendering six goals on 37 shots. He has posted a record of 8-7-2 with one shutout, a 3.07 GAA and an .889 save percentage across 17 appearances this season. Winnipeg ranks fifth in the league with 3.64 goals per game in 2024-25 and earned a 4-2 win over Chicago on Saturday.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Poor showing in Vancouver
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Merzlikins stopped 12 of 16 shots in Friday's 5-2 loss to the Canucks. The fifth goal was an empty-netter.
Merzlikins has now lost two games in a row, and unlike Tuesday's 3-0 shutout loss in Calgary, this loss is firmly on his shoulders. The 30-year-old squandered a 2-0 lead after the first period as the Canucks rallied for the win. Merzlikins is down to 8-7-2 with a 3.07 GAA and an .889 save percentage through 17 appearances. The Blue Jackets' surprisingly stout offense has helped cover some of his flaws, but he remains among the low-end starting goalies in the league, though Daniil Tarasov has been outright awful in the backup role. The Blue Jackets' road trip ends with another tough matchup Sunday in Winnipeg.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Receiving starting nod
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Merzlikins will protect the road goal versus the Canucks on Friday, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
This is the second half of a back-to-back -- Daniil Tarasov played Thursday in a 6-3 loss to the Oilers. Merzlikins has ran with the starting job lately, going 6-1-1 over his last eight outings, though he has a 2.98 GAA and an .892 save percentage in that span. The Canucks have scored 21 times over the last six games, winning four of them, though they have gone to overtime in three straight contests.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Gets no help in loss
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Merzlikins stopped 19 of 21 shots in Tuesday's 3-0 loss to the Flames. The third goal was an empty-netter.
Merzlikins played well in a close game, but the Flames got two power-play goals from defensemen. This was enough to hand Merzlikins his first regulation loss in eight outings. The 30-year-old netminder is down to 8-6-2 with a 3.00 GAA and an .894 save percentage over 16 starts. He'll likely split the Blue Jackets' upcoming back-to-back with Daniil Tarasov. That pair of games features tricky matchups against the Oilers on Thursday and the Canucks on Friday.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Drawing road start
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Merzlikins will tend twine against the Flames on Tuesday, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site relays.
Merzlikins has won back-to-back games and is 6-0-1 over his last seven starts. This comes after the Latvian netminder won just two of his first eight appearances of the 2024-25 campaign. It'll be Merzlikins' second matchup against the Flames in four days -- the 30-year-old made 27 saves on 29 shots in a 5-2 win over Calgary on Friday. Merzlikins' opponent Tuesday ranks 28th in the league with 2.52 goals per game through 25 contests.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Starting in Chicago
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Merzlikins will defend the road net versus the Blackhawks on Sunday, per Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Merzlikins is coming off a 27-save performance in Friday's 5-2 victory over Calgary. He has won five of his last six outings, surrendering 19 goals on 170 shots. Merzlikins has a 7-5-2 record with one shutout, a 3.07 GAA and an .893 save percentage through 14 appearances this season. Chicago sits 30th in the league with 2.48 goals per game in 2024-25.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Fifth win in last six starts
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Merzlikins made 27 saves in a 5-2 win over Calgary on Friday.
Merzlikins has really picked up the Blue Jackets over the last two weeks. He is 5-0-1 in six starts, including wins over the Hurricanes, Lightning and Bruins. But Merzlikins has allowed 19 goals during that stretch, and his save percentage over that span is a murky .888. And after he lost his cool in Friday's game, he could be a few dollars lighter if the league levels supplemental discipline. Merzlikins took offense to MacKenzie Weegar digging at him in the crease, the netminder popped up throwing jabs with the his blocker on.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Set to start Friday
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Merzlikins is expected to start at home Friday versus Calgary, according to Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Merzlikins has a 6-5-2 record, 3.15 GAA and .890 save percentage in 13 appearances this season. He's struggled recently, allowing at least four goals in each of his past three starts. Daniil Tarasov is unavailable due to an illness, so Jet Greaves, who was recalled from AHL Cleveland, will serve as the backup goaltender. Calgary has a solid 12-7-4 record, though the Flames have been underwhelming offensively, ranking 26th with 2.57 goals per game.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Beaten in OT
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Merzlikins allowed four goals on 23 shots in Wednesday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Canadiens.
Merzlikins, who failed to hold a couple of one-goal leads, saw a four-game win streak snapped. The back-and-forth affair eventually ended when Nick Suzuki pounced on a rebound of a shot that the goalie was unable to squeeze. It was a third consecutive shaky performance for Merzlikins, who benefitted greatly from an offense that racked up 22 non-shootout goals during his win steak. Next up for Columbus is a Friday night home game against Calgary.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Set to start against Montreal
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Merzlikins will serve as the starting goaltender for Wednesday's home game against the Canadiens, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Merzlikins has started in the Blue Jackets' last three games, posting a 3-0-0 record, 3.55 GAA and .884 save percentage during that time. While he's picked up some lucky wins over that stretch, he'll attempt to remain in the win column while facing the Canadiens, who have averaged 2.76 goals per game this season.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Escapes with shootout win
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Merzlikins stopped 32 of 36 shots in Saturday's 5-4 shootout win over the Hurricanes.
Merzlikins let three separate one-goal leads slip away, and Jackson Blake put the Hurricanes ahead 4-3 at 13:23 of the second period. That lead nearly lasted to the finish, but Kirill Marchenko saved the day by tying the game with 1:06 left in regulation. Merzlikins handled the rest, getting through overtime and stopping all three shootout attempts to earn his fourth straight win. In that span, he's been a little shaky with 13 goals allowed. The 30-year-old netminder improved to 6-5-1 with a 3.08 GAA and an .894 save percentage through 12 starts. He's the no-doubt starter for the Blue Jackets right now, and he'll likely get the nod for Wednesday's home game versus the Canadiens.
