I
have been coming to Columbus for over 20 years now, a by-product of being
married to the official, Ohio State University recognized, 2012 worldwide
Buckeye of the Year. My first time here was on the eve of the 1997 Stanley Cup
Finals, and I demanded that any plans made would involve me watching Game 1 of
the eventual Wings sweep of the Flyers. Tonight, however, is the latest bout in the
ancient rivalry between Ohio State and Michigan. Though not as nasty or
historic as the football feud between these two schools, the hatred OSU fans
have for UM is still palpable tonight. Numerous renditions of “I Don’t Give A
Damn For The Whole State of Michigan” this evening prove that.  |
| The puck I caught |
I’ve
seen these two teams play before: At Yost in Ann Arbor, at Joe Louis Arena in
the CCHA tournamount, and even in an outdoor game at Progressive Field in
Cleveland (I am so over outdoor hockey games, but that’s another story). One of
the more notable hockey memories I have is seeing a game between these two
teams in the Schottenstein Center, circa 2003, a shot off the crossbar, heading directly
toward us, and, without thinking, I caught it barehanded. The crowd gave me a
nice hand, and Jim Hunt, our friend and then-radio voice of the Wolverines,
gave me props on the air. I still have the puck.
I
returned in 1998 to see the Michigan State University hockey Spartans, led by
Hobey Baker finalists Chad Alban and Mike York, lose to the Buckeyes in a game
played at the old OSU hockey rink. That rink was nothing special: a small,
decrepit and old. It lacked any sort of character, and could have been any ratty
community ice rink, not at the home of one of the largest universities in the
country. Indeed, the game was stopped two or three times because the puck hit
the ceiling during play. This substandard playing facility was replaced by its
exact polar opposite with the opening of the Jerome Schottenstein
Center, a full sized arena as good as any NHL rink at the time it was built.
Both the OSU hockey and basketball teams play there, and the upper bowl of the
arena is obscured by a curtain during hockey games to hide the empty upper bowl
seats.
There
are more memories that come forth. The pregame video showed a montage of former
Buckeyes who went on to play in the NHL. One of them, Jamie Macoun, is shown
raising the Stanley Cup as a member of the Red Wings in 1998. That year, on
impulse, Michelle and I secured tickets to Game 4 of the Finals, and, with our
friend Tim Adams, we traveled to Washington D.C. to see the Red Wings win the
second of back to back Stanley Cups. The arena that night was filled with Red
Wing fans, and when Steve Yzerman raised the Cup over his head, there was a
loud, resonating “YEAH” that I clearly remember, perhaps even clearer than the
first Cup a year earlier. Tonight, Tim, a resident of Columbus, meets us at the
game, a mini-reunion of that glorious road trip of 20 years ago. I am certain
we are the only three people in the arena, perhaps the city, perhaps even the
state, who were in attendance at that historic game to see Steve Yzerman place
the Stanley Cup on the lap of the fallen Vladimir Konstantinov. To have been
there, in Washington D.C., to see the Red Wings win the Cup, a year after
seeing it won at home, is one of my most cherished memories…not just of the
game of hockey, but life itself.
Next,
I look up to see the banner denoting Ohio State’s lone Frozen Four appearance,
coming in, yet again, 1998. That year, they defeated Michigan State in a
thrilling overtime game in, of all places, Yost Ice Arena, the site of the NCAA
West Regional that year. The teams matched up against each other well, and had
played the week before at Joe Louis Arena for the CCHA playoff championship. That
game also went to OT, and MSU would win the conference title on a goal by Shawn
Horcoff, who would go on to a very good NHL career. I was at both games. The
game played between OSU and MSU at the home of both of their biggest rival was,
looking back on it, a surreal experience. It also was one of the most
heartbreaking losses I’ve ever experienced. That 1998 MSU team was poised for
glory. It had two of the best players in the country, and had finished an
incredible 33-6-5. They had the bad luck to play a team that matched up very
well against them and it would be Ohio State’s best ever playoff run in the
NCAA tournament, ending a game later at the hands of Boston College. That year,
the University of Michigan would have the last laugh over both of its rivals,
winning the national championship on an OT goal over Boston College by freshman
Josh Langfeld. This was a most bitter ending to such a promising season for the
Spartans.
 |
| The game winning OT goal by Ohio State that eliminates the Michigan State Spartans from the 1998 NCAA tournament, played at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor. |
The
Blue Jackets arrived in Columbus in 2000, and the city finally had its first
major professional sports team. After years of poor management, they would
finally make the playoffs in 2009, but were swept by the defending Cup champion
Red Wings. The home of the Blue Jackets, Nationwide Arena, was, until Little
Caesars Arena, the nicest arena I had ever been in. I have seen numerous games
there, mostly involving the Red Wings, occasionally without them, and I even
saw my one and only NHL All Star Game there in 2015. 
So,
there are many hockey memories that converge in Columbus, so tonight’s game is
a welcome return to familiar ground. The game itself is a spirited one, but
Ohio State is the much better team, and, despite an early goal by the
Wolverines, the Buckeyes win the game by a score of 5-3. The arena is pretty
much sold out (black curtain notwithstanding) and the crowd is enthusiastic,
prompted by an oversized pep band leading cheers. Despite this, there is little
of the vitriol I’ve seen when these two teams play football. There are no expletives
flying at the hated Wolverines, nor any observed harassment of them as they go in and off the ice. Michelle,
the 2012 Buckeye of the year, after listening to the band play Carmen Ohio, the official Ohio State alma mater these song, left the arena a happy girl.
After a wonderful brunch the next morning, and a stop at
Buckeye Donuts on the way out of town, we head home. But, we would be stopping
in Toledo first.
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