Martin Jones (born January 10, 1990) is a Canadian ice hockey goaltender who currently plays for the Toronto Marlies in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League. He previously played for the Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks, Philadelphia Flyers, and Seattle Kraken. A standout goaltender in junior with the Calgary Hitmen, Jones was named the Western Hockey League's goaltender of the year in 2009–10 and won a silver medal with Team Canada at the 2010 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
Jones started his professional career in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Manchester Monarchs and made his NHL debut in 2013, where he spent two seasons with the Kings as backup to Jonathan Quick. In 2014, Jones won the Stanley Cup as a member of the Kings. Jones was traded to the Sharks in 2015, where he would serve as their starting goaltender for the next six seasons. He led the Sharks to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance in franchise history in 2016, and was chosen to play in the NHL All-Star Game in 2017.
Personal life
Jones was born in North Vancouver, British Columbia. His father, Harvey, is the Vice-President of Arena Operations with the Vancouver Canucks. He has a brother, Jordan, and a sister, Jocelyn. Jones felt that his father's position with the Canucks gave him some opportunities within the game that most other kids would not get. As a youth, he played in the 2003 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from North Vancouver. He played midget level with the Vancouver Northwest Giants of the BC Hockey Major Midget League. Jones attended Handsworth Secondary School and played ice hockey at the North Shore Winter Club.
Playing career
Junior
The Calgary Hitmen selected Jones in the fourth round of the 2005 WHL Bantam Draft. He joined the Hitmen in 2006–07 and served as the backup to Dan Spence for two seasons. He was eligible for the 2008 NHL Entry Draft but went undrafted. Offered a try-out with the Los Angeles Kings, Jones impressed team scouts at Los Angeles' rookie camp, and following a strong showing at their main camp, the team signed him to a three-year contract before reassigning him back to the Hitmen. He emerged as Calgary's starting goaltender in 2008–09; his 45 wins for the Hitmen broke the team record of 39. He led the league in wins, finished tied for the league lead in shutouts (7) and finished third in goals against average (2.08). He backstopped the Hitmen to 12 consecutive wins in the playoffs, tying a league record, before the Hitmen lost the WHL championship series in six games to the Kelowna Rockets. Following the season, he was named a Second Team All-Star in the Eastern Conference.
During the 2009–10 season with the Hitmen, Jones finished with a league-best GAA of 2.21 and was named a First Team All-Star in the Eastern Conference. In advance of his second consecutive appearance in the championship series, the league named him the winner of the Del Wilson Trophy as the WHL's top goaltender. During the season, he surpassed Spence's team record for career wins, and his 16 career shutouts are also a franchise record.
Professional
Los Angeles Kings
The Kings assigned Jones to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs to begin the 2010–11 season. He also played with the Ontario Reign of the ECHL for a time, but after posting a 16–3–0 record, .939 save percentage and 1.93 GAA in his first 22 games for the Monarchs, Jones was chosen to play in the 2011 AHL All-Star Game. He was on the roster of the Los Angeles Kings as a spare when they won their first Stanley Cup, but did not play.