Laval, Quebec- On July 2, the Laval Rocket of the AHL announced the signing of 2019 NHL Draft Second Round Pick Hunter Jones to a two-way contract.
Laval also signed one-way contracts with forwards Laurent Dauphin and Vincent Arseneau and defensemen Vincent Sevigny, Joshua Jacobs, and Tyler Wotherspoon.
Jones, a native of Brampton, Ontario, will be 24 years old when the puck drops on the 2024-25 season.
Jones spent four years in the Minnesota Wild Organization, playing 30 games for the AHL’s Iowa Wild and 88 for the Iowa Heartlanders of the ECHL, recording save percentages as high as .929 and goals per game rates as low as 1.95. Many fans argue that he was never given a chance to shine between frequently being moved between ECHL and AHL, late-season injuries, and a long list of goaltender depth in the Wild organization.
Laval will likely use the two-way nature of Hunter’s contract to assign him to the Trois-Rivieres Lions, the ECHL affiliate of the Laval Rocket and Montreal Canadiens. However, a strong showing in the training camp and preseason could see Jones be a full-time AHL player.
Iowa Heartlanders fans have been expressing their thanks for Hunter Jones’ presence as a former member of the team since the news broke, as he was the only player remaining from their 2021 Inaugural Game, where his shot-stopping powered the Heartlanders to a 7-3 win in their first showing.
Here are some of Hunter Jones’ highlight saves from his time in Iowa:
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