NHL Goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks Dead at 24 in Fireworks-Related Accident

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NHL player Matiss Kivlenieks, goalie for the Columbus Blue Jackets, died Sunday night in an accident involving fireworks, according to police.

Kivlenieks was at a private party in Novi, Michigan when fireworks were inadvertently shot at people, Novi Police Department Lieutenant Jason Meier said. Kivlenieks, who was in a hot tub, tried to jump out but fell and hit his head on the concrete ground.

“There appears to have been a fireworks malfunction, which caused a group of people to flee from the hot tub, including the deceased, who slipped and hit his head on the concrete,” Meier said in a statement to ESPN.

Police were called to the house after 10 p.m. Sunday and Kivlenieks was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. According to AP, the medical examiner determined that Kivlenieks died of chest trauma.

Kivlenieks was 24.