Columbus

The Weekly Dis

Nightcrawling

Michael Arace

01 Nov 2025 — 5 min read

The second-oldest bar in Cincinnati. There, I did some live Bluesky skeeting off World Series Game 3 Monday night. I left after the 15th inning. Man, it was late. (Check me out @MichaelArace1.bsky.social)

After losing Game 1 of their best-of-three series in Cincinnati, the Crew will attempt to stave off elimination – and the end of their season, not to mention the end of Darlington Nagbe's playing career – in Game 2 in Columbus Sunday night. I'll be there filing a live gamer, and it'll be free to all subscribers.

The Blue Jackets host the St. Louis Blues in the Nationwide Arena Saturday night. Then, they'll disappear on the road for 11 days. (Note: there will be at least one stop at home for practice in that interim.)

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Monday: The Crew, coming off a solid performance in their regular-season finale, were sanguine about their chances heading into the Round One of the MLS playoffs. They looked forward to their best-of-three series against their arch rivals, FC Cincinnati.

Tuesday: I hopped in the minivan for the trip to Porkopolis, and Game 1. It was, from a technical standpoint, a compelling match. I filed a post-game column and took down the paywall for free access. The Cincinnatis were well-structured defensively and tight through the middle – which is not their way. Their stars wore down the Crew. The home team won, 1-0. Game 2 is in Columbus Sunday.

Wednesday: The Blue Jackets' record through the first two weeks of the season might've been misleading. The underlying numbers say they're one of the best even-strength teams in the NHL, especially on the offensive side of the ledger. See what my correspondent and I dug up in the analytics – among other things, their goaltending has been top-notch.

Friday: Wilfried Nancy, the 2024 MLS Coach of the Year and winner of two trophies in his first two seasons in Columbus, has been on the radar of European teams for some time now. The rumors of his relocation are popping up more frequently this fall. Happy Halloween.

The Blue Jackets have depth to them

The Jackets were 6-4-0 and winners of three in a row, and five of six, heading into a weekend back-to-back – home vs. St. Louis Saturday night and at the New York Islanders Sunday (5 p.m. start).
The fourth line (Miles Wood-Isac Lundestrom-Yegor Chinakhov) had three goals and two assists in a 4-3, come-from-behind, OT victory in Buffalo Tuesday night. The third line (Cole Sillinger-Charlie Coyle-Mathieu Olivier) had a meeting before Wednesday night's game vs. Toronto – "Just keep doing what we're doing, and the goals will come" was the theme – and then combined for three goals and eight assists against the Leafs.
Olivier: "Sometimes, talking it out and looking it over makes a big difference – but we never thought it would work out like it did tonight. But I'm glad it did."
Three Jackets defensemen – Zach Werenski, Dante Fabbro and Ivan Provorov – combined for five goals and four assists in the Buffalo-Toronto back-to-back.
The Maple Leafs are soft, disjointed and lost right now. They cede acres of space in the middle of the ice. Their third-string goaltender, Cayden Primeau, didn't help them in Columbus, either.
The Jackets clawed into the second wild-card position in the East in thanks to a 4-1 road record, which is partially a testament to the work of their goaltending tandem of Elvis Merzlikins and Jet Greaves. A true test is forthcoming. Beginning with their game on the Island Sunday evening, the Jackets won't see Columbus again until the middle of the month. They're at Calgary and Vancouver later next week and they've got a road back-to-back (Edmonton-Seattle) the week after.

You don't have to go home but you can't stay here

I've spent a lot of beat-writing years on the road covering the Boston Celtics, Hartford Whalers, UConn basketball, the Blue Jackets and myriad events. Old, dark taverns have always called to me. Cheers to all.

My newest best friends, Tom, Jason and Danny. #Crew96
— Michael Arace (@michaelarace1.bsky.social) 2025-10-28T05:37:12.316Z

Crew fans eased the pain of their Game 1 at O'Malley's Monday night. Rock 'n' Roll.

The coolest piece of plastic in Columbus

I'm not one to cut-and-paste a press release because that can cause hives. But I'll risk it here because this is lit:

Since 2008, the Blue Jackets have supported CML’s mission by funding School Help Centers in nearly all of its 23 locations. This long-standing partnership reflects our shared commitment to empowering young learners, promoting literacy, and inspiring a lifelong love of reading and education throughout central Ohio.

To mark this milestone season and honor our collaboration, commemorative library cards featuring the Blue Jackets logo are now available at all 23 CML locations while supplies last. Fans can also visit Main Library to see one of the team’s official 25th anniversary commemorative puck statues on display inside.

One of my correspondents was quick to grab a commemorative library cards. Get yours today.

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