It took North Vancouver’s Martin Jones a few years of toil in hockey’s minor leagues before he got his shot at the NHL but, now that he’s got it, he sure looks like he never wants to go back.
Even when he made it to the NHL Jones had some more waiting to do, serving solely as a backup to Ben Scrivens for three weeks after getting called up from the American Hockey League following an injury to Los Angeles Kings star Jonathan Quick.
The call finally came for a Dec. 3 road game against the Kings’ crosstown rivals from Anaheim and Jones was stellar in his league debut, stopping 26 out of 28 shots in a 2-2 tie and then turning away all nine shooters he faced in an extended shootout as the Kings finally claimed a 3-2 win.
“It was intense for sure,” Jones told reporters following the game. “I wanted to make sure I was as focused as I could be but try to enjoy it a little bit if I could. It was a great experience, and something I’ve dreamed about for a long time — playing in an NHL game and getting a win. It was everything it was cracked up to be.”
The 23-year-old earned praise for his performance in the drawn-out shootout but took it all in stride.
“I’ve been in that situation before,” he said. “Obviously the shooters are a little bit higher level but I just wanted to stick with what I’m doing and what I’ve been working on and I was able to make a few saves there.”
Jones may have waited a long time for his first start but there was no wait for the next one as head coach Darryl Sutter made him a surprise starter for the team’s next game, a home bout against the New York Islanders. The former North Shore Winter Club player didn’t disappoint his coach, making 16 saves in a 3-0 shutout win. Following the game reporters grilled Sutter on why he made a late swap, putting Jones in over expected starter Scrivens. That prompted the coach to chide the assembled media members for focusing on the wrong thing. Not hearing what he wanted during his post-game press conference, Sutter decided to ask himself a question.
“So Darryl, how do you think Martin Jones played tonight?” he said before stepping to the side to answer his own query. “I thought he was really solid, made some big saves for us. He really held us in there in the first period. He was outstanding.”
The coach was impressed enough to give Jones the next start as well and was again rewarded as the rookie made 17 saves in the first period alone, 31 saves in all, to earn his second straight shutout, 6-0 on the road against the famed Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night. Jones, already gaining a reputation as a low-key interview subject, once again played it cool in describing his shutout in hockey-mad Montreal and the impressive 3-0 start to his career.
“Those are fun atmospheres and fun games to play in but I thought we did a really good job tonight of eliminating that,” he said. “It feels good. I’m happy with the start, obviously, but I don’t want to stop here. I want to make sure I keep working and keep getting better. I don’t want to win just three games, I want to make sure I keep improving here.”
One day later the story got even better as Jones improved to 4-0 with perhaps his best performance yet, a 38-save effort in a 3-1 road win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. The game recap video is peppered with outstanding saves from Jones.
The goalie is now the talk of the NHL following his shutdown appearances in the hockey heartlands of Montreal and Toronto. Not bad for a kid who wasn’t even drafted. Jones was eligible for the 2008 NHL entry draft but his name was never called. He played well enough as a member of the Calgary Hitmen to earn a tryout with the Kings that fall, however, and was given a pro contract after an impressive training camp. That winter he earned a spot on Canada’s World Junior team, replacing starter Jake Allen in the championship final and almost leading Canada to a stunning comeback against the United States — Jordan Eberle scored two late goals to erase a 5-3 deficit — before losing in overtime.
Later that year he was named the Western Hockey League’s goalie of the year and guided the Hitmen to the WHL title, earning MVP honours in the team’s 4-1 championship series win over the Tri-City Americans. The team lost in the semifinals of the Memorial Cup playoffs but Jones was still named a tournament all-star and the event’s top goaltender.
His pro career started in 2010 and in four season with the Manchester Monarchs he’s racked up a record of 87 wins (including eight shootout wins), 56 losses and nine shootout losses with 11 shutouts.
It’s all led to this moment, with Jones now tied for fourth in the NHL this season with two shutouts despite playing just four games. Heading into this weekend’s games he sports a .974 save percentage and 0.74 goals against average and will likely get at least one start as the Kings wrap up their road trip in Ottawa on Saturday and Chicago on Sunday. As good as he’s been, Jones is still keeping it cool in regards to his hot start.
“I try not to think about that too much,” he said after the win over Toronto. “I just make sure I’m ready when I am called upon, just try to give these guys a chance to win. We’ve got a great team here. It’s not like I’m getting called upon to steal games here, it’s give these guys a chance to win, a couple of big saves here and there.”
Sure Martin, a couple nice saves. Regardless of the young player’s nonchalance, coach Sutter may have some tough decisions to make when Quick, the 2012 Conn Smyth Trophy winner, comes back from his groin injury in the next few weeks.
Scrivens is no slouch either — he has three shutouts in 15 games and leads the league with a .943 save percentage.
Whatever happens, however, there seems to be no doubt now about which league Martin Jones belongs in.
