Six seasons ago, Boone Jenner tallied 30 goals for the Blue Jackets.
Since that 2015-16 season, he's never scored more than 18 in a season.
However, it looks like he's regained his scoring touch, especially on the power play. On Saturday night against the Carolina Hurricanes, Jenner scored a power-play goal in the second period to get the Blue Jackets within one goal. It was Jenner's third-straight game with a power-play goal. Through five games, Jenner leads the Blue Jackets with four goals.
"We want to be a difference-maker (on the power play)," said Jenner after the Blue Jackets' 5-1 loss to the Hurricanes. "(In the) big moments of the game, (the power-play unit) wants to be there for us to get back into the game. We had a couple chances in the third, but we wish we would have got one and got back into it."
On the Blue Jackets' first power-play unit, Jenner makes a living right in front of the net. Zach Werenski mans the point, Patrik Laine and Jakub Voracek patrol the wings, and Oliver Bjorkstrand is the bumper. Five games into the season, the unit is operating at a 33.3% (5-15) clip, with all five power-play goals coming from the first group.
It's not realistic to expect Jenner to keep scoring at this pace, or near to it. He's shooting 33.3% this season, but his career shooting percentage is 9.8%. Regression will come, but if Jenner is able to continue to provide a solid net-front presence on the power play, he has a good chance to reach the 30-goal threshold for the second time in his career.
The Ontario native is also playing more minutes than he ever has in his career. Through the Blue Jackets' first five games, Jenner's averaging 20:21 of ice time while playing on the first line, power play, and penalty kill. It's been a breakout season for the newly-appointed Blue Jackets captain.
