Merzlikins, Jackets agree to part: 'I'm not a backup goaltender'

Elvis may be about to leave the building.

The Columbus Blue Jackets and Elvis Merzlikins agreed to find "a new scenario" for the goaltender, he told The Athletic's Aaron Portzline on Friday. However, Merzlikins clarified he hasn't formally asked for a trade.

"I love Columbus. I love these guys. I grew up here," he said, adding, "(but) I'm not a backup goaltender."

"I just want to be treated as No. 1, I believe that I am No. 1," Merzlikins added. "It didn't (get) to that point where I'm requesting (a trade). It went to the point that both sides agreed."

Merzlikins said he'll give his best if he's called upon because he's "dead serious" that the Blue Jackets are his "family." But the veteran netminder isn't content to be relegated to the bench.

"I want to play," he said. "I'm not going to be No. 3, I can assure you that. Especially (given) the hard work I did this summer, mentally and physically. I just want to play my game and keep having fun like I had."

Blue Jackets head coach Pascal Vincent said Merzlikins will back up Daniil Tarasov against the Seattle Kraken on Saturday, according to Portzline. Vincent replied, "That's above my paygrade," when asked about the situation.

The Latvian goalie hasn't played since Dec. 29 when he was pulled after allowing two goals to the Toronto Maple Leafs on 14 shots in a game the Blue Jackets ultimately won in overtime with Spencer Martin in the crease.

Tarasov has started Columbus' last three games and four of the last five. He's 2-3-2 with an .883 save percentage in seven games since making his season debut with the club on Dec. 16.

Merzlikins, who'll turn 30 in April, has spent his whole five-year career with the Blue Jackets, who drafted him 76th overall in 2014. He ranks fifth in franchise history in games played, wins, and losses.