Blue Jackets 'creating a legacy' with new outdoor rink 

COLUMBUS -- The Columbus Blue Jackets are doing more than just building an outdoor street hockey rink in a northwest suburb.

“We are creating a legacy that is going to last for generations to come,” said Andee Cochren, Executive Director of the Columbus Blue Jackets Foundation, which committed $250,000 to the project at the Liberty Township/Powell YMCA which will open this summer.

The rink is a part of the NHL’s Legacy initiative leading to the 2025 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at Ohio Stadium on Saturday when the Blue Jackets play the Detroit Red Wings (6 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, Disney+, TVAS-D, FX-CA).

“The YMCA of Central Ohio aligns greatly with the mission of the Columbus Blue Jackets and our foundation to make sure that we are building stronger communities by keeping kids active, healthy and safe, and doing it by introducing them to a game we all love,” Cochren said.

A groundbreaking was held at the YMCA on Thursday and afterward former Blue Jackets players Rick Nash and Andrew Cassels were on hand for a youth street hockey clinic at a makeshift indoor rink.

“They’re having fun and smiling,” Cassels, a Blue Jackets Learn To Play ambassador said. “They're up and exercising and they're not sitting in front of a screen. Some of these kids, it might be the first time they've even seen a hockey stick or touched a hockey puck.”

That’s the purpose of such Legacy initiatives - to introduce the game to more people, said Kim Davis, NHL Senior Executive Vice President, Social Impact, Growth Initiatives and Legislative Affairs. This is the second Legacy project this season, following the opening of a ball hockey rink in Chicago as part of the NHL Winter Classic.

Since 2003, the NHL has invested more than $8.3 million in Legacy projects.

“We want to make sure that hockey is accessible for all kids that want to play it,” Davis said. “It is an on-ramp to ice, or it can be its own ramp and we believe that hockey contributes to supporting stronger, more vibrant communities.”

The Blue Jackets will provide programming, training and equipment for rink users.

Mike Ross, head hockey coach at Olentangy High School in nearby Lewis Center, is excited to see how the rink impacts the burgeoning youth hockey community.

“The big thing is getting the interest because of the cost involved,” he said. “The Jackets and their programs, donating equipment to get kids is a great way to keep it growing.”

Ross, who played for the Columbus Chill of the ECHL in the mid-1990s and stayed in the area after retiring, said the grassroots effort by the Blue Jackets will pay off in the community.

“I love driving through neighborhoods and you see the street hockey goals out in front of the houses and see the kids playing in the streets,” he said. “This will just be another place where they can meet and have a great controlled environment to play with it.”

Tony Collins, CEO and president of YMCA of Central Ohio, said the rink is another example of the Blue Jackets’ generosity.

“I have worked with the Columbus Blue Jackets foundation for over 10 years,” he said. “Their commitment to the central Ohio community, to Columbus, to Powell, to Liberty Township, is unrivaled.

“We are so thankful for the work they do here and for making this project happen. We're thankful for the investment from the foundation, the team, and the NHL for this project.”