Columbus Blue Jackets 17-18 Player Preview: Boone Jenner
At Union and Blue, we are previewing the Columbus Blue Jackets line up and today I took a look at winger, Boone Jenner.
Last season was a disappointing season for the young Columbus Blue Jackets winger. Jenner only posted 34 points with 18 goals and 16 assists. This comes after Boone scored 30 goals the previous season which was a career year for Jenner.
Boone Jenner is a two-way winger that showed that he provides a scoring punch, but last year Jenner did not have the same touch as a season before. The young winger provided grit, but that was not enough.
Jenner played in five playoff games and tallied three points. The playoffs were disappointing for the Columbus Blue Jackets, but Boone was a bright spot for Columbus. He tallied two goals for the Jackets, but this was not enough to get past the pesky Pittsburgh Penguins.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Prediction for Booner Jenner this Season
The Columbus Blue Jackets winger has to have more of a scoring punch this season. Jenner will certainly be motivated after the last campaign. The Blue Jackets are coming off of a record setting year as a team, but Jenner lagged behind.
The young winger is only 24 years old. He has room to grow and is expected to find his game again. The Blue Jackets need him to add a secondary punch to Atkinson and Panarin. Jenner should be able to score at a higher rate than 18 goals. Expect Jenner to find the dirty areas and light the lamp.
The Jackets added an offensive piece in Artemi Panarin. While Panarin will not be on the same line as Jenner, he will be the focus of the top defensive pairings of the opponents. This will open space for the Columbus Blue Jackets other lines. This open space will help Jenner put the puck in the back of the net.
One perspective line for would be on the wing with Brandon Dubinsky manning the center ice and Oliver Bjorkstrand. This would be a formidable second line with a mix of grit and scoring punch with Bjorkstrand and Jenner on the wings.
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The Columbus Blue Jackets can almost guarantee that Boone will be able to play a gritty game, but they need Jenner to be more of an offensive threat. Columbus added Panarin to add a spark, but Jenner could be an addition if he plays up to his ability.