There it was on Saturday night, a perfect example of why Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving knew it was crucial to add an experienced goaltender during the summer.
With Joseph Woll injured and Ilya Samsonov struggling, the Leafs would be in big-time trouble if not for the presence of Martin Jones, who has been at this National Hockey League thing for a while.
As his teammates ran up the score on the Pittsburgh Penguins at Scotiabank Arena, much to the dismay of Kyle Dubas, Jones calmly turned aside each of the 38 shots that made it to his net.
Considering the way they successfully executed on offence without an ill Auston Matthews, beating the Penguins 7-0, the Leafs didn’t necessarily need Jones to be solid.
Nevertheless, he was.
“The score being what it is, it’s one of these nights where almost everything is going your way offensively,” Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “(But) there’s still lots of stuff coming at our net.
“And the goaltender has to be really sharp, otherwise the game can start to change. He didn’t allow that to happen. He was just so calm and relaxed in there and that made everybody start to feel that much better about themselves and the game.
“That, to me, is a much bigger part of the game than what the scoreboard might show. We scored some big-time goals and made some great plays, but the goaltending and the poise he played with was terrific. It’s a credit to him, shows his professionalism and his experience.”
In earning his 29th career shutout and first since Jan. 12 when he was with the Seattle Kraken, Jones continued to prove that his demotion to the minors in October didn’t make him flinch. He approached the job with the Toronto Marlies with positivity, probably knowing he would be required by the Leafs at some point.
Nearing 450 NHL games, nothing comes as a surprise to the veteran.
“The longer I’m here, the easier it gets comfortability-wise for sure,” Jones said. “It was a pretty impressive game, top to bottom, start to finish. That’s an effort we can definitely build off and a lot of positives out of. I wasn’t asked to do anything too crazy out there, just just play solid, make the saves I was supposed to make and guys were really good in front of the net.”