The 24-year-old goalie was just one of several people seriously harmed by fireworks over the holiday weekend.
Matiss Kivlenieks, the 24-year-old goalie of the Columbus Blue Jackets, died on July 4 after a firework accidentally detonated on his chest. Kivlenieks was reportedly sitting in a hot tub at a large holiday party at a private home in Novi, Michigan when an aerial mortar fireworks slightly tilted over and shot him in the chest. While quickly trying to exit the hot tub alongside other fleeing guests, Kivlenieks was hit by an explosive and also suffered a head injury, the Associated Press reported. Though emergency medical technicians transported him to a local hospital, he was later pronounced dead there. Amid reports of his death, his associates began posting messages of grief. “RIP Matiss, you will be dearly missed,” Columbus general manager Jarmo Kekalainen wrote on Twitter. “Kivi was an outstanding young man who greeted every day and everyone with a smile and the impact he had during his four years with our organization will not be forgotten,” the Blue Jackets’ president of hockey operations John Davidson wrote in a statement.
