The NHL Stadium Series Game At Ohio Stadium Could Attract Second-Biggest Crowd In League History

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Until this Saturday, only three teams in the National Hockey League — the Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers (who will host next year's Winter Classic), and Utah Hockey Club — have yet to play in an outdoor game.

The Blue Jackets finally get their chance on Saturday when they take on the Detroit Red Wings at Ohio Stadium, and it sounds like maybe the NHL may have wanted to hold an outdoor game in Columbus sooner because this game sounds like it will be packed.

Insider Jeff Svoboda tweeted some comments from the NHL's President of Content and Events Steve Mayer that point to this being one of the biggest games in NHL history as far as attendance is concerned.

90,000 people, huh? That would be the second-highest attendance figure in NHL history behind only the 2014 Winter Classic between the — fittingly — the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan Stadium which drew over 105,000 fans (and featured one of the best-looking uniform matchups of all-time with the Red Wings in Red and the Leafs in blue; looked like a game of bubble hockey).

READ: BLUE JACKETS, RED WINGS DROP SLICK JERSEYS FOR STADIUM SERIES GAME AT OHIO STADIUM

How about that? And most of the tickets are being sold to the hometown fans, which is even better. The folks in Columbus love their team, and it's great that they're finally getting to show that on one of the league's biggest stages.

And here's the best part: the Jackets and Red Wings are currently battling for a playoff spot, and the Stadium Series game on Saturday will be the second time the teams play over the course of about 48 hours. They'll play on Thursday night in Detroit at Little Caesars Arena.

So there could be quite the points swing if either team can win both games, so I would be on the lookout for a pair of hard-fought games, something I'm sure the 90,000-plus who pack into Ohio Stadium on Saturday will appreciate.