Columbus Blue Jackets getting goal-scoring from Boone Jenner, a big 'tipper'
Boone Jenner has a practice habit that occasionally makes his coaches cringe.
After the Blue Jackets are done with team drills, their captain often skates to one of the nets and parks himself in front while teammates crack shots at him. Stick extended in their direction, Jenner works on tipping the puck as it approaches at all levels — low, middle and high.
It is not a skill for the faint of heart.
“He works on that constantly,” coach Brad Larsen said.
Larsen pretends to hold a stick out and turns his body and his head the opposite direction.
“You’ll see a lot of guys doing this, you know?”
Then Larsen explains how Jenner is different.
“He doesn’t flinch,” Larsen said. “You have to be square (to the shot). It’s hard to screen (goalies) like this (standing sideways). I call it ‘The Matador.’ You can’t do that. You’ve got to be square … and it’s not fun.”
Columbus Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner enjoys the 'dirty' work
Jenner is all about the “not fun” parts of hockey.
He’s put a lot of work into tipping or deflecting shots the past two years as the Blue Jackets’ top “net-front” presence on the first power-play unit, and his willingness to do the dirty work has become a thing of legend in the locker room. Jenner routinely digs pucks out of corners, throws bodies around like bales of hay and defends his own zone with near-reckless abandon.
He also stands in front of the opposing goalie, almost statuesque, as teammates shoot pucks at them.
“We’re one of the best teams at screening the net again this year,” Blue Jackets associate coach Pascal Vincent said. “We’re in the top five again, and he’s doing an amazing job. He’s got a lot of guts. When ‘Patty’ loads up and he’s cranking it, I don’t think I’d want to be there.”
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Vincent is referring to Patrik Laine's booming one-time slap shot that can travel at speeds approaching 100 mph or faster. Even Laine’s wrist shot can exceed 90 mph, and Jenner’s job is to just stand there hoping his teammate doesn’t miss high.
“You see it coming through the top on a one-timer and you’re (uneasy) because it could hit the goalie or hit you,” Larsen said. “But he doesn’t flinch. Then, when there’s a rebound, he’s hungry. He works on it at practice. Guys are firing them at him in practice, and I’m cringing because I don’t want him to take one off the hand or something, but that’s the only way you get better at it.”
Columbus Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner is a prolific 'tipper'
Jenner did take one off the hand in practice earlier this month, causing him to wince and shake it out. Then he signaled for another shot.
And he's gotten better at deflecting pucks.
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According to the NHL, Jenner has tipped 46 shots the past two seasons (120 games) and is tied for 14th in the league on that type of shot. Every player ahead of him has played more as a result of Jenner missing 23 games with a lower-back injury last year and 11 with a fractured thumb this season.
“I’ve played for a number of years and it’s a different kind of role (screening goalies), where timing’s a big thing and being in the right spots,” Jenner said. “I like it. I’ve been playing there for a while now, so I feel comfortable down there.”
Jenner is also tied for ninth with three players at 17 deflected shots the past two years and he’s either tipped or deflected 43.8% of his shots. It has helped him become one of the Blue Jackets’ top goal-scorers, including a team-high 25 goals going into a game Tuesday against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
Jenner was on pace to net 30 goals last season, before his back injury, and needs five more to reach that milestone in the final nine games this year. Should he get there, Jenner will reach that milestone for the second time in his NHL career and first time since scoring 31 in 2014-15 ― his second season.
He’s also scrapping for rebounds and creating scoring chances by the bushel. According to Natural Stat Trick, Jenner leads the Blue Jackets and is one of the NHL’s best at generating individual scoring chances and high-danger chances the past two years.
That hasn’t changed much since he broke into the league. Finishing more of those chances, including deflections and tips, has rejuvenated Jenner’s offense following a few lean years.
“I knew I was capable of it,” Jenner said. “As a player, you start to get frustrated when you’re not getting the chances. As long as chances are coming, you know you’re doing the right things to create those opportunities. So, for me, it was just an emphasis on bearing down on those more when you get them.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Boone Jenner leads Columbus Blue Jackets in goal-scoring, tips
