Columbus Blue Jackets: Boone Jenner 2018-2019 Season Expectations

Coming off a Jekyll and Hyde season, the Columbus Blue Jackets hope Boone Jenner can find consistency in his game this year. Can the physical winger find his scoring touch in 2018-2019?

The Columbus Blue Jackets showed how much they believe in Boone Jenner by signing him to another four years in Ohio’s capital city. For points junkies, this might not have been the most thrilling news.

I argue though that Boone Jenner shouldn’t be expected to put up 50 points a season. This isn’t his game and I’m glad it’s not. This team has plenty of scorers and no NHL outfit is rolling out four lines of snipers. It doesn’t work that way.

Adding to that, anyone who expects a repeat of Boone’s 30 goal performance in 2015-2016 needs to look at the bigger picture.

Not only was his shooting percentage a whopping 13.3% that year, but he was also on the team’s number one power play. I’m as hopeful as the next person, but I don’t expect Jenner to crack 13% again and his days on the top power play unit are likely over.

Reiterating what I’ve said in the past, Boone is a prototypical “glue guy”. What’s that mean? It means he does all the little things well. His impact is seen on the ice, not necessarily on the stat sheet.

Speaking of stat sheet, let’s look at some hidden numbers.

Boone Jenner – Statistically Speaking

Boone led the entire Columbus Blue Jackets squad in hits (205) and topped forwards in blocked shots (83). These testify well to Jenner’s undeniable grit.

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No one lays the body like he does and most CBJ wings have less than half of his blocked shots. These small details might not earn him fantasy points, but they add up on the ice and help win games.

These are under appreciated aspects of the game and because of that, I feel like Boone’s value is often overlooked by fans. Jarmo and the Jackets front office, certainly see it and I think once you consider what he does for the team, his worth is more transparent.

Another stat that won’t grab too many headlines is face-off percentage. The Jackets were abysmal  (48.4% – 26th in NHL) on the face-off dot last year but guess who led the team in the quiet statistic?

You guessed it – Jenner. Of all players with 100 or more face-offs, Jenner topped the CBJ with an impressive 55.5%.

With top penalty killer Matt Calvert now in Colorado, Boone becomes the team’s best, or near best option on the special teams unit. That 55.5% face-off percent swells in value on the PK as well.

When it comes to offense, Boone can be hit or miss. He is not your typical scoring threat. He is a grinder. He’s one of the more likely Jackets to collect a greasy goal in the paint. He battles at the net and pursues tips and rebounds relentlessly. He’s an effort guy, but with skill.

I expect Boone to line up next to newly-added center Riley Nash on the team’s third line. Even though coach John Tortorella had Jens slotted next to second line center Alexander Wennberg towards the end of last season, I imagine he’ll move down and make way for team captain Nick Foligno.

Nash is a bit of a wild card, coming off his best season in the NHL. That being said, I hope Boone can find chemistry on a stable line and score in the 40-point range. Posting 32 points (13G, 19A) last year in 75 games and 34 (18G, 16A) the year prior, I would consider anything over 35 a success for Boone.

Again, this team has plenty of scorers so any additional output from Boone is bonus in my opinion.

Last but not least, speaking of underreported statistics, I want to mention takeaway / giveaway ratios. No one will have ever considered this, but Jens is the only CBJ player whose takeaways more than double their giveaways for two consecutive seasons. To simplify, he is smart with the puck and statistically, manages it better than any other Blue Jacket.

This collection of minutiae represents just some of the small things you begin to notice when you dig deeper into Jenner’s file. If you can get past the splotchy scoring droughts, he is dynamic in more ways than most NHL players.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Wrapping Up

As a Columbus Blue Jackets fan, I hope you can learn to appreciate Boone Jenner for who he is, and not who he isn’t. He didn’t earn a four year contract for being the next Artemi Panarin or Cam Atkinson. Boone is a bully first, and a rather complete hockey player second.

Even though he just turned 25, Boone is a veteran. Sure, he could put up more points if he were on the power play like 2015-16, but his role has shifted and that’s okay. It’s a good thing that the Jackets have more scoring options on special teams.

If he can stay healthy and find more consistency, I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see Boone score close to 40 points, but I don’t expect it. The nice thing is, the Columbus Blue Jackets no longer need that from him like they did in the recent past.

If he can just continue to bruise the opponent, win possessions and catch a few point streaks, he will have more than earned his keep in Columbus.

Statistical Predictions

Goals: 19

Assists: 26

Hits: 218