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OSHAWA, Ont. – The hockey season may seem long if you are Hunter Jones' replacement with the Peterborough Petes.
Jones had already played all 20 games of his team in 2018-2019, with the exception of two of his matches. He had logged more minutes than any other Ontario Hockey League goalkeeper starting the Canada-Russia series game Monday night.
He went to work this summer to improve his fitness, knowing that he would take the lead role in Peterborough, and he has his fingers crossed to make sure that all the time spent on the ice is paying off for the kids. NHL scouts present.
"My goal is to be drafted at the end of the year," said the native of Brantford, Ontario, born six days after the 2018 NHL Entry Draft deadline.
"I also want to give my team a chance to win every night, it would be great for us to have a great run in the playoffs, and I think we can do something special."
Jones played 11-8-0 with a 2.51 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage to help Peterborough stay in the middle of the championship standings after the Petes only won 23 games out of 68 his rookie year.
His percentage savings is even more impressive when you consider that he faces the top scorer of all goalies with 32 shots per game.
He says the key to his early-season success comes from the style of play that he has tried to play with his 6-foot-4, and 195-pound body.
"I'm efficient, I'm athletic, I'm not slow in the net, I like to use my speed when I can and my height to move," Jones said.
So positive that this season has been for Jones, who has been selected for the OHL team as part of the six-game series against the Russians, the same can not be said of the adversity of his year recruit.
Last season was a learning curve after he left Junior A while he was spending the season backing up Dylan Wells, usually only recovering leftovers at the end of a three-game set in three days. He has played only 15 games, scoring a 3-9-0 record, and has allocated more than five goals per game to a team that finished second in the Eastern Conference of the League from the East.
Because of his number and limited role, Jones entered this year as the No. 8 goalie for NHL scouts in the NHL, and feels that he had to better understand the Ontario League so he could prove himself.
"The speed and speed of all this," said Jones about what he had to understand to succeed. "The shots came faster, you have to read the pieces faster, it's a huge role when you're a goalkeeper.
"I'm definitely a better goalie compared to last year."
The Canada-Russia series allows Canada's top juniors to show world junior head coach Tim Hunter what they have before the December selection camp. While the odds are against Jones for this year's team, he still believes that he has the talent to attract Hunter's attention, even if it means staying on the radar for 2020.
"I think I have the talent to achieve that goal," said Jones. "I'm not sure this will happen this year, but I think I'm able to be part of the team this season and that's exactly what their plans are."
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Kyle Cicerella, Canadian Press
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