Boone Jenner is one of the best options available for that role ahead of March 6th’s trade deadline. It’s unclear if he’ll be traded, as the Columbus Blue Jackets have 65 points in 56 games, just four points behind the Boston Bruins for the final wild card. Because of this, Jenner ranks in Daily Faceoff’s “Names to keep an eye on” tier in their most recent trade board.

That said, if the Blue Jackets begin to shop the 32-year-old centre, Jenner should become the Oilers top target.

Jenner’s fit

Jenner is a 6’2”, 204 lbs from Dorchester, Ontario. Drafted 37th overall in the 2011 draft, Jenner has played his entire year with the Blue Jackets after parts of four seasons with the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa Generals.

He broke out in the 2016-16 season, scoring 30 goals and 49 points in 82 games. After scoring 11-18 goals over the next five seasons (not including the pandemic-impacted 2020-21 season), Jenner went on to post back-to-back-to-back 20 goals seasons. From the 2021-22 season until the 2023-24 season, Jenner scored 71 goals and 124 points in 185 games.

Unfortunately, he spent the 2024-25 season injured, scoring seven goals and 19 points in 26 games, which is on pace for 22 goals and 59 points. Jenner has also missed a part of this season, but has played 42 games with eight goals and 27 points, on pace for 15 goals and 52 points over an 82-game period.

Looking away from points, Jenner is a strong faceoff taker, winning 52.8% of the draws he’s taken this season, a little under 200 so far. He’s won 54% of the draws he’s taken in his career. In terms of his goal share and expected goal share, the Blue Jackets have 50.91 percent of the goal share and 48.53 percent of the expected goal share during five-on-five play while Jenner is on the ice.

Through 42 games this season, Jenner has spent a little over an hour of ice time on the penalty kill, 61 minutes and 30 seconds to be exact. Adding on being physical and strong two-way play, and Jenner is the definition of a third-line centre on a contender. The lone concern is his injury history, as Jenner missed most of last season and has already missed 14 games this season. He hasn’t played more than 70 games since 2018-19.

Jenner’s cap hit

Another thing that makes Jenner so appealing is his cap hit. A pending unrestricted free agent, Jenner carries a cap hit of $3.75 million. At the current moment, that cap hit can’t quite be absorbed by the Oilers, as they have a little under $2.888 million in cap room available, and even less when Adam Henrique returns from long-term injured reserve, as they’re about $1.772 million over the cap when accounting for Henrique.

There are scenarios that make this easier for the Oilers. The Blue Jackets have all three retention spots remaining, meaning they can retain up to 50% of Jenner’s salary, making that just a cap hit of $1.875 million, which can be absorbed by the Oilers with activating Henrique from the LTIR.

Trading Andrew Mangiapane is seen as a prerequisite for any other move that the Oilers make before March 6th’s trade deadline. The 29-year-old carries a cap hit of $3.6 million, and once he is moved, the Oilers will easily be able to take on a player with Jenner’s cap hit, especially if he’s retained.

Jenner’s cost of acquisition

So what would it cost the Oilers? Well, it happens that they acquired a third-line centre a few seasons ago, acquiring Adam Henrique from the Anaheim Ducks. Shortly before the 2024 trade deadline, the Oilers sent their 2024 first and a conditional 2025 fifth to the California-based team for Henrique and Sam Carrick, both with 50% retention.

Sure, Henrique has regressed quite a bit, but before the trade, he had 18 goals and 42 points in 60 games with the Ducks. The season before that, the Brantford native had 22 goals and 38 points in 62 games, and 19 goals and 23 points in 58 games during the 2021-22 season. Henrique carried a cap hit of $5.825 at that point and was 33 years old at the time.

It’s probably not a perfect example, as there’ll be a lot of competition for Jenner’s services if he becomes available before March 6th’s trade deadline. That said, the Oilers would have enough to get a trade done, and potentially have cap room to address another need.