After posting the league's third-worst power play (9.8%) through the first 19 games of the season, the Blue Jackets power play has been buzzing over the last 11 games, converting at a 25% rate, which is the seventh-best in the league since Nov. 20. In that span, Columbus is 6/24 on the power play with Boone Jenner and Kirill Marchenko each scoring two with Yegor Chinakhov and Patrik Laine adding one apiece, according to stathead.com.
#CBJ Jenner (12) goal pic.twitter.com/nKgAPfaYK4
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 2, 2023
In December, the Jackets have played six games and converted on 33% (4/12) of their power plays, ranking fourth in the league, so the stats show their power play has improved as the season has rolled on.
However, with Jenner out until mid-to-late-January with a broken jaw, with the power play take a dip? After all, he has scored 25% of the team's power-play goals this season.
#CBJ Marchenko (7) goal pic.twitter.com/ftL0ppBgtQ
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) November 28, 2023
The answer to that question is probably yes, but things still have to play out on the ice.
#CBJ Marchenko (8) goal pic.twitter.com/O3tpnNV7Au
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 6, 2023
Even without Jenner, the Blue Jackets certainly have the talent to keep scoring at a decent clip on the power play, especially with the emergence of Chinakhov and his ferocious shot along with Dmitri Voronkov's massive net-front presence.
#CBJ Chinakhov (5) goal pic.twitter.com/JW0EW1eumb
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 9, 2023
What's important is that there is a sign of improvement for a power play that, earlier in the season, looked like it could go the entire year without scoring. Now, when the Blue Jackets go on the power play, it feels like they have a solid chance of scoring. That was not the case a month ago, so the players and assistant coach Mark Recchi deserve credit for the power play's successes, since they've certainly deserved blame for its previous failures.
Can they keep this up even without Jenner in the lineup?
