Breaking: Martin Jones set for a possible return

According to Joshua Kloke of The Athletic, Martin Jones would like to rejoin the Maple Leafs.

When the Toronto Maple Leafs signed veteran goaltender Martin Jones to a one-year contract on August 9, 2023, last August, it seemed like a strange move. However, a few days later, fans found out that Matt Murray will miss the entire season due to impending hip surgery.

At the time, the signing by new general manager Martin Jones of the Toronto Maple Leafs was actually a relatively wise decision, as the organization was getting a veteran third-string goalie for a mere $100,000 above the league minimum pay.

In the end, the signing served two purposes: it provided them with net insurance and a fictitious sense of goalkeeping security. When Joseph Woll suffered an injury in January of last year and Ilya Samsonov had his struggles that resulted in the Russian goalie being placed on waivers, Jones was able to step in as the starting goalie.

With an 8-3-0 record, 1.98 GAA, and.934 save percentage in his first 12 games played, Jones recorded two shutouts. Unfortunately, rather of looking for a long-term solution or at least providing youngster Dennis Hildeby with an opportunity, management decided they could rely on him for the rest of the season. After that, in his last ten games, Jones had a 3-5-1 record, 3.94 GAA, and.863 save percentage.

Replacing Martin Jones would be a wise decision.

Joshua Kloke of The Athletic revealed earlier this week that Jones was considering a return to the Maple Leafs.

Brad Treliving should consider making the move if the 34-year-old returned to the role he was meant to play at the same salary, even though you may cringe at the second half figures.

Reuniting with Jones would provide Treliving with a third goalkeeper who could fill in for five to ten games in case of injury. Treliving still needs to find a goalie to either split time with Woll or start the majority of the games. He is not, however, a long-term fix for a goaltender problem.

Jones helps prevent a scenario that could occur in 2021—when Kyle Dubas acquired Dave Rittich for a third-round selection during the trade deadline—where the general manager of the Maple Leafs must forfeit an asset in order to acquire a goalkeeper for a few games. Rittich went proceed to start four games in total for the Maple Leafs, and Nikita Zadorov was able to be acquired by the Calgary Flames with that pick.