Regardless of which country they were pulling for, Red Wings fans have a lot to be proud of. Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond showed up and played a good tournament, and while their respective countries couldn’t win, they still played their hearts out.
And hey, maybe it foreshadowed what you can expect from them when the 2026 Olympics roll around, right? Yep, the 4 Nations was an excellent tune-up event for that, but for most of the team that didn’t make the best-on-best affair, they don’t need to fear.
There’s another big hockey event on the horizon, and it’ll take place in a venue in which the intense sports rivalry between Ohio and Michigan has seen its fair share of hostility. Yep on March 1st, the Columbus Blue Jackets will host your Red Wings at Ohio Stadium in the NHL’s Stadium Series.
All eyes are now on the Red Wings and Blue Jackets as Stadium Series looms
Here, we have a Tale of Two Teams. One of which was supposed to contend all season and the other seemed like it would be at least a year before they would vie for a playoff spot. Instead, the Red Wings got off to a rough start, but have since turned it around.
As for the Blue Jackets, they’re right there in contention, and they would love to make a statement win against the Red Wings in a stadium that boasts one of the most successful college football programs in history, the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Yeah, I know that’s not what fans here in Michigan like to hear, but hey, at least the Wolverines did the impossible just a few months back, right? At least they can say they beat the National Champions, something neither Tennessee, Texas, nor Notre Dame can claim. Oregon technically can, but, well, you know…
Now, it’s the Red Wings turn, and like their college football counterparts in Ann Arbor, they would love to go into Ohio Stadium, and make it 2 for 2 against a team from Columbus. In front of the entire nation, might I add.
Winning in the Stadium Series would be a momentum booster
When we first learned the Red Wings would be heading to Columbus to face the Blue Jackets in the Stadium Series, I would’ve said this shaped up as an easy win for Detroit. But that’s not the case, as the Red Wings have shown weaknesses this season while the Blue Jackets have played better than we all thought.
That said, the Wings will need to find ways to win against a solid Blue Jackets team, and one that’s looking to end their playoff drought every bit as much as the Red Wings. So, mark those calendars for March 1st, because that date will mean more than just the first day of the meteorological spring, as they call it.
Instead, it’ll be a great day for hockey, and a game that will be a must-win for the Red Wings if they plan on taking one step closer in their odyssey to return to the NHL Playoffs.