The wait and uncertainty are over: on the day the NHL buyout window is set to expire, the Sharks have placed Martin Jones on unconditional waivers and bought out the remaining three years of his contract, ending Jones' tenure in San Jose.
This was an absolutely necessary move as Jones has been on a steady decline since the 2019-20 season. He was a solid goalie from 2015-19 in the first four seasons of his Sharks tenure and was an integral piece in the Sharks' playoff run in 2016 that led to their first-ever Stanley Cup Final appearance. He was signed to a six-year, $34.5 million extension in 2017 that would begin in the 2018-19 season. This past season, Martin Jones had a 15-13-4 record with a 3.28 GAA and a below-.900 SV%. His overall record with the Sharks over the course of six seasons in teal was 170-121-27 and had a .916 SV% in 60 playoff games.
According to CapFriendly, the Martin Jones buyout will cost the Sharks a total of $10 million against the salary cap over the next six years.
I like Martin Jones as a person and am very appreciative of what he has done for the Sharks franchise from 2015-19, but his time was up with the Sharks, and the goaltending in San Jose needed a shake-up since that was one of their biggest weaknesses this past season.
The Sharks will now be looking for a second goalie to pair with Adin Hill, and their best bet on finding another goalie would be via free agency, which starts tomorrow. We will find out who they add in net possibly within the next few days.
Lastly, I hope Martin Jones gets another chance with another team or whatever career path he wants to take next and wish him nothing but the best.
Sources: NBC Sports Bay Area/California, The Athletic, CapFriendly
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