Columbus Blue Jackets Special Hockey Program gears up for unforgettable weekend

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- The NHL Stadium Series will be the event of a lifetime not just for the City of Columbus, but also for a local hockey program.

Directors and players for the Columbus Blue Jackets Special Hockey Program say it will be an unforgettable weekend for their families. This league is for children and young adults with developmental disabilities.

Saturday will be a big day for Chris Wenzke and his son, Jack. Jack has played on the Columbus Blue Jackets Special Hockey Program’s team for 15 years, and Chris is the program director. 

“They’re like a family. They mean a lot,” they said.

Saturday morning, Jack and the rest of the team are playing in their annual tournament at the Chiller North. Wenzke said this tournament is normally in the fall, but this year, they changed it to line up with the stadium series.

“We've got five teams coming in from out of town, some teams from Michigan, some teams from Ohio, kind of in the spirit of the, you know, the border battle,” Wenzke said. He said that after the tournament, all two hundred fifty players and their families will go to the stadium series together.

“We are really excited. You know, we've been waiting for an outdoor game here in Columbus for quite a while. We've been Blue Jackets fans for a long time,” Wenzke said.

He says he is thankful for what this team has brought to their family.

“He's grown a lot in the fifteen years that he's played, you know, physically and, you know, I think when he first started just learning how to skate and now he comprehends the game really well,” Wenzke said. “the fact that we're all going to get together as a group is also going to make it really special.”

Eight-year-old Otto Reitter also plays on the team.

"They are playing at the field. This is my first time going to the football field,” he said. "So I'm going to Ohio stadium, I like Ohio State and I'm so excited.”

Otto’s dad, Kyle, said the organization has done a lot for these kids. 

“They are just in a position like none other. It's great to have an organization that is that giving. There are a lot of opportunities that Otto has had that a lot of kids don’t get to have,” Reitter said.

They say they plan to take in every second of the day.

“I think it's going to be a really neat sitting, you know, under the lights. You know, they've got a lot planned, right? There's going to be a concert and then they've got fireworks and everything. So it should be really amazing," Wenzke said.

The league starts players in their learn to skate program as young as four years old. They say the team members are given opportunities to develop cognitive, physical, and social skills.