"They have a standard of play. You have to play at a certain level or they'll get rid of you." Caleb Jones wants NHL minutes and he's up for the challenge

Last week, Caleb Jones was recalled by the Colorado Avalanche.

His call-up excited many who have been waiting to see if the Avs have a player in the 26-year-old defenseman acquired last month.

It wasn’t quite his time yet – both Bowen Byram and Cale Makar stayed in the Avs lineup despite a momentary scare.

Still, with a long season ahead of them, it’s just a matter of time before he earns the chance to don the Avs uniform for the first time.

On October 10th, the Colorado Avalanche traded Callahan Burke to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Jones.

This summer, the Chicago Wolves shed their American League affiliation to the Carolina Hurricanes and became independent. As a result, the Hurricanes are currently without an AHL team to reassign their players.

The day before the trade, Carolina reassigned Jones to the Colorado Eagles on a loan.

Burke was in Colorado’s organization for the past three seasons and made his NHL debut last year. Though he is now a member of the Hurricanes, Burke can remain with the Eagles on a loan.

Jones spent the last two seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks. Before that, he spent four seasons splitting time between the NHL and AHL inside the Edmonton organization. His experience at the pro-level makes him an intriguing option for Colorado’s depth.

This summer he entered free-agency and earned an opportunity with the Hurricanes. He signed a one-year, league-minimum contract of $775,000 on a Carolina team stacked with D.

He was placed on waivers for the purpose of reassignment in early October. Once he cleared, the Avs acted fast.

“They were really excited to get the opportunity to get me once Carolina had a lot of bodies and they were trying to cut down,” Jones said. He spoke to Chris MacFarland about the opportunity waiting for him here in Colorado.

“They said, ‘Just come down here and play and get comfortable,’” he explained.

He was told that they only had six D, so the path to the Avs lineup was in his line of sight.

“I’m looking forward to whatever opportunity comes. I’m just taking advantage of it,” he added. “It’s been a whirlwind, but I’m starting to settle in.”

He notably settled into a place in Denver, so his commute to Family Sports and Ball Arena last week was probably one of his best yet.

Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour didn’t coach him for very long before the trade, but he acknowledged Jones’ fit in Colorado.

“I think you got a defender there that can certainly skate, move the puck, and get up and down the ice which obviously fits their style,” he said. “If they ever have a need, he’ll fit real well with their organization.”

Jared Bednar discussed his fit following the trade too.

“I like his experience. I like his ability to get up in the play and help a little bit offensively. He’s got decent size, the whole package,” he said.

“It’s tough to evaluate all the time depending on the team they’re playing on, but it’s a guy that was a really good player when he was younger. He’s made his way to the NHL, he stuck around on good NHL teams in the past, so we’ll see. We’ll get him into our system, teaching what we know, and see if he can be a fit.”

Jones also spoke about some of the difficulties coming from a Chicago team experiencing serious growing pains.

“The last couple of years in Chicago have been tough, kind of threw a rebuild at us,” he said. “That’s not what we were really going in there for our first year, back two years ago. It’s tough playing on a bad team. A lot of long nights, it’s just hard. I’m excited to get an opportunity with a good team and hopefully take advantage of that.”

It’s all come full circle for him in his return to Colorado. His father, former NBA player Popeye Jones, planted roots here and acts as an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets currently.

Though hockey took their family all over in their younger years including Dallas, Michigan, and Portland, he grew up near the Highlands Ranch/Lone Tree area from around ages two to eight.

His brother, Chicago Blackhawks first-round pick Seth Jones, also followed a path through hockey that has taken both siblings all over the U.S.

Both siblings were happy to see their dad get a ring last summer with the Nuggets.

“It was very awesome,” said Seth Jones. “He’s super excited and hopefully he signs an extension here. He’s living out in Highlands Ranch now, and that’s where I grew up when I was a kid.”

The pair, Seth and Caleb, have a particularly close relationship too.

Seth Jones watched his brother’s first games with the Colorado Eagles during their opening weekend on AHLTV.

“He looks comfortable and he said he enjoys the coaching staff down there,” he said. “He’s a great skater, he’s aggressive. He’s been a lot more aggressive the last couple of years in his defensive play and then he’s got some offensive ability as well. He’s a decent finisher around the net. He can be a steady guy that you can trust on the ice.”

“We train in the summer all the time and work out together. We’re really close. We’re best friends. I text him all the time and see how he’s doing and how he’s handling Chicago,” Caleb said of their bond. “He’ll text me advice if he sