Time has flown by hasn’t it? Center Pierre-Luc Dubois will be getting ready for his third NHL season in just about a month when the Blue Jackets host the Maple Leafs Friday, Oct. 4.
#1: Pierre Luc-Dubois
Voting
1st out of 34 eligible players
Writers’ Vote: t-1st
Readers’ Vote: 1st
Highest Placement: 1st (35 votes)
Most Common Placement: 2nd (44 votes)
Biography
Birthdate: June 24, 1998
Birthplace: Massapequa, NY
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 207 lbs
Position: Center
Acquired: Drafted by Columbus in Round 1 of the 2016 draft (#3 overall)
2018-19 Season
Pierre-Luc Dubois upped his production totals a season ago, surpassing his already sterling rookie numbers. In 2018-19, Dubois scored a career high 61 points, 27 goals, and 34 assists. His 61 points placed him third on the team last season, behind the since departed Artemi Panarin and then Cam Atkinson. Dubois also finished tied-for-third on the team with five game-winning goals, and was among the leaders in 5v5 CF% (52.2).
Not afraid to get mixed up with anyone, Dubois led the team in the regular season with 64 penalty minutes. In the playoffs, Dubois added five points (two goals, three assists).
2019-20 Season
What do I look for out of Dubois? Take the next level. Dubois has played in all 164 games the Blue Jackets have played since Dubois entered the league in 2017-18, including another 16 in the playoffs. Now, taking on more of a veteran type of presence among the young core (technically, in terms of games played — I know, he’s still only 21!) Dubois will look to help pace the first line with Atkinson and presumably a guy like Gustav Nyquist. He’s been resilient on the ice in his brief career, not being afraid to get involved with anyone.
This fight is from his rookie season.
Torts put it best:
Of course, there will be an adjustment without Panarin, and it poses the question of just how much his absence could result in a possible dip of Dubois’ production.
Dubois and Panarin
| Player 1 | Player 2 | GP | TOI | CF | CA | CF% | FF | FA | FF% | SF | SA | SF% | GF | GA | GF% | xGF | xGA | xGF% | SCF | SCA | SCF% | HDCF | HDCA | HDCF% | HDGF | HDGA | HDGF% | On-Ice SH% | On-Ice SV% | PDO | Off. Zone Faceoffs | Neu. Zone Faceoffs | Def. Zone Faceoffs | Off. Zone Faceoff % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pierre-Luc Dubois | Artemi Panarin | 79 | 906:36 | 961 | 774 | 55.39 | 769 | 597 | 56.30 | 547 | 433 | 55.82 | 59 | 41 | 59.00 | 42.72 | 32.14 | 57.06 | 498 | 365 | 57.71 | 186 | 151 | 55.19 | 31 | 23 | 57.41 | 10.79 | 90.53 | 1.013 | 434 | 335 | 100 | 81.27 |
| Pierre-Luc Dubois | w/o Artemi Panarin | 82 | 281:22 | 225 | 309 | 42.13 | 167 | 229 | 42.17 | 120 | 166 | 41.96 | 17 | 13 | 56.67 | 9.88 | 13.2 | 42.82 | 115 | 146 | 44.06 | 41 | 57 | 41.84 | 7 | 4 | 63.64 | 14.17 | 92.17 | 1.063 | 77 | 71 | 148 | 34.22 |
| w/o Pierre-Luc Dubois | Artemi Panarin | 79 | 357:58 | 379 | 333 | 53.23 | 277 | 260 | 51.58 | 202 | 193 | 51.14 | 19 | 16 | 54.29 | 15.89 | 14.5 | 52.28 | 175 | 168 | 51.02 | 58 | 67 | 46.4 | 6 | 6 | 50.00 | 9.41 | 91.71 | 1.011 | 119 | 69 | 58 | 67.23 |
There’s sure to be an adjustment for the offense across the board and we’ll begin to see the transition start to commence over the preseason.