Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Matiss Kivlenieks “died a hero,” said teammate Elvis Merzlikins.

“He saved not just many lives, but when it happened, I was standing 20-30 feet back of him, and I was hugging my wife,” Merzlikins said at Kivlenieks’ memorial service Thursday in Upper Arlington, Ohio. “He saved my son, he saved my wife, and he saved me.”

Merzlikins’ wife, Aleksandra, is in her third trimester, and Merzlikins said their son’s second name will be Matiss in honor of his teammate. Kivlenieks was living in Ohio with Merzlikins, who called his fellow Latvian player “my little brother.”

Blue Jackets goaltender coach Many Legace described how close he and Kivlenieks became. “[Matiss] got to become one of my family,” he said. “He got to be a brother to my daughter and my son, a great friend to our nephew.”

Merzlikins and Kivlenieks were at a July 4 backyard party at the Michigan home of Legace. The party was also a wedding celebration for Legace’s daughter, Sabrina, who got married over the weekend. Kivlenieks died after being hit with errant fireworks that same night. A later autopsy revealed that he died from chest trauma with major damage to his heart and lungs from being hit.

“If that wasn’t me, or my wife or son, that would be 50 other people. He died as a hero, and that’s not me saying, that was the doctors saying,” Merzlikins said. “As [Legace’s daughter] Sabrina said, ‘he saved his last puck.’ I just want to let you know that he was a hero, and he saved a lot of lives. And I’m pretty sure he did that with a smile because it’s true.”

Legace spoke fondly about Kivlenieks and how close he got during their time together. “Michigan was his second home,” Legace said. “A lot of you guys don’t know, but ever since Kivi joined our organization, he would come up and live with my wife and I every summer. He became a son to us. He lived with us through the pandemic.”

Many Blue Jackets players and coaches flew in for the memorial service, as did friends and teammates from Minnesota. Kivlenieks signed with Columbus as an undrafted free agent in 2017. He started just two games for Columbus in 2021 but was expected to have a larger role next season.

Kivlenieks was only 24 years old when he died.

Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Matiss Kivlenieks died in a fatal fireworks accident on July 4.

Kivlenieks was at the team’s goaltending coach Manny Legace‘s Michigan home. He and teammate Elvis Merzlikins traveled to Legace’s home to celebrate the holiday and Legace’s daughter’s wedding ceremony over the weekend.

It was initially reported Kivlenieks suffered a fatal head injury when he fell out of a hot tub during the incident. An autopsy later revealed that wasn’t the case, and instead, his cause of death was chest trauma.

Michigan police stated that a fireworks mortar was properly lit and began firing at people, including Kivlenieks, who was in the hot tub. The goalkeeper was attempting to shield himself from the mortar when he was struck in the chest. Police said that the goalkeeper was 10 feet away from the mortar when he was struck. He died from a percussive injury caused by the blast, causing major damage to his heart and lungs.

Paramedics and firefighters arrived at Legace’s home at 10:15 p.m. Sunday. Kivlenieks told one teammate not to get into the ambulance with him.

“[Kivlenieks] didn’t want him to have to see that,” the late goalie’s agent, Jay Grossman, said.

Kivlenieks was pronounced dead later at the hospital. The Blue Jackets announced his death on Monday. “It’s with a very heavy heart that we share the news that goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks passed away last night at the age of 24,” the team said on Twitter. “We are heartbroken. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers. Rest in peace, Kivi.”

A moment of silence was held for Kivlenieks before Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Monday between Tampa Bay and Montreal. The Canadiens won Game 4, but trail the Lightning 3-1 in the series. Tampa Bay’s coach, Jon Cooper, addressed Kivlenieks’ family after his team’s overtime loss.

“It’s an awful tragedy for anybody, any family to go through that,” Cooper told reporters. “But somebody in the NHL family, as close as we all are as the teams even battling out there, from all the Lightning, our condolences.”