Late in the first period,
Sitting on the bench most of the period had given Koehler time to take in his surroundings at Columbus’ Nationwide Arena and settle his nerves. By the time he went on for his first shift, he was clear-headed, hungry to show he belonged. He skated forward, crossing the GMC logo in front of the bench before turning toward the offensive zone. Carolina’s
“Oh, there he is!” shouted his mom,
But as Koehler reached Carolina’s offensive zone, Blue Jackets forward
“Ah, f—,” Koehler thought to himself and instantly turned toward the bench. He wasn’t on Carolina’s power play unit, so he knew his shift was over. There had been other moments in the period Koehler had been ready to take the ice, but something always seemed to get in the way, be it a penalty, or a teammate not heading to the bench for a line change.
“Sorry, kid,” Carolina coach
The game stayed tight the rest of the evening. With Carolina chasing the lead against the expansion
After four seconds and eight strides, his