During a Detroit NHL game, Red Wings supporters chant…

Red Wings fans yell Jared Goff’s name during a Detroit NHL game.

Former Cal standout and Lions quarterback Jared Goff has won the hearts and minds of hockey fans in Hockeytown.

Detroit is owned by former Cal quarterback Jared Goff, as was made clear on Thursday night at a Detroit Red Wings home game. Although Little Caesars Arena is home to Hockeytown, Detroit was transformed into Gofftown on Thursday night.

As the Red Wings were rushing the puck up ice in their game against the Philadelphia Flyers, the crowd began to chant, “Ja-red Goff, Ja-red Goff,” as heard and seen in the Twitter video.

The driving force behind the Detroit Lions’ incredible season, quarterback Jared Goff, will guide his team into Sunday’s NFC championship game in Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium against the San Francisco 49ers.

Let me ask you this now: Do you believe that during a Sharks game, San Jose Sharks fans are screaming “Brock Pur-dy, Brock Pur-dy”?

LCA chanting “Ja-Red Goff” during the Red Wings game pic.twitter.com/OfJ1CxgQuF

— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) January 26, 2024

If Goff had ever provided any proof that he had an ego, his ego would be blowing up right now, so this must be a crazy moment for him.

The Rams essentially unloaded this player, granting the Lions two first-round selections, a third-round pick, and Goff in exchange for the acquisition of Matthew Stafford. It was anticipated that Detroit would use Goff for a single season before looking for a long-term successor. Goff’s first season with the Lions ended with a 3-13-1 record, and as the Lions began the 2022 season 1-6, it appeared as though Goff’s days as the team’s starting quarterback were drawing to an end.

Then a strange thing happened: Goff was a big part of why the Lions started winning. Their 9-8 season ended with them just missing the postseason. Goff and the Lions carried on their winning ways, winning a division title, going 12-5 in the regular season, and winning two playoff games—the team’s first two in thirty-two years.

Goff is now aiming to lead the Lions to their first-ever Super Bowl appearance and possibly their first NFL championship since 1957. The Detroit Lions are the only team in the four major sports with a longer championship drought than the Arizona Cardinals, Cleveland Guardians, and Sacramento Kings.

To defeat the 49ers, who are 7.5-point favorites, Goff and the Lions would need to pull off a major upset. But what happens if he does?

Even on the hallowed floor of a hockey arena, a city whose residents revere Gordie Howe and Steve Yzerman is willing to consider its first NFL title in sixty-six years because of a quarterback.