Poll: Is Martin Jones The Real Deal?

Dec 11, 2013; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Los Angeles Kings goalie Martin Jones (31) during their game against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre. The Kings beat the Maple Leafs 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

Martin Jones fever has hit the Los Angeles Kings and their fan base. Since getting his first career start, Jones has won over all those around him with his stellar play. In his first four starts he has gone 4-0, posted a .974 save percentage, a .74 goals against average,turned away 111 of 114 shots and has recorded two shutout victories.

Over the course his first four starts, Jones has looked composed and has had several flashes of brilliance. Jones’ play has everyone buying into him getting more time in net during Jonathan Quick’s injury, some have even suggested that he should now get more time than Ben Scrivens.

Getting four wins in your first four starts can do wonders for a young goalie’s confidence and play. Over the course of those four games Jones has performed in a large amount of varying situations.

Jones’ first start came in a rivalry game between the Kings and Anaheim Ducks, coming out on top after a stellar performance and a prolonged shootout against some of the league’s top offensive talent. Jones’ second two games ended with him shutting out the Kings’ opponent, his second shutout against the Montreal Canadiens proved to be a little more challenging and imporessive compared to his first against the lack luster New York Islanders. Finally, Jones’ most recent victory came in a tight matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs where he turned away 38 of 39 shots.

Jones became the first goalie in franchise history to shutout out the Canadiens and the first Kings rookie to record back-to-back shutouts since Gerry Desjardins did during the ’68-’69 season.

While Jones’ all around performance has been great, he has made some great saves in the process. Saves like the sequence of saves he pulled off against Alex Galchenyuk in Montreal (which can be seen here) have Kings fans drooling at what he may develop into with more time to mature.

It has not been announced who will get the start for the Kings against the Senators tomorrow night in Ottawa. Jones may not need any rest since the Kings will have had two full days off between their games, so he may see another start. Or things may shift back to Scrivens. It will be the first off a back-to-back weekend finishing off against the Blackhawks in Chicago on Sunday, so there will obviously be some strategy going into who gets what start if the Kings plan to switch off.

Looking forward obviously we can’t expect this stellar play to continue through his entire career, he will ecperience the ups and downs of any professional athlete. But can we use this start as a measuring stick for the rest of his career? Do you think this record-setting start is what we can expect from Jones through out his time in the NHL, or is this more of a right place right time kind of situation?

Make sure to vote below and let us know what you think in the comment section below, on our Facebook page and our Twitter feed.