Sharks secure starting goaltender in Martin Jones

In a move out of nowhere, the San Jose Sharks went from having no starting goaltender to one of the best up-and-coming netminders in the league.

With the acquisition of Martin Jones from the Boston Bruins on Tuesday, they hope to have found their starting goaltender for the next decade-plus.

San Jose paid a hefty price — next year’s first round pick and unsigned prospect Sean Kuraly — but if Jones pans out, it will be a risk well worth it.

Jones, 25, has just 29 career starts under his belt in two seasons with the Los Angeles Kings, but seems poised for a long NHL career, with a 16-11-2 record, 1.99 GAA and .923 save percentage in limited playing time.

However, he was not going to claim the starting job over Jonathan Quick with the Kings, who dealt Jones to the Bruins last week in a blockbuster trade that sent winger Milan Lucic to Los Angeles.

Now, Jones will be on his third team in five days, and to add to the intrigue, he will play in the same division as the Kings.

Sharks GM Doug Wilson preached patience when his team left the draft over the weekend without a starting goaltender, ruminating that there would be plenty of goalies available on the trade block.

He was right, taking advantage of the Bruins’ offseason fire sale to net a No.1 goaltender.

Said Wilson in a press release:

“Martin was at the top of our list of players that we had targeted. We’re extremely excited to have him on board.”

Jones replaces Antti Niemi, who inked a three-year deal with the Dallas Stars on Monday after five seasons minding the net for the Sharks.