Why Zac Jones’ time has come to make a splash on Rangers’ blueline
The New York Rangers have been familiar with Zac Jones, their third-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, for quite some time now, but with limited opportunity.
After a few preseason games and a strong training camp, along with the way the depth chart looks, there has never been a better chance in Jones’ young career to take heed of the chance in front of him. Not only will Jones have a chance to play as an every-night NHLer, but considering that he has been quarterbacking one of the team’s power play units, he will have the chance to be an impact player.
Serving an important role in a winning culture is something Jones is familiar with. The defenseman’s introduction to the NHL came just 12 days after he helped lead the University of Massachusetts to the school’s first-ever National Championship in April of 2021. He tallied nine goals, with 15 helpers for 24 points in 29 games in the 2020-2021 NCAA season as a sophomore. Jones thrived in the big moments in his college career.
“You win with high-character players. You win with players that are consistent and confident in their identity on the ice,”UMass head coach of Greg Carvel told Daily Faceoff. “Jonesy is one of my all-time favorite players because he absolutely knew what he was as a player and knew that he was going to make a difference every game with the special talent that he has.”
With that said, because of the way Jones’ first few years in the big leagues have gone, he understands that nothing will be given to him and that everything is earned.
“I definitely don’t feel like it’s mine yet,” Jones told Daily Faceoff in reference to having an every-night role. “I feel like I’m playing with more confidence and a little more swagger out there.”
Having confidence can make or break an NHL player’s career. When you have it, you feel as though you’re on top of the world — and when you don’t have it, sometimes you fear you’ll never find it again. That’s not who Zac Jones is. He has stuck to the process, paid his dues, and believed in himself to get to a place where that confidence is high at the game’s top level.
The key to that confidence: Not being afraid to make mistakes. Typically when your spot is not secured, or when you’re bumped down the lineup, it’s human nature to play the game being afraid to mess up, which happens in all sports and even in real life, not just hockey.
“My play last year just built the confidence for me coming into preseason where I know that I can make mistakes, as long as I make up for them,” Jones said. “My problem my first couple of years in pro was just always worrying about mistakes — always harping on mistakes that I made and not being able to wipe them away, go out the next shift, and have a good one. I think the biggest thing for me was just putting everything in one ear and out the other, wiping away everything no matter if it were good or bad, and playing my game.”
In years past, Jones didn’t have a very long leash when it came to making errors but Peter Laviolette isn’t the type of coach to punish his players them.
“Mistakes are going to happen on the ice and I think those things are teachable. There have been moments or conversations where you’re looking for more out of players, and I think you can express that as well,” Laviolette said. “Training camp — if your energy dips or you’re not there, regardless of who you are, there is accountability that goes with that. You have to play at a certain level. Mistakes can be fixed, if somebody is playing hard and makes a mistake — I got all the time in the world for that, we can fix that. If the work is not there, that’s when those meetings are going to happen.”
Laviolette has a very similar coaching style to Carvel, so it’s no surprise that Jones has found a level of comfort with his now third head coach in the NHL. “I really enjoy Lavi and his insights, he tells it black and white — that’s how I like it. Whether you’re playing good or playing bad, he’s gonna tell you. And I appreciate that, that’s something that I didn’t necessarily have in the past”, Jones said. “Carvy was the same way. He’s black and white. You’re either fucking up or you’re not, simple as that.”
The 23-year-old is entering his fifth season in the NHL but has only appeared in 69 games thus far, tallying three goals and 17 assists in that span. His on-ice presence has been a small sample size in those five years, but being around a winning organization has set him up for success going into the 2024-25 season, which could be his first full year in the league.
“I thought he was right on top of his game, as the game moved on last year he got into more games and practised every day at this level, this pace of play — I thought he got stronger and stronger every time he went in. He played really well for us,” Laviolette said. “I think he’s looking to get back to that, get back on track. He’s a really good two-way defenseman. He’s defending well, moving the puck well and I think he’s trying to work towards that. His camp has been good, he’s certainly been noticeable offensively.”
Jones knows he can always improve. He’s happy with his training camp but not satisfied with it.
“I think the biggest thing for me is being good on our side of the puck, being good defensively, in our forechecks, in our defensive zone, just being more aggressive and harder on guys”, Jones said. “Obviously, I’m not gonna kill guys out there, but using my body a little bit more, using my stick, and being a little nastier out there. I think that’s something I can always improve on.”
He’s not known for having a mean streak, but this will be a massive season for Jones, not only as a contributor to the team, but also for himself as he approaches next summer as a restricted free agent.
His time has come, and he is ready for it.
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