By Alex Lippa
Quinnipiac University Quad News Sports
With the loss of five senior forwards, three of whom are playing at the professional level, many wondered who would provide for the scoring in their absence.
Enter the Jones twins.
The Quinnipiac men's ice hockey team landed highly touted freshmen Connor and Kellen Jones to play this fall, and they are perhaps two of the best recruits in Bobcat history. Kellen was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the seventh round of this past June's NHL Entry Draft, while Connor also has a chance to play professionally in the future. Both twins attended the Oilers' development camp over the summer.
The brothers have played together on the same team for their entire lives. Connor was originally a defenseman when the two were little, but was turned into a winger, and the two have been inseparable on the ice ever since. It was a package deal for the Bobcats to get them and they are ecstatic about the Jones' decision to play at Quinnipiac.
"The coaching staff are great and were honest with us," Connor said. "The campus is beautiful, and they were one of the only ones to offer free schooling and a full ride."
It doesn't hurt of course that Quinnipiac also has one of the most state-of-the-art facilities in college hockey as well at the TD Bank Sports Center.
"The rink here is unreal," Kellen said. "Our workout facilities are great. We came down with [junior captain Scott Zurevinski] during our fly-down, and we had such a good time with the guys. It seemed like we were already part of the team. So it was a pretty easy decision to come down here. Other schools were here but Quinnipiac was always a little bit higher."
Not only are they identical in their looks, their skill set is identical as well. Both players are only 5'9", yet they are not afraid to throw their body around to deliver rocking hits against the glass. This, and their ability to get to the front of the net, is a reason why the coaching staff put them on the first line with Zurevinski.
"The [physical game] is their biggest asset," said Quinnipiac associate head coach Ben Syer. "They're not very big, but their grittiness level is through the roof. In certain areas you might say that one is grittier than the other slightly, but not enough to make any significant difference between the two."
The line of the Jones twins and Zurevinski has been involved in five of the team's eight goals so far this season which has the junior captain gushing about them.
"They're both really good players," Zurevinski said. "They're good with the puck and away from the puck. They create plays pretty much every shift. You just don't find one player or even two that make plays every time they're on the ice. They are really dynamic players and they will be very exciting for the Quinnipiac community to watch."
Each twin has been hot to start the season. The twins are the top two Bobcats in scoring through four games as Kellen has two goals and three assists, with two goals coming this last Saturday against Holy Cross. Connor meanwhile has a goal and three assists.
While they're here at Quinnipiac now, the biggest thrill in Kellen's life was being drafted this past June by the Oilers.
"It's still quite a shock to be drafted by an NHL team," Kellen said. "You grew up as your dream to be part of an NHL team, so it's still really surreal."
The twins faced adversity throughout their life because of their small stature, and not even their own mother believed in them.
"The day of the draft, my mom told me there's no way either of you get drafted," Kellen said. "You're too small, you're not good enough, you're too short. We went up to play a baseball game and I got about 20 calls and texts saying congratulations, and I heard that I had been drafted in the seventh round."
With Kellen being drafted, and Connor also being highly regarded by NHL teams, there is always the likelihood that the NHL will come knocking on their doors with a contract offer to turn pro before their four years at Quinnipiac are up. But for now they are just centered on being a part of the Bobcats.
"It would be a very tough decision," Kellen said. "To be here four years and to get a free education, that doesn't come to everyone. I'd have to really be able to fill in, in Edmonton and be an impact player. I don't really think about that now though, I kind of just focus on being here and doing well here."
The Jones twins have an opportunity, and the potential, to become two of the most decorated Bobcat athletes of all time, as they attempt to help lead the Quinnipiac men's ice hockey team back to the NCAA tournament.
