from Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch,

Today, a tractor-trailer will pull slowly onto the arena floor carrying the “mother lode” pieces of the crown jewel in this summer’s $6.4 million renovation project: a state-of-the-art, high-definition scoreboard that dwarfs the old model in both size and capability.

“There’s going to be a huge ‘Wow!’ factor,” said Blue Jackets director of game operations Derek Dawley. “I can’t wait to see the look on people’s faces when they experience this for the first time.”
It will be hard to miss, although a potential NHL lockout could delay its unveiling.

The new scoreboard, built by Brookings, S.D.-based Daktronics, will have 2,630 square feet of viewing space vs. the old one’s 576 square feet, a 357 percent increase. The main board on each of the four sides will be 25 feet wide and 15.5 feet high (387.5 square feet) vs. the old 16-by-9 (144 square feet).

It’s all in high-definition, too, which — like electric cars and iPods — wasn’t available when Nationwide was being built in the late 1990s.

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