Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Strong performance in win

Merzlikins stopped 25 of 26 shots in Thursday's 2-1 overtime win over the Golden Knights.

Merzlikins didn't face a ton of shots, but he made a number of quality saves against a tough opponent. That allowed the Blue Jackets to have a chance to win, and they did just that when Cole Sillinger tallied 52 seconds into overtime. Merzlikins has won three straight games and seven of his nine outings in January, allowing two or fewer goals on five occasions this month. The Latvian netminder is 19-11-3 with a 2.89 GAA and an .896 save percentage over 33 starts this season. Daniil Tarasov is likely to start Friday in Utah, but Merzlikins should be penciled in for Sunday's tough matchup against the Stars.