CBJ FANsided Friday: Dennis Kelley II from Boone's Goons!

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Welcome to this edition of CBJ FANSided Friday! In this series we will post a short interview with a fan from the Blue Jackets community and ask them about their Jackets fandom. We interviewed Dennis Kelley II, co-creator of the popular twitter handle, Boone’s Goons! Here’s what he had to say:

U&B: When did you first become a Blue Jackets fan, and what drew you towards the team?

Jan 30, 2014; Columbus, OH, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner (38) checks Washington Capitals defenseman John Erskine (4) and steals the puck at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Greg Bartram-USA TODAY Sports

Dennis: I’ve only been a fan since March of 2013. I knew nothing about hockey. I’m still learning. Last season was the first where I got to sit in the Lower Bowl at Nationwide Arena for a game. I did it 3 more times by season’s end. I think that combined with the winning and what I was able to learn about JD and Jarmo got me thinking that this organization is finally dedicated to bringing a winner to Columbus.

By the time the season ended, I wasn’t finished. I wanted more; a lot more. I took last year’s team poster and went to Front Street Fridays and met Foligno, Letestu and Ryan Murray. I went to the Draft Party and met Jack Johnson. I went to the Select-A-Seat events and met Nikitin and Johansen. I met Coach Richards and told him I believed in what he was doing here. With all these autographs, I told the players “Thanks for making me a believer.”

Nov 20, 2013; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner (38) and Calgary Flames defenseman Dennis Wideman (6) battle for the puck during the third period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Columbus Blue Jackets won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

I went to Development Camp and was stunned when a guy leaving the facility was kind enough to hold the door open for me as I was going in. It was Jody Shelley. I even auditioned for the Promotions Team. That was interesting because I didn’t realize I was twice as old as most of the candidates there, haha. Still, it was some of the most fun I had all year. I spent a family vacation in September at Disney World. My brother convinced me to do the American Idol Experience, so there I was on stage singing Stevie Wonder’s Superstition in my Sergei Bobrovsky t-shirt. I took 2^nd out of 16 contestants. It was fun. We saw CBJ hats on a few other people while we were there that week.

All of these things, I believe, are what Jarmo means when he calls the Blue Jackets a “Year ‘round culture.” I love this theory and I love what this organization is doing not just with hockey, but also with the community work. They’re building playgrounds for schools. They’re visiting hospitals. This is what I want representing my city. This is what drew me towards the team and I simply can’t get enough of it.

Jan 18, 2014; Buffalo, NY, USA; Buffalo Sabres defenseman Tyler Myers (57) and Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner (38) battle for position in front of the net during the third period at First Niagara Center. Columbus beats Buffalo 4 to 3 in shootout. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

U&B: Who is your favorite Blue Jackets player on the current roster?

Dennis: Boone Jenner, of course! When I started following the team, Boone wasn’t here yet. Unfortunately, when he was at the Draft Party, I didn’t know who he was. It’s my biggest regret as a fan so far. I paid close attention to Boone during Development Camp, but it was a preseason game against Minnesota where he dropped the gloves and tackled a guy that made him my favorite player. I jumped out of my seat and started yelling my head off and I remember thinking “this kid REALLY wants to make the team”. I’ve been hooked ever since. Now, he’s one of the best rookies in the league.

U&B: If you could choose the teams next captain right now, who would it be?

Dennis: As a newer fan, I still don’t fully understand the importance of the Captaincy. What’s a Captain? What all does a Captain represent? Is he a hockey Captain? Is he a role model Captain? I still don’t get it. I read that the Captain is in charge of speaking to Referees about rules. Is that it?

Nov 20, 2013; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner (38) during the third period against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome. Columbus Blue Jackets won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

I’m probably less than qualified to answer this to be honest. But, if I had to choose a player right now, if I had to choose a player who I think represents the best of the Columbus Blue Jackets, then I really don’t have to think about it all that long. It’s Nick Foligno. I’m going to catch hell for that. I don’t care. I like Brandon Dubinsky a lot. He’s one of the best players we have. He’s passionate. I just get a little bit more from what I see out of Foligno right now. On a side note, and this has nothing to do with hockey, I think if I had my life to do over again I’d take a few pages out of Nick’s book. He’s a helluva man in my opinion.

