Saturday’s NHL outdoor Stadium Series game has met a key ingredient: an iconic venue.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are hosting the Detroit Red Wings at Ohio Stadium on the Ohio State campus.

But there’s a bonus because the game is also important in the standings.

After the Blue Jackets beat the Red Wings Thursday night, the teams are tied with 66 points and hold the two Eastern Conference wild-card spots. The winner will get sole possession of the top spot.

Saturday’s game is expected to be the second-most-attended NHL game, drawing more than 90,000 fans. The record was 105,491 in 2014, when the host Red Wings lost in a shootout to the Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan Stadium.

Here’s what you need to know about Saturday’s Stadium Series game between the Blue Jackets and Red Wings:

When is Blue Jackets vs. Red Wings Stadium Series game?

The Blue Jackets and Red Wings will play at 6 p.m. ET Saturday at Ohio Stadium, home of the Ohio State football team.

Blue Jackets vs. Red Wings Stadium Series TV channel

Saturday’s Blue Jackets vs. Red Wings game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.

How to stream Blue Jackets vs. Red Wings Stadium Series game

 Sling, Fubo and ESPN+ carry ESPN games.

Blue Jackets vs. Red Wings weather forecast

The forecast calls for 29 degrees and mostly cloudy weather at puck drop. Temperatures will drop to 25 degrees.

Blue Jackets vs. Red Wings TV channel, streaming

Date: Saturday, March 1

Time: 6 p.m. ET

Channel: ESPN

Streaming: Sling | Fubo | ESPN+

Site: Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio

Stadium Series special touches

Late Blue Jackets star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, will be commemorated at the event. They died last year when they were hit by a car while bicycling in New Jersey.

“We’re going to celebrate Johnny and do it in a different way,” Steve Mayer, the NHL’s president of content and events, said, according to The Columbus Dispatch, part of the USA TODAY Network. “This is a unique, worldwide forum to make sure that his story and his memory stays alive, and that he is celebrated, and the family is celebrated in a unique way. They’ll be a part of everything that goes on Saturday, as well.”

There are also plans to celebrate the Buckeyes’ national champion football, women’s hockey and spirit programs during the second intermission.

The famed Blue Jackets replica Civil War cannon has made the trip to Ohio Stadium. It goes off after every Columbus goal and victory and has been known to startle visitors to Nationwide Arena.

The Ohio State Athletic Band will perform throughout the game, including during player introductions. It will play the national anthem.

Blue Jackets, Red Wings outdoor records

The Blue Jackets are making their outdoor debut. The Red Wings are 2-0-2.

Who has played in the most outdoor games?

Columbus’ James van Riemsdyk has played in seven outdoor games, totaling three goals and three assists. Detroit’s Patrick Kane has appeared outdoors six times, totaling one goal and two assists. Red Wings coach Todd McLellan is 2-1, and Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason is 0-1.

Blue Jackets, Red Wings players to watch

Blue Jackets: Defenseman Zach Werenski is among the favorites for the Norris Trophy. He leads Columbus with 62 points. Forward Kirill Marchenko is having a breakout season and leads the team with 24 goals.

Red Wings: Forward Lucas Raymond leads the Red Wings with 62 points. No. 2 scorer Dylan Larkin is Werenski’s friend and former Michigan and U.S. 4 Nations Face-Off teammate.

We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.

This story has been updated with new information.

PHOENIX — Certainly, the man has a flair for the dramatic.

Just when you wonder how Los Angeles Dodgers DH Shohei Ohtani will recover from his offseason shoulder surgery, rehabbing not only his shoulder but also trying to pitch again at the same time, along comes a magical moment Friday night when you wonder if he should be wearing a Superman cape.

Ohtani, who suffered a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder in Game 2 of the World Series, left a sellout crowd shrieking in delight Friday night when he homered to the opposite field in his first at-bat of the spring against his former team, the Los Angeles Angels, and his former classmate from Hanamaki Higashi High School in Japan, Yusei Kikuchi.

