College rivalries, playoff implications headline storylines ahead of Blue Jackets, Red Wings outdoor game

The final outdoor game of the 2024-25 NHL season is set for Saturday night in one of the more historic venues in college sports, as the Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets get set to square off at Ohio Stadium in the Stadium Series.

While there is the pageantry of a game taking place without a roof, there is plenty of reasons to be excited for what is going to happen on the ice.

For one, the number of former Michigan Wolverines playing a game inside the stadium that is home to the hated Ohio State Buckeyes is large. Headlined by former roommates Dylan Larkin and Zach Werenski, the blood of maize and blue products runs deep between the two teams. Former Michigan star J.T. Compher of the Red Wings will be lined up across fellow Wolverines Kent Johnson and Adam Fantilli of the Blue Jackets.

On top of that, the game is very meaningful for both teams in their hunt for the playoffs. After Columbus beat the Red Wings 5-2 in Detroit on Thursday night, the two teams are tied with 66 points apiece, tied for the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.

On Friday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk discuss the big storylines heading into the Stadium Series clash.

Frank Seravalli: [The NHL] couldn’t have scripted this any better. Honestly, I wouldn’t have believed it was a Disney script if you asked me in October. Detroit and Columbus, outdoors at The ‘Shoe, and it would be with a playoff spot on the line. No chance I would’ve believed that. The Blue Jackets have zero quit in them. There’s another layer to this will [Red Wings coach] Todd McLellan calling out essentially Dylan Larkin…but the Larkin/Werenski friendship, the Michigan connections. There’s a lot going on here.

I think the next layer of it that’s awesome is the showcase for Columbus. This is a proud hockey market that, for whatever reason, gets dumped on time after time. This is their opportunity to show, “Hey, I know it’s a college venue, but we are a major-league city.” That’s a nice flag to plant in front of a national TV audience with a lot on the line.

You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…