Last night, I crawled out from under my rock and headed down to Columbus to watch the Columbus Blue Jackets play the Detroit Red Wings at Ohio Stadium. It was (mostly) a great night to be a hockey fan in Ohio.
Winners:
The Columbus Blue Jackets: 95,000 people jammed Ohio Stadium to watch the home team beat the Detroit Red Wings 5-3. This was arguably the biggest victory in Blue Jackets history. Many still consider the Blue Jackets an expansion team despite being around since the 2000 season. Not only was it a great win, but it was a symbolic win.
Justin Danforth: It was 3-3 late in the third period and the Red Wings were just swarming the Blue Jackets goal. Justin Danforth got the puck on a breakaway and scratched and clawed his way into the Red Wings' zone, he willed that puck into the net. When the Blue Jackets do win the Stanley Cup one day, the ESPN screen will flash back to Danforth's goal as to when things started to turn around for the NHL's Columbus team.
Elvis Merzlikins: The Columbus goal keeper made 43 saves and had a .935 save percentage for the night. He faced 20 shots in the third period alone and kept Columbus in the game.
The NHL: The whole night was awesome. For being in a stadium, we had a remarkably good view and the crowd was engaged. There didn't appear to be any ice problems, which had been a hiccup at some of the other Stadium games. (Granted, the game time temperature was in the 20's.)
The Ohio State Band: It was cold all night, down to single digit wind chills in the second period before the winds began to die down. The OSU band never showed they were cold and played until the final buzzer.
The Detroit Red Wings: They put up a valiant effort and the score could have easily gone the other way. Despite a 2-1 shot advantage, the Red Wings were, at times, just plain unlucky. I saw a ton of Red Wings jerseys in the stands, a lot of Detroit fans made that 3 hour drive to Columbus.
twenty one pilots: They put on a FANTASTIC 1st intermission show. They let the college kids surround the stage as they played their hits at full force.
Losers:
Ohio State: The parking was terrible. You argue that parking is terrible everywhere? We passed 4 parking lots on the way in and out of the stadium that were empty. Ohio State blocked them off, not to be used. Similar stories were heard inside the stadium. Lots of spots, but for Ohio State use only. Then, at the 2nd intermission, when people were cold, Ohio State gave a celebration of champions. As the MC's face looked like it was about to freeze off, he introduced two OSU women's teams that won championships in 2024, I didn't hear one person clap. Then the big reveal, the 2024 Championship OSU Football team...about 25 out of 100+ players showed up. Did Coach Ryan Day accept the accolades? Nope. Will Howard? Nope. The player that accepted was a lineman I was unfamiliar with.
That Fat Guy: Everywhere we went, there was a fat guy wearing a white Blue Jackets jersey, the name on the jersey was Red Wings, and the number on the jersey was 666.
So who exactly were you rooting for?
Detroit?
Columbus?
Or the Devil?
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