Columbus Blue Jackets: Pierre-Luc Dubois Avoiding Sophomore Slump
By William Espy
The Columbus Blue Jackets forward is off to a hot start for his sophomore NHL season.
Pierre-Luc Dubois has been the most surprising, yet most rewarding pick of the Jarmo Kekalainen era for the Columbus Blue Jackets. Many expected him to experience the dreaded sophomore slump following a great rookie season, however that doesn’t seem to be the case for the power forward.
Dubois is currently tied for third on the team in points, behind superstar Artemi Panarin and Columbus’ secret superstar Cam Atkinson. His 4-4-8 stat line puts Pierre-Luc Dubois on pace for nearly 60 points, which will be a career high if he can keep it up.
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His shooting percentage is also up from last season, but it’s still not that high meaning if he can continue get it up he’ll get more even more goals which will substantially increase his point totals. The biggest improvement in his game is face-off percentage, which is great to see from a winger who is transitioning to the center ice position.
Dubois will also almost certainly be a candidate for captaincy when it moves on from Nick Foligno in the coming years.
It’s seeming more and more possible that Dubois could turn into the best drafted player in Blue Jackets history, even better than Rick Nash considering they have a similar style of play. With his stock continuously on the way up, don’t be surprised if Dubois does pass Nash for a large amount of team records, especially if he becomes one of the first career Blue Jackets.
Next. Brandon Dubinsky Traveling with Team. dark
Pierre-Luc Dubois is continuing to develop into a star for the Columbus Blue Jackets and has proven his worth as an NHL level first line center. The only question remaining about Dubois is how high his future potential really is and whether or not he’ll become a league-wide household name.