“He does not cease to amaze,’’ Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “There was a lot of anticipation for this night, and for him to homer in his first at-bat off Kikuchi was pretty special.’’

Well, so much for any concern with his shoulder.

Follow every MLB game: Latest MLB scores, stats, schedules and standings.

“Obviously, he’s fine,’’ Kikuchi said, “after that first homer that he hit, to be able to hit it that far. I’m sure he’s going to be able to put up the same numbers this year.’’

Ohtani, who hit 54 homers and stole 59 bases last season — the charter member of the 50-50 club — may have difficulty duplicating his MVP season. Roberts plans to rest him occasionally once he returns to the mound in May, and wants to keep him from running as frequently as last year.

Still, the man may be the greatest show on Earth.

“The guy is incredible, just incredible,’’ Dodgers outfielder Michael Conforto said. “I plan on being on the top step every time he hits this year. I don’t want to miss anything.’’

Ohtani, who popped up and struck out in his next two at-bats before leaving, believes that with about 50 plate appearances in live batting practice and exhibition games this spring, he’ll be ready by the time the Dodgers open the season March 17-18 in Tokyo against the Chicago Cubs. The shoulder, he insists, feels perfectly normal.

“Regardless of the results,’’ Ohtani said, “I think the biggest takeaway was being able to go through my three at-bats without any issues.’’

Ohtani shook his shoulder after his last at-bat, but there was no pain or discomfort, he said — just making sure everything felt fine.

“I was just checking to make sure it was OK,’’ Ohtani said. “My last at-bat, my last swing, I was pretty late, and my shoulder felt great. So, that was a good test.’’

Really, it just validated his work ethic all offseason, trying to regain his shoulder strength while still rehabbing to return to the mound.

“He really hasn’t missed a beat,’’ Roberts said. “… Given where we’re at in spring training, I would not have thought he had surgery this offseason.’’

It’s almost unfathomable, Roberts says, that Ohtani not only looks the same, but that he shows absolutely no discomfort.

“That’s surprising,’’ Roberts said. “You’d think there’d be some residual soreness or pain or lack of strength. But he’s put in a lot of work, so it’s good to hear that.’’

Certainly, he looks the same to Kikuchi, 33, who’s three years older than Ohtani. He wonders if he’ll ever be able to figure out how to keep Ohtani in check. Ohtani is hitting .304 with a .739 slugging percentage and three homers in 23 at-bats against Kikuchi in the regular season.

“Just lucky,’’ Ohtani said, smiling.

Welcome to the club, where apparently Ohtani is lucky against every pitcher he faces, and rises to every big moment.

This may have been just a spring training game, but it certainly didn’t feel like one. There was a sellout crowd of 12,279 on hand at Camelback Ranch, with fans paying $180 just to get their first glimpse of Ohtani in 2025.

There were about 3,000 fans who started streaming into the Dodgers’ complex at 3:30 p.m., roaming the back fields, hoping to see the star attraction without resorting to the secondary ticket market.

Then, precisely at 4:52, Ohtani emerged from the indoor batting cage.

Fans started shrieking, racing towards the restraining fence to get a closer look at him, yelling out his name.

He ran onto a practice field, playing long toss to keep his arm loose, and nine minutes later, rushed back inside with fans pleading for him to stop for autographs.

Sorry, no time today, Ohtani had a game to play, his first of the spring, with John Sebastian singing  “Welcome Back’’ over the loudspeakers.

Fans were kept entertained inside the stadium watching videos of Ohtani on the right-field scoreboard, with highlights of his magical 50-50 season shown. They were cheering as if this was the first time they saw them.

Ohtani, who had not faced an opposing pitcher since the World Series, took three practice swings and stepped to the plate against Kikuchi at 6:10 p.m., with fans chanting “M-V-P, M-V-P.’’

Ohtani took a first-pitch fastball for a strike. Watched a curveball for Ball 1. Swung and missed at a curveball for Strike 2. Took a curveball for Ball 2 and a low fastball for Ball 3.

Now, on a full count, Kikuchi threw a 94-mph fastball over the plate.

