Two factors specifically played a role in Jones' decision: his standout junior campaign and the prospect of signing a two-year contract rather than a one-year contract.
Jones enjoyed his best collegiate season in 2006-2007. He scored a career-high 44 points on 18 goals and 26 assists in 33 games as the Big Green's assistant captain. Jones averaged 1.33 points per game, the sixthhighest tally out of all NCAA skaters.
In addition to earning first team All-ECACHL, first team All-Ivy honors and Ivy League Player of the Year honors, Jones was named an NCAA first-team All-American and was a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. Jones' Hobey Baker consideration was the first time in Dartmouth men's hockey's 101-year history that a Big Green player had been named a finalist for the award.
The Avalanche, which selected Jones in the eighth round of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft (288th overall) thought Jones had reached the peak of his development in the college game and felt that the time was right to offer the junior a contract.
"They thought I had a good year," Jones said. "For them, they felt I had proven myself at the college level, and they thought I was ready to leave and try myself in the AHL."
Jones added that he and the Avalanche were more eager to sign a contract due to the risk of injury or other serious setbacks that could afflict Jones if he played through another year of college hockey.
In addition to on-ice accolades, the variations in regulations regarding contract length due to a skater's age also influenced Jones to sign early.
Players over 23 years old can only sign a one-year entry level contract with an NHL team, while players who are 22 years old can sign a two-year deal. The present opportunity to get an additional year of professional hockey experience was quite important to Jones.
"I knew I could only sign a one-year contract after next year, so the fact that I could have two years of development time with a place to play was a big deal," Jones said.
Jones admits that when he first heard he was drafted by Colorado, he did not dwell too much on the prospect of playing professional hockey. Jones maintains that his focus throughout college has been on Dartmouth hockey rather than preparation for professional hockey.
"I was more excited that I was coming to Dartmouth than getting drafted," Jones said.
After the end of Spring term, Jones will return home to train for the Avalanche's prospect development camp from Saturday, July 7, to Saturday, July 14, in Denver, Colo.
Jones will then return to Denver in early September for training camp for all players in the Avalanche system. His performance at the camp will decide whether he will make the NHL roster or be moved over to one of Colorado's minor league affiliates. The Lake Eire Monsters will become the Avalanche's new AHL affiliate this October.
"Hopefully I can last there as long as possible and make the big team," Jones said, "but realistically I think they expect me to play a year or two in the AHL and go up and down between the two teams."
Going directly to the minors does not discourage Jones.
"Very few guys go straight from college to the pros," he said. "I'm going to get ready for camp and show them what I can do, but realistically they see me in the top couple of lines in the AHL, which gives me the opportunity to get called up in the season. Hopefully I can get in 40 games [in the NHL] in the next two years."
Lee Stempniak '05 made the St. Louis Blues' NHL roster directly out of college in 2005. Hugh Jessiman '06, who departed from the College the same year as Stempniak, decided, like Jones, to forgo his senior year in order to sign with the New York Rangers. Jessiman is currently on the roster of the AHL's Hartford Wolfpack.
The Big Green will take a hit in losing its best offensive weapon from last season, but Jones' teammates support his decision to leave Dartmouth hockey for the pros.
"As far as my teammates go, they pretty much all suspected that I would leave after this year because I had such a good year and Colorado came to three-fourths of my games," Jones said.
Head coach Bob Gaudet and the Big Green coaching staff also understand Jones' position, but they hope that Jones will continue to pursue his degree when the opportunity arises.
"I told them I definitely wanted to graduate at some point. I don't know exactly when that will be, but that's important for coach Gaudet," Jones said. "In some ways they're disappointed that I'm leaving, but they support me no matter what."
Jones is unsure of when he will finish his degree, but ultimately the possibility of signing a pro contract pushed him to leave school.
"The opportunity is so close to me and this was a dream for me my whole life. I want to make this step right now," he said.
