Columbus Blue Jackets sign goaltender Joonas Korpisalo to two year contract extension

The Columbus Blue Jackets officially announced on Monday that they have come to terms with Joonas Korpisalo of Pori, Finland to a two year contract worth $5.6 million according to puckpedia. Korpisalo will remain a goaltender for the Blue Jackets, the team he has played for since 2015-16.

It will be interesting to see if Korpisalo will be the long term backup goaltender in Columbus or share goaltending duties with rising netminder Elvis Merzlikins of Riga, Latvia. The bottom line is that over the last few months, Merzlikins has become an elite National Hockey League goaltender and he has appeared to taken over the number one goaltending job in Columbus. After making $874, 125 in 2019-20, Merzlikins is a restricted free agent, and could see a huge paycheck on the horizon.

Korpisalo played 37 games for the Blue Jackets in 2019-20 and had a record of 19 wins, 12 regulation losses and five losses in extra time. He had two shutouts, a goals against average of 2.60 and a save percentage of .911. Korpisalo’s two shutouts in 2019-20 came in a 1-0 Blue Jackets win over the Ottawa Senators on November 25 and in a 3-0 Blue Jackets upset win over the Washington Capitals on December 16. Korpisalo had 25 saves against the Senators and 30 saves against the Capitals.

In five seasons in the NHL from 2015 to 2020, Korpisalo has a record of 60 wins, 43 regulation losses and 14 losses in extra time. He also has a goals against average of 2.80 and a save percentage of .908 in 127 games.

Korpisalo also has three career shutouts in the National Hockey League. His first career NHL shutout came in a 7-0 Blue Jackets win over the New York Islanders on February 25, 2017. By contrast, Merzlikins now has a remarkable five shutouts in only 33 games.

Columbus currently holds the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference during the 2019-20 NHL regular season. With a record of 33 wins, 22 regulation losses and 15 losses in extra time, they have 81 points and lead the New York Islanders by one point for a playoff spot.