Examining Seth Jones's Season: Is He Worth The Big Bucks?
Seth Jones will always be judged quite critically by Blackhawks fans for what Stan Bowman coughed up to acquire his services. Bowman saw Jones as a high-level player with plenty of hockey left in the tank and gave away Adam Boqvist and three draft picks in the trade with Columbus.
This season has been a train wreck for Chicago. Many fan favorites departed at the trade deadline and once again the Blackhawks find themselves in the bottom three clubs in the standings. With that in mind, lets take a look at Seth's play this season.
Jones has played in 71 of Chicago's 80 games this season. In those contests, he has 12 goals and 24 assists. Jones has been generating chances with the puck on his stick but the personnel left on the ice is less than desirable. Jones's 36 points is a far cry from the 51 he registered last season, but is still his second highest total since the 2019-2020 season in Columbus. Jones's 6.9% shooting percentage is the highest in his career since the 2016-2017 season. Seth also leads the Blackhawks in assists with 24.
Jones is also skating with a +/- -35, which is far less than ideal. This number is currently less than his +/- -37 he logged in 2021 with Chicago, but may dip in the last two contests. His 46 takeaways are the highest he's logged since the 2018-2019 season.
While Seth's season has been less than ideal, we need to keep in mind who is playing in front of him. The Blackhawks leading scorer is still Max Domi, who hasn't been on the team since the trade deadline. While his defense has slumped this season, there will be brighter days ahead for Jones. Is he worth the contract he was given? No. Can he still be a major player for a team that will be getting better in the next few seasons? Yes.
| POLL | ||
Do you think Jones will be a major player for the Blackhawks moving forward? | ||
| Yes | 60 | 40.5 % |
| No | 88 | 59.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
