CBJ Today: Celebrating Hockey is for Everyone

Each weekday this season, BlueJackets.com will post CBJ Today, a look at news, notes, analysis and fun stuff from around the Blue Jackets world. It's everything you need to know if you're a fan going into the day.

Hockey is for Everyone

I walked by the plaza entrance to Nationwide Arena last night just after 6 p.m., a time when during a normal time, fans would be lining up to enter the downtown arena for the game. There would be a buzz in the air as fans in union blue jerseys approached from all directions, not the ghost town feel that was there Thursday night.
The good news is that will change with the next home game Tuesday against Detroit when 1,953 fans will be allowed back in the barn, but that also meant that the annual Hockey is for Everyone celebration last night was staged in front of an empty arena.
That's a shame because the annual event that celebrates breaking down barriers and increasing access to our great sport to all constituencies is another day that's always a lot of fun.
In case you missed it, the Blue Jackets still celebrated in a number of ways. One of the biggest pieces was releasing the following video recognizing the Columbus Ice Hockey Club as well as co-founder/executive director John Haferman, the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department employee who in 1999 was told that low-income and inner-city kids wouldn't play the sport of hockey and went about trying to change that perception.

Over the past 20-plus years, the Columbus Ice Hockey club has helped introduce tens of thousands of central Ohio kids to the sport and given them an outlet to play. Many have gone on to great things, some continue to work with the club, and one -- Ayo Adeniye -- is
currently playing Division I hockey
. As a result, Haferman was a finalist for the Willie O'Ree Community Hero Award this past summer.
I highly recommend watching the video to see the impact the club has had on so many in central Ohio. I
also penned this story
about a $15,000 grant from Hockey is for Everyone presenting partner Vorys Law that will help the club run its summer programming this year, a crucial time for the club given how tough it's been to keep things going during the pandemic.
Another highlight included Scott Humes, a hearing-impaired local hockey player who has won gold medals with Team USA at deaf competitions over the past few years, performing the national anthem at Leo Welsh's side in ASL. Humes has an incredible story, which I'll be sharing later today.
Can't wait for next year when we get to have everyone back under the roof for a night like this.

Werenski Returns

One positive sign from the shutout loss to Chicago was seeing Zach Werenski back on the ice and looking like Zach Werenski.
No. 8 left the Feb. 4 win vs. Dallas late with a lower-body injury and was out for three games, returning for the CBJ's Feb. 13 game at Chicago. But head coach John Tortorella didn't like the way Werenski -- who said he tweaked his injury that day -- was moving around during the game, so he opted to keep him on the sideline for the last four games until he was closer to 100 percent.
Zach looked like the full Werenski on Thursday night, setting up defensive partner Seth Jones at the doorstep early in the game and playing 24:58. Though he picked up a minus on Chicago's empty-net goal at the end, Werenski turned in a solid outing, with the Jackets holding an edge of 1.47-0.40 in expected goals at 5-on-5 when he was on the ice,
per Natural Stat Trick
.
Afterward, he said he felt much closer to 100 percent this time around than his previous attempt at returning.
"Yeah, I felt a lot better," he said. "Just my skating felt better, and for me to have success in this league, I have to be a skater. I felt limited in that game (Feb. 13). Tonight I felt better and I feel like I was moving pretty well tonight. Still have to be better, still some plays I need to make, but I definitely felt better."
Michael Del Zotto also returned after missing Tuesday's contest with a lower-body injury, and having the defensive corps at full strength should help as the team tries to solidify its defensive game.