Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

Martin Jones Is A Stabilizing Influence For The San Jose Sharks

05/02/2016 at 9:49am EDT

from Alex Prewitt of Sports Illustrated,

“He’s just very composed, especially for a young goalie,” defenseman Paul Martin said. “He relies heavily on his position and being in the right spot and making the right read. He’s not flashy. But I think that’s just because he’s always in a good spot or getting to the right spot to make those hard saves look easier than they really are.”

A little more than 10 months ago, Jones was playing an Arizona golf course when his phone buzzed. He had already been shipped across the country from Los Angeles to Boston at the 2015 NHL draft, but partially suspected the move wouldn’t last long. His intuition proved correct four days later as the Bruins flipped him back to the Pacific Division, a few hours north of his old home in southern California, much to the surprise of everyone on the links. “I think my friends were just as stunned as me,” Jones recalled later. “But they were excited. They knew it was a bit of an opportunity for me to play some games.”

Jones’s numbers weren’t particularly flashy during his first campaign as a full-time starter; among the NHL’s 42 goaltenders who made at least 30 appearances, he ranked 22nd in save percentage (.918) and seventh in goals against average (2.27). But he was critical during the Sharks’ opening-round win over the Los Angeles Kings, allowing no more than three goals in any of the five games.

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Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

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