Blue Jackets’ Elvis Merzlikins Out Indefinitely After Shoulder Surgery

The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that goaltender Elvis Merzlikins underwent surgery to repair a shoulder injury after experiencing discomfort during offseason workouts. General manager Don Waddell said an MRI confirmed the need for surgery. The team has not announced a timetable for Merzlikins’ return, and the late-summer procedure could jeopardize his availability for the start of training camp on September 16 or the regular season opener on October 1.

Merzlikins ceded Columbus’ starting role to Jet Greaves last season. Greaves outperformed his backup across the board and solidifed his top spot by signing a three-year, $15MM contract on July 23rd. Greaves’ new deal established Merzlikins as the backup for the 2026-27 season.

The second chair seems more fitting for a 32-year-old Merzlikins, who owns a .900 save percentage and 3.22 goals-against average over 274 career games. He has long been a utility netminder for the Blue Jackets after emerging from a crowded goalie competition at the turn of the 2020’s. Merzlikins recorded 21 wins and a .920 save percentage in the first 61 games of his NHL career. That performance earned him the edge over Joonas Korpisalo for Columbus’ starting role in 2021-22. Merzlikins vindicated that standing with 27 wins and a .907 save percentage in 59 games.

Injuries in November, March, and April of the 2022-23 season kept Merzlikins from taking on a starter’s workload for a second year. His statline took a hit, falling to just seven wins and a .876 save percentage in 30 games. Despite righting his ship in 2023-24, and taking back the starting role in 2024-25, Merzlikins has not finished a season with a save percentage above .900 since his injury-plagued year. Those struggles mounted last year, when Merzlikins posted a .883 save percentage in 30 games behind Greaves.

While his impact on the lineup is far from where it once was, Merzlikins still provides veteran experience in the backup seat with seven NHL seasons, and six seasons in Switzerland’s National League (NL), under his belt. He seemed a likely bet to earn 30-to-35 games in the 2026-27 season, while playing through the final year of a five-year, $27MM contract signed in 2021.

Instead, Columbus may need to promote Pheonix Copley from the minor-leagues to field a veteran backup. The Blue Jackets could also pipeline highly-regarded goalie prospect Sergei Ivanov into the second-string role – if they could stomach shifting one of their top prospects from the KHL to the NHL. Ivanov posted a .928 save percentage through 29 games with SKA St. Petersburg last season – a split-role after he spent the 2023-24 and 2024-25 season as an outright starter for other clubs. The 22 year old has promising upside but his inexperience in North America could make him a favorite to start for the Cleveland Monsters while Copley moves up.