San Jose Sharks: 3 keys to bouncing back next season
3. It Starts With the Play of Martin Jones
Goaltending is one of, if not, the most important position for a hockey team. For the Sharks, this position has just has not been a strong suit over the last few years, the team being lucky enough to power through it. But this season, the goaltending issue has truly come to the forefront.
Starting netminder Martin Jones has been the opposite of stellar over the last few years. In the 2018-19 season, which ended with his team second in the Pacific Division at the end of the season, Jones’ numbers were rather poor, posting a .896 save percentage, allowing 2.94 goals per game. Last season, his backup Aaron Dell was no better, posting a .866 save percentage, allowing 3.17 goals per game.
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But this season, Dell has improved his statistics, pushing his save percentage to a .907%, while dropping his goals-against-average to just a tick over 3.00. Jones, however, has not improved, seeing his save percentage remain the exact same at .896%, but allowing now more than 3.00 goals per game.
The 30-year old netminder has four years left on his deal, with an annual salary of $5.75 million. To put that into comparison, soon to be an unrestricted free agent for the New York Islanders, Thomas Greiss was making $3.75 million dollars this past year.
His .913% save percentage, along with his goals-against average of 2.73, was the second-worst of his career, yet his statistics over the last two seasons have blown the Sharks netminder out of the water. So what does that say about the worth of Jones?
The team has two decisions to make. Either figure out a way to get Jones to play at the level that was expected, or look elsewhere for a goalie. While there are big-name netminders available in Braden Holtby and Robin Lehner this upcoming offseason, the cost for these players will be too significant to bring aboard. But Greiss mentioned above could be a safer option, and could truly put a ton of pressure on Jones, something that he surely needs to get back to where he wants to be.
As of now, the team has over $8 million available cap space, which ranks seventh in the league. But the team has to re-sign players like Kevin Labanc and Melker Karlsson, who have taken strides. The last thing the team wants to have to do is spend more hefty money on a position that really should not need to be replaced, yet.