The Toronto Maple Leafs shouldn’t have bothered with Martin Jones.
It seems that new Toronto Maple Leafs GM Loves brand-names – there is no other plausible explanation for his moves this summer.
Max Domi, Ryan Reaves, David Kampf, and John Klingberg cost the Leafs over $11 million in cap space and other than being name-brands, there isn’t a single thing to separate them from players the Leafs could have promoted from the Marlies for the league minimum.
And you can say the exact same thing about Martin Jones.
Once again, the Leafs have taken a name-brand player who used to be good enough that people learned his name, and given that player a role on the team ahead of a younger player who could actually benefit the team either by just gaining experience or by getting lucky and hitting their much higher ceiling.
Toronto Maple Leafs Shouldn’t Have Bothered with Martin Jones
It’s not that Martin Jones is a bad goalie (he is) or that the Leafs shouldn’t have gone after him specifically. The problem isn’t the goalie, it’s the philosophy behind signing him.
The idea behind signing Jones is that if both of the Leafs two goalies go down, they’ve got an experienced starter they can use.
But this is an outdated idea that puts experience over talent.
The NHL is a pro-league and even the worst players are amazing at what they do. However, outside of about ten percent of the players, the rest of the league is made up of guys who were lucky enough to make use of an opportunity when it presented itself.
There really isn’t any difference between players who are in the AHL, KHL or the bottom of NHL lineups. If there is a difference, it’s miniscule.
And so if you have to use one, the best thing you can do is choose someone whose in their prime. Jones is 33, the guy directly behind him on the Leafs depth chart is Keith Petruzzelli who is 24.
Sure, he has no NHL experience, but why not let him get some if Woll and Samsonov get hurt? In that situation, where Martin Jones is forced into action, the team is screwed anyways, so they might as well use someone younger whose best days are ahead of them.
But in the NHL, teams always go with experience and name-recognition vs a talented, younger, lesser known player.
Beyond this, even if Jones was good, the Leafs would likely lose him anyways.
The NHL has completely dumb rules about goalies. Because of roster limits, and the salary cap, it makes no sense to have a 3rd goalie just sitting in the press-box in case.
Therefore, all 3rd goalies get sent to the AHL, where, unless they are on an entry-level deal that makes them waivers exempt, they must pass through waivers and be risked being picked up by another team.
Given the importance of the goalie position, setting up a system that prevents teams from keeping a plausible option is just silly.
So, besides the fact that he isn’t very good, signing Jones is a waste of time because when he doesn’t make the team out of training camp (Woll and Samsonov have a zero-percent chance of being exposed to waivers) he will have to clear waivers and another team whose goalies are injured will take him.
If he does get through waivers, the Leafs now have a guy with NHL experience and no ceiling. Whoever they have on the Marlies would be a better option.
It’s not like this signing hurts the team, since Jones likely won’t count against the cap unless he somehow ends up playing, but it’s just bizarre how little teams trust players with no NHL experience, even though an emergency is a stress-free time to get some.
I guarantee that 24 year-old Keith Petruzzelli is a better right now that Martin Jones. But he’s not a brand-name, so the Toronto Maple Leafs went out and signed Jones, who most likely gets taken on waivers, which, weirdly, would be the best-case scenario.
It’s not so much that Jones is a bad signing – it’s basically a meaningless signing – it’s the idea behind it that is frustrating. i.e that teams will trust a washed up goalie that hasn’t been good for years ahead of an up and coming prospect with no experience