Former Minnesota hockey coach, friends remember Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Matiss Kivlenieks

Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks, 24, died of chest trauma from an errant fireworks mortar blast in what authorities described Monday as a tragic accident at a Michigan home on the Fourth of July.

"I’m still struggling with it," said Dennis Canfield, Kivlenieks’ former coach with the Forest Lake Lakers. "It doesn’t almost seem real."

Canfield coached the young Latvian goalie for the Forest Lake Lakers in the former Minnesota Junior Hockey League back in 2014.

"Every time we showed up at the rink, we had an advantage, we had a guy that everybody knew was the best player in the rink,” Canfield said. “To have that guy, it’s a mental advantage for sure, he won a lot of games for us."

With the Lakers in 2014-15, Kivlenieks played in 33 games and posted a .930 save percentage.

The former coach said he could tell Kivlenieks had the skills and the desire to make it to the NHL.

"He’s a good inspiration for a lot of kids, and he took the hardest path you could possibly take to get there and persevered through it," Canfield said.

"We definitely miss him already," said Kelsey Witt, who worked in social media for teams Kivlenieks played for in Minnesota, including the Edina Lakers.

"His hard work, his dedication to the game was a love like no other, the time he took with his fans, the little kids after the game," Witt said.

Kivlenieks made his NHL debut in January 2020 against the New York Rangers, winning 2-1.

Scott Halvorson met Kivlenieks while working with the Lakers hockey organization.

"He’s a driven, restless kid who chased his dream and achieved it," Halvorson said.

Police in Novi, Michigan, said the firework tilted slightly and started to fire toward people nearby on Sunday night. The 24-year-old Kivlenieks was in a hot tub and tried to get clear with several other people, police Lt. Jason Meier said.

Authorities earlier said the Latvian had died of an apparent head injury during a fall, but an autopsy clarified the cause of death.

Columbus General Manager Jarmo Kekalainen tweeted: "Life is so precious and can be so fragile. Hug your loved ones today. RIP Matiss, you will be dearly missed."

Blue Jackets President of Hockey Operations John Davidson called it a "devastating time" for the team.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.