U&B: Who is your favorite team to see the Jackets beat, and why?

Dennis: I don’t think I’ve developed that yet, but I DO want to see “Bobrovsky vs. Mason” someday SO bad! I was one of thousands chanting “We want Mason!” at the arena the last time the Flyers were in town. It would be a great prize fight and I think Sergei could take him blindfolded with both hands tied behind his back. Wait. Were we talking about hockey or boxing? Anyway, that’s the best answer I can give you on that one. Plus, being a Dallas Cowboys fan, I don’t like Philadelphia. At all. Ever.

Click NEXT to see more from our interview with Dennis!

U&B: How do you feel about the start to the season / where do you think the CBJ will finish this year?

Dennis: The start of this season wasn’t too much of a shock. I didn’t panic, although it could have been easy to just think “well, they’ve started out this way for most of the past 13 years”. I don’t think all the injuries helped either. You can’t win if you don’t have a consistent line-up.

Call me Joe Namath, because I’m guaranteeing a playoff berth. Write it down. Put it in 3 inch bold letters on the front of every newspaper in America if you want to. The Columbus Blue Jackets WILL make the playoffs. And, this time, they’ll advance.

Jan 13, 2014; Columbus, OH, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner (38) during the first period against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Nationwide Arena. Columbus beat Tampa Bay 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Russell LaBounty-USA TODAY Sports

U&B: Tell me more about Boone’s Goons!

Dennis: Boone’s Goons (@Boones_Goons) started with that preseason game against Minnesota we talked about before. It was an idea my friend Jim Martin (@J_Mart77 on Twitter) and I came up with. We had no goals or anything with it. We just liked the name Boone and we also thought it would be funny to do the whole Chuck Norris thing with him (“If Boone Jenner was a calendar, every month would be BooneTober and every day he’d kick your butt”). So, it was basically nothing until it caught the attention of DKM Hockey and Jeff Rimer.

During a televised game where Boone scored his first home goal, Rimer mentioned us on air and we noticed an immediate spike in Twitter followers for awhile. So, this little joke of a Twitter page has become something we’re actually very passionate about now. We started making and giving away free Boone’s Goons promo t-shirts from time to time and people have seemed to enjoy that. And, in the middle of all this, we’ve had the pleasure of watching Boone develop into a great hockey player right before our eyes.

Sep 23, 2013; Columbus, OH, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner (38) Minnesota Wild defenseman Jon Landry (34) fight during the second period at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russell LaBounty-USA TODAY Sports

What we didn’t know was just how broad the audience is. I got a message from Boone’s Aunt Toni who said some of the family was following us on Twitter. Her son, Deon, runs the @JennerBoone38 account. Toni mentioned that some of them were coming down from Dorchester, Ontario for the game against the Penguins in late December, so I printed a t-shirt out for her to give to Deon and met her and some other family members before the game. She took the shirt home and gave it to Deon. Boone signed it for him. Now, there’s a one of a kind Boone Jenner item out there. That’s a real honor. His family seems pretty cool. They’re pretty close and really proud of Boone. It shows. They have a page on Facebook called “Boone Jenner Hockey”. I recommend it for any fan of Boone. Lots of stuff from the family archives.

As Boone’s Goons has grown, the vision now seems to be interaction and expanding the fan networking through Meet & Greets at the cannon during 1^st Intermission. Jim and I have met a lot of people there recently. I think that sort of engagement is important because the experience can be more than just a bunch of strangers coming to watch hockey. Now, we go to watch a great hockey game AND we know that we’re going to meet some of our friends there too. We’ve gotten close with Matt and Jordan from The CBJ Artillery (our personal favorite of all CBJ related Twitter accounts). I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and working with John Kemp from DKM Hockey. We know Mask Juice and I now have an Arch City Army membership.

I think of all that’s happened with Boone’s Goons and John Davidson’s “Brick by Brick” theory comes to mind now. I don’t think that the organization and the players are the only ones who should be responsible for building this thing brick by brick. I think the fan base can help too by getting involved and engaging with each other somehow. I’m still trying to figure it out. The attention is still new to me. But, I’m excited about the future of this team, these fans and most of all Boone Jenner.

Everyone at the Union and Blue would like to thank Dennis for taking the time to answering our questions! Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter !

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