Ohtani sent it soaring over the left-field fence for an opposite-field homer.

“I threw a fastball down the middle,’’ Kikuchi said. “A player of his caliber, you can’t get away from that. So, he got me there.’’

The crowd gasped.

And then roared.

Ohtani, with a television audience watching live on NHK in Japan and on the Dodgers’ SportsNet, showed the world that he indeed is back.

He walked off the field at 7:33 p.m. with the crowd standing and cheering again, believing this could be his greatest season yet, not only hitting 50 homers, but dominating on the mound, too.

As the baseball world has learned, it’s silly to put any type of limit on Ohtani.

All of Japan is counting down the days until his celebrated return to Tokyo. Simply, it will be one of the most-hyped events in the country’s history.

“It’s going to be like the Beatles going there,’’ Dodgers president Lon Rosen said, laughing.

Only bigger.

“I think all of Japan,’’ Kikuchi said, “is pretty excited for that.’’

Follow Nightengale on X: @BNightengale

This story has been updated with new information.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

INDIANAPOLIS – The NFL’s annual game of quarterback musical chairs commenced Friday … with the Los Angeles Rams’ Matthew Stafford deciding to remain seated.

The reigning NFC West champions put all speculation about their QB1’s future to rest by revealing “HE’S BACK” on X. According to multiple reports, Stafford also agreed to a restructured contract. He was set to make $27 million in 2025 (only $4 million of it guaranteed), the penultimate year of a deal that was well below market value for the league’s elite passers.

But, for the second consecutive offseason, it appears the Rams have – temporarily at the very least – allayed any of Stafford’s financial concerns and should again move forward as a legitimate threat to reach Super Bowl 60.

As for the rest of the league? Plenty of winners and losers to be found:

WINNERS

Stafford and the Rams

On the surface, it never seemed to make much sense to fix what certainly didn’t seem to be broken – even as the team gave its 37-year-old quarterback permission to assess his value on the market at a time when extending his career seems to have become something of a Favre-ian revisit on an annual basis. Overall, Stafford (the only quarterback to bring the Rams a Lombardi Trophy when the franchise has been based in LA) didn’t play as well in 2024 as he did in ’23 but reserved some of his strongest performances for the postseason. He passed for a season-high 324 yards in the team’s divisional round loss to Philadelphia and nearly led a late-game comeback at Lincoln Financial Field in what was easily the eventual champion Eagles’ toughest test in an otherwise dominant Super Bowl run.

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

With Stafford remaining in the fold – and assuming GM Les Snead didn’t use an inordinate chunk of his salary cap space to retain the 16-year veteran – the Rams, who have only missed the playoffs once during his four-year tenure since arriving via trade from the Detroit Lions, should once again be among the NFC’s primary contenders. And that’s good news for Snead, Sean McVay, Puka Nacua, Kyren Williams, Jared Verse and anyone else affiliated with what has become one of the league’s steadiest operations.

Sam Darnold

Yes, yes, those last two games of the peripatetic passer’s best NFL season were unsightly. But moving forward, a 27-year-old coming off a Pro Bowl breakout with the Minnesota Vikings – Darnold’s 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns through the air in 2024 were easily NFL personal bests – might actually command a multi-year contract worth in the neighborhood of $40 million annually after resuscitating his career so impressively.

Tennessee Titans

Purveyors of the No. 1 pick of the 2025 draft, it might have just become a little more valuable … if the Titans are, in fact, a little more interested in ‘generational’ talent and accelerating their rebuild rather than gambling on a passer in what seems to be one of the weaker drafts at the position in recent years.

Aaron Rodgers

With Stafford no longer available, the soon-to-be New York Jets castoff might actually become the top established veteran passer available, Darnold notwithstanding, in a market with so many barren shelves. Rodgers would obviously come with his unique set of luggage, but then, too, so do Russell Wilson and Justin Fields in their own ways. As for what occurs between the lines, a healthier Rodgers played much better than Wilson down the stretch in 2024.

WINNERS AND LOSERS?

2025 NFL draft passers

It happens every year – young passers who aren’t ready to be franchise quarterbacks get pushed up the draft board by virtue of their high-profile position and the perpetual need to fill several of those jobs at the NFL level. But with Stafford no longer in play, the market’s ravenous demand seems bound to quickly consume its light supply. From one perspective, that might not ultimately be great for the likes Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, Cam Ward of Miami (Fla.) or even Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart. However in the short term, they’re likely to draw even stronger consideration from clubs such as the Titans (maybe), Cleveland Browns, Las Vegas Raiders, Jets and others … for better (at least financially based on draft slotting) and/or worse (based on many of these teams’ abysmal records at developing franchise passers).

LOSERS

Aaron Rodgers

If he was hoping Stafford might pull up his stakes and that he could be based in California, his home state, for the first time since he was the triggerman for the Cal Bears in college – while playing for a bona fide contender during a season in which Rodgers will turn 42 – welp. And with the San Francisco 49ers working on an extension for Brock Purdy, it’s appearing increasingly likely that Rodgers, a four-time league MVP, will have to choose among teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Giants or even the Titans … if he even comes back at all for a 21st NFL season.

New York Giants

They were heavily linked to Stafford in recent days as HC Brian Daboll and GM Joe Schoen seek a quick turnaround in what’s likely to be a prove-it-or-lose-it season for the club’s current regime. Now the Giants will likely be weighing options like Darnold, Rodgers or Wilson if they opt for a quick fix, or draft prospects such as Ward or Sanders, though a rookie might not provide a quick enough fix.

Tom Brady

Plenty of rumors and conjecture about how heavily the Raiders’ minority owner was recruiting Stafford – so much rumor and conjecture, that high-profile members of the NFL’s media corps were nearly coming to blows at the scouting combine in Indianapolis. Here’s what we do know: The Silver and Black came up snake eyes on Stafford and, aside from the presence of Brady and new coach Pete Carroll – for whatever they’re worth to players considering a move to Sin City – Las Vegas still decidedly appears to be well back of the pack in an otherwise loaded (and otherwise improving) AFC West.

All NFL news on and off the field. Sign up for USA TODAY’s 4th and Monday newsletter.

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid ‘is medically unable to play and will miss the remainder of he season to focus on treatment and rehabilitation,” the team said in a statement Friday.

“We are working with medical experts to determine the exact treatment plan and will update media when we have more information,” the Sixers said. “The team and specialists will continue working with Joel to ensure the best path forward for his long-term health and performance.”

Embiid’s ailing left knee has bothered him all season, and the 2022-23 NBA MVP has played in just 19 games. He hasn’t been his All-Star self, averaging just 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 0.9 blocks and shooting just 44.4% from the field. Those stats are significantly lower than his five All-NBA seasons.

Earlier this week, coach Nick Nurse said the Sixers weren’t ready to sideline Embiid for the rest of the season. However, Embiid hasn’t played since Feb. 22 and in his two final games this season, he played just 15 minutes and 14 minutes, respectively.

The knee injury has altered the season Philadelphia expected to have. Instead of competing with Boston and Cleveland for supremacy in the Eastern Conference, the Sixers are 20-38 and in 12th place in the East – 2½ games behind Chicago for the final play-in spot.

The Sixers have lost nine consecutive games.

What’s next for Joel Embiid?

The Sixers, Embiid and Embiid’s inner circle will search for a remedy for his left knee. He is just 30 years old, and if he can return to health, he has good years left. But getting him back to All-NBA level has been a difficult task. He has tried several measures, including a platelet-rich plasma therapy and surgical procedures.

Embiid played in just 39 games last season and has played in 80% of his team’s games in just two of his nine seasons due to several knee, foot, and facial injuries – and that doesn’t include missing 2014-15 and 2015-16 after he was drafted with the No. 3 pick by the 76ers in the 2014 draft.

Embiid is as dominant a big man as the league has seen since Shaquille O’Neal, and Embiid has the ability to make 3-pointers. For his career, he has averaged 27.7 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.6 blocks and shot 50.1% from the field.

Embiid and the Sixers will spend considerable time seeking an answer, and both sides are intent on finding a path that re-establishes Embiid as the team’s most productive player.

What’s next for the 76ers?

When Philadelphia signed Paul George to a four-year, $211.5 million contract in July during free agency and retained Tyrese Maxey on a five-year, $203.8 million contract, the Sixers thought they were putting together a team that could compete for a championship.

But Embiid’s knee, along with other injuries, including a season-ending injury to rookie Jared McCain in December, derailed those plans.

The remainder of the season will have an impact on the Sixers in the 2025 draft. As part of a 2020 trade with Oklahoma City, the Sixers sent the Thunder a 2025 first-round pick. However, that pick is protected for picks 1-6 in 2025, so if the Sixers end up in the top six, they keep the pick. Right now, they have the sixth-worst record in the league. The draft lottery is May 12.

In a deep 2025 draft class, especially in the lottery, that pick takes on greater importance for the Sixers’ future.

(This story was updated with additional information.)

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

Chris Kluwe, the retired NFL punter, said he’s been fired as a football coach at Edison High School in Huntington Beach, Calif., the week after his anti-MAGA protest led to his arrest.

Kluwe called MAGA “a Nazi movement’ during the Huntington Beach City Council meeting on Feb. 18 before he was arrested. He said he was fired Thursday after being called in for a meeting with Edison’s athletic director, Rich Boyce and vice principal of supervision, Ed Begany.

“First thing Ed said was, ‘Hey, the school’s just getting too much attention and we’re going to have to let you go’ so essentially they fired me,” Kluwe, 43, told USA TODAY Sports. “They did give me the offer to resign, but I told them that they would have to fire me because I wanted this community to know that this is what MAGA does.

“They take away resources from the community to make themselves feel better. I don’t know where Edison’s going to find another former professional football player to coach freshman football.’

Kluwe, who played for the Minnesota Vikings 2005 to 2012, said he had been a paid member of the freshman football team’s coaching staff at Edison since 2018 or 2019.

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

Boyce, Edison’s athletic director, said it was a personnel matter and referred USA TODAY Sports’ questions to the Huntington Beach Union School District.

The school district did not immediately respond to USA TODAY Sports requests for comment left by voicemail or email.

The focus of Kluwe’s protest was been “Making America Great Again,’ President Trump’s longtime slogan that has come to represent his political movement. Kluwe was arrested during the city council meeting for what he called an act of civil obedience while objecting to a MAGA plaque for the public library.

Unlike the city council meeting, when Kluwe was detained by police and video of it went viral, the meeting between him and the two school officials Thursday was “cordial,’ according to Kluwe.

“I’m not going to scream and yell, but yeah, basically them saying that they had gotten messages of both against me as well as supporting me,’ Kluwe said. “Didn’t give me any reason (for being fired) other than the school was getting too much attention.’

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze was recently diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer, the program announced on Friday.

The announcement said doctors caught the cancer early, and Freeze is expected to make a full recovery. The post didn’t specify when Freeze was given the diagnosis. He will still maintain all coaching duties for 2025.

‘Thankfully, it was detected early and his doctors have advised that it is very treatable and curable,’ Auburn’s post read. ‘He will continue his normal coaching duties and responsibilities, and with forthcoming proper treatment, is expected to make a full recovery. Coach Freeze is incredibly appreciative of our medical professionals and has asked that we use his experience as a reminder of the importance of prioritizing and scheduling annual health screenings.’

Freeze is set for his third season with the Tigers, who start spring practices on March 25. He has an 11-14 record through two seasons at Auburn, however, he brought in an influx of talent and the Tigers are expected to make strides in 2025.

Freeze added Oklahoma transfer quarterback Jackson Arnold this offseason, along with hauling in the No. 8-ranked transfer portal class, according to 247 Sports.

The 55-year-old has also held head coaching duties at Arkansas State, Ole Miss and Liberty before being hired by Auburn ahead of the 2023 season.