Summer Spotlight: Boqvist looks to take the next step

Number:27

Birth date: Aug. 15, 2000 (age 23)

Birthplace: Falun, Sweden

Height, Weight: 6-0, 182

2022-23 Stats:46 GP, 5-19-24

Contract: Signed through 2024-25 season (Two years remaining until RFA status)

Before Adam Boqvist headed home to Sweden, he likely was given some pretty direct marching orders from the Blue Jackets front office.

He's shown to this point in four NHL seasons, two with the Blue Jackets, that he can provide the offensive abilities projected when Chicago chose him with the eighth overall pick in the 2018 draft.

But in order to be an offensive defenseman, one has to be a dependable defenseman, and that means playing a 200-foot game. To that end, the relatively slight Boqvist left Columbus this offseason aware of what he needs to do to take the next step in his career.

"I think this is going to be a big summer for me," Boqvist said. "I feel like I took some strides last summer, especially conditioning and stuff like that. Now it's going to be a lot more strengthening my upper body and stuff like that. I'm just looking forward to a good summer."

Continuing to grow his game could make a good player a great one, and it's exciting to think about what Boqvist can become. Through two seasons with the Blue Jackets, he has posted 16 goals and 30 assists for 46 points in 98 games, solid offensive numbers that portend even more growth as he gets more minutes. He's shown signs of being a plus producer on the power play, posting three goals in 2021-22 and adding nine assists a year ago.

Health, of course, has been an issue, as Boqvist has had a variety of maladies that have knocked him out for almost half the games in his CBJ career. When he was on the ice this past year, Boqvist thought he did make strides.

"I think I was more consistent as I played throughout the year," he said. "I think I grew, especially defensively and playing more minutes and stuff like that."

Top Moment of 2022-23

There were a lot of heroes in the Blue Jackets' 7-6 comeback win at Washington on March 21 in which the team came back from deficits of 3-0, 4-2, 5-3 and 6-5, and Boqvist was at the top of the list. He posted his only two-goal game of the season in the victory, making a nice move and putting a sharp-angle shot past Charlie Lindgren early in the second period and then putting a quick wrister past Lindgren early in the third. It was the third two-goal game of Boqvist's NHL and Blue Jackets career.

Boqvist Top Highlights

Video: Adam Boqvist's top plays of 2022-23

Stat to Know

Boqvist has those three multigoal games in two years with the Blue Jackets, which got us wondering how many CBJ defenseman have that many such contests. As it turns out Boqvist is in good company, as just 18 Blue Jackets blueliners have multigoal games in team history, and only three of them have at least three games lighting the lamp multiple times, per Hockey Reference. The franchise record is four, which fittingly is shared by Zach Werenski and Seth Jones, with Boqvist just behind.

2023-24 Expectations

Boqvist enters an important season for his growth. He's proven to be a capable producer of offense, but he'll need to up his defensive consistency and hope to stay healthy in order to show the Blue Jackets what they want to see to cement him a key piece of the puzzle going forward. He has all the skills and shows it in tantalizing bursts, but there are some good defensemen on the way. Boqvist has the ability to be a premier offensive defenseman in the league -- as well as a major CBJ building block -- if he can keep growing his game.

Join the 5th Line today!

• Guarantee your seats and join the ranks by Video: Adam Boqvist's top plays of 2022-23.
• Single Game tickets are on sale now! Video: Adam Boqvist's top plays of 2022-23
• Our 2023-24 Video: Adam Boqvist's top plays of 2022-23