Captain, Character and Intangibles – From Newbies

After doing some research on Ryan Murray, and his maturity, I thought in the back of my mind that I had read something similar about Boon Jenner. Digging into both, here is some new info/quotes relative to both of them. Jenner will also be entering into his first full year as a pro. He’s currently slated for Springfield and I am sure he needs the pro experience. But the strength of character in both are similar. If the Blue Jackets can get themselves untracked as of now, they have some strong character in the wings to maintain the course.

Ryan Murray, Captain Everett Silvertips – Here is a quote from the link “The 18 year old has played with skill and passion since joining the team full time during the 2009-2010 season and cementing a leadership role on the ‘Tips defensive line and earning the Captainship age 17 in his second season with the team. Murray has 104 career points with the Silvertips in 168 games (20 goals, 84 assists) and a +/- rating of a whopping +51.”.

The Seattle Times says “The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Murray, who will turn 19 in September, was named Everett’s captain at age 17. The honor usually is reserved for older players.”

Boone Jenner, Captain Oshwa Generals.  On 8/23/11  the Oshawa Generals said ” At a press conference held this afternoon the Oshawa Generals announced that third-year centre Boone Jenner has been named the Generals Team Captain for the 2011-2012 season.

Jenner, 18, is entering his third season with the Generals after being the Club’s 1st round selection, 4th overall in the 2009 OHL Priority Selection.  In his two seasons in Oshawa, Jenner has scored 48 goals and 71 assists for 115 points in 128 career OHL games.

The native of Dorchester, Ontario was selected in the 2nd round, 37th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft this past June.  Known for his great two-way play along with exceptional grit and determination, Jenner also participated at Canada’s National Junior Development Camp earlier this month. 

“Boone possesses the intangibles, the character and the work ethic that we feel as an organization ultimately represents what the heart of a General is,” said Generals Head Coach and General Manager Chris DePiero.  “At the end of last season in our exit meetings with the players, to a man our guys felt Boone was the guy who would run through a burning house for his teammates and that personality will make him a great leader.”

Here is a quote from Ryan Kennedy of the Hockey News in 2009 refering to the 15 year old Boone. “It should be no surprise then that Boone counts Calgary Flames star and prototypical power forward Jarome Iginla as his main NHL inspiration. Jenner lists off a laundry list of qualities he likes in Iggy: “He hits, he’s a captain, he fights, he scores and he gets his team going.”
Based on what Boone has done so far this season, he seems to have followed that template pretty well. He is indeed captain of the Chiefs and like his father, counts a league title and the OHL Cup as goals for the season.”.