Don Waddell shares he almost pulled off a trade involving Elvis Merzlikins
Elvis Merzlikins was once one of the better goaltenders in the NHL and while he was Don Waddell tried to trade for him to bring him to Carolina.
Recently Don Waddell left the Carolina Hurricanes organization and joined the Columbus Blue Jackets as their president and GM. He did an interview with Jeff Marek and shared that he tried to trade for Elvis Merzlikins a bit ago.
Waddell also mentioned in this interview when he was GM in Carolina he worked on a deal with Jarmo Kekalainen that would have sent Elvis Merzlikins to the Hurricanes.
Since breaking into the NHL in 2018-19, Merzlikins has been a solid piece. However, he has seen his numbers decline from his rookie year where he posted a .923 sv% and a 2.35 GAA to only a .897 sv% and 3.45 GAA last year. This is not entirely his fault though as the Blue Jackets had a terrible defense last year but the fall off is quite noticeable.
Merzlikins currently has three years left on his deal with the Blue Jackets and with a cap hit of $5.4 million, the Latvian goaltender will need to turn things around soon if he wants to not be bought out by the GM that once tried to trade for him.
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Will Elvis Merzlikins get bought out of his current contract with the Blue Jackets? | ||
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