2025 Stadium Series Has Playoff Implications for Blue Jackets and Red Wings

The 2025 Stadium Series game will be played Saturday night at the Horshoe on the Ohio State campus. It is the most critical and important game in NHL outdoor game history, as the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings are battling for position in the Eastern Conference Playoff race.

“It’s not an exhibition game, it’s not an all-star game. It’s a game that can make a team make the playoffs or lose the playoffs,” Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell said. “So that’s the benefit of all the fans are going to come out and take advantage of all the entertainment and events going on, but the actual game itself is going to be very important to both teams.”

In the first two back-to-back games, the Columbus Blue Jackets entered Detroit and won 5-2 over the Red Wings. Both teams are tied with 66 points heading into Saturday night’s game at the Horseshoe. Detroit holds Wildcard One because the Red Wings have one more (30) win than the Blue Jackets (29), but they have the same winning percentage and points.

With the success of the Four Nations Faceoff, the NHL has momentum. If you think about the 2025 Stadium Series game, it is truly a potential knockout game. And that is how the NHL needs to market it. Just imagine if the teams behind either the Blue Jackets or the Red Wings get their acts together and start winning, they have a chance to eliminate one of these teams.

That is why this game is so crucial. The 2025 Stadium Series between the Blue Jackets and Red Wings has a play-in type feel. Usually, these games are earlier in the season and the losing team has a chance to recover. However, the game is being played March 1st, there is not a lot of runway left for the losing team. Remember the winner of these outdoor games can carry that momentum.

So, there is much on the line for the Red Wings and Blue Jackets. While it is not the latest outdoor game in NHL history, it is the latest with the most on the line. Usually, these games are between teams in opposing conferences. To use a college football reference, the teams playing in the Stadium Series normally play a non-conference schedule.

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So it is rare to get two teams from the same conference playing in this game. Not to mention on a back-to-back basis. Now to be fair, the New York Rangers and New York Islanders played in one of the Stadium Series games last year at MetLife. The Rangers won in overtime coming from behind. Many thought the Islanders would fade, but with the way the East was last year, that loss did not affect their standing as the Islanders went on a run to make the playoffs.

It could be different this year. Detroit needs to make the playoffs. There are rumblings about Steve Yzerman and his job as general manager, and there is a lot of heat coming his way. The Red Wings have not been in the playoffs since 2015. And under new head coach Todd McLellan, the Red Wings have not had a big losing streak. Detroit went on a run to get into this position.

Many expected the Red Wings to be a playoff team entering the year. Nobody was expecting much from Columbus this season, especially with Johnny Gaudreau‘s passing right before the season.

But the Blue Jackets are an incredible story of perseverance and determination. Columbus, who trails the New Jersey Devils by just four points, is within striking distance of third in the Metro Division. Not to mention the Blue Jackets have a game in hand. With the way the Devils have been struggling, a win in this game could get them closer to third.

The players know this game has meaning, not only because of its outdoor specialty but also because of its playoff implications.

“I mean, obviously you got to be here and take in the moment and enjoy it, but you also got to realize how important these big these two points are to create some separation in the standings and having a nice win streak here after Christmas or after the break, sorry, has been been awesome, so hopefully that can propel us into the playoffs,” Adam Fantilli said.

“That’s what you hope for when these kinds of games are put on the schedule, you hope it’s something like this, and that’s exactly what we got,” Sean Kuraly said. “I think we’re just excited about it. We just want to enjoy it, have fun, play our butts off, and let the chips fall where they may, kind of like we’ve been doing the past few months, the whole year, really.”

As Kuraly noted, the Blue Jackets remained focused on playing there despite the circumstances surrounding the game. Columbus just wants to keep playing the way they are playing and continue to win. However, if you ask head coach Dean Evason about the 2025 Stadium Series game and its importance, he says every game is important regardless of when and where it is played.

“Like, I get where we’re both in the standings, but I also think that we’re coaching in the NHL, the players are playing in the NHL, you’re trying to win every hockey game. You’re competing,” Dean Evason said. “It’s your livelihood, and you want to compete your butt off and try to get two points every night. So sure, are the standings tight and all that and what have you, but we should be able to play the game same way every night, regardless of where we sit.”

There is a buzz around Columbus for this game. A lot is riding on the line at the 2025 Stadium Series between the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings. The result could determine what these two teams do moving forward at the deadline.