Fresh off the wildly successful 4 Nations Face-Off—where the USA-Canada Championship Game shattered records in both viewership and betting action—the hockey world is rolling straight into another blockbuster event. March is kicking off with the NHL Stadium Series, bringing the magic of outdoor hockey under the open sky. With teams now hitting the 60-game mark in this 82-game marathon, every single point is a golden ticket for those hovering in the playoff chase. The race is heating up for squads sitting in the 6-10 range, desperate to punch their ticket to mid-April’s postseason battle.
That includes two hungry squads—the Detroit Red Wings (30-23-6, 66 points) and the Columbus Blue Jackets (29-22-8, 66 points)—who are about to face off in Saturday’s epic showdown at Ohio Stadium (6 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, Disney+, TVAS-D, FX-CA). But wait—this ain’t just any old hockey spectacle. The buzz just got bigger because Apple is stepping into the action in the NHL Stadium Series, bringing some serious high-tech energy to the Blue Jackets vs. Red Wings clash. What exactly does that mean?
Hockey just got a little more high-tech! On February 28th, Front Office Sports took to X to drop some seriously cool news—NHL officials are about to get a futuristic upgrade for Saturday’s Stadium Series showdown. And no, we’re not talking about new skates or fancier whistles. We’re talking Apple Watches stepping into the game! These sleek wrist gadgets will be dishing out real-time haptic notifications, making sure the refs stay on top of every crucial second.
As Front Office Sports shared, “NHL officials will use Apple Watches to help officiate Saturday’s Stadium Series. Referees will receive haptic notifications for: • Game clock countdowns • Penalty clock countdowns • Jersey numbers of players in the penalty box at a given time.”
NHL officials will use Apple Watches to help officiate Saturday’s Stadium Series.
Referees will receive haptic notifications for:
• Game clock countdowns
• Penalty clock countdowns
• Jersey numbers of players in the penalty box at a given time pic.twitter.com/8Ceu1zzuOV
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) February 28, 2025
Yep, the days of frantic glances at the scoreboard just got a serious glow-up. Now, every ref will have the power of instant updates buzzing right on their wrists—because in a fast-paced, heart-pounding game like hockey, even a split second can make all the difference.
This story is developing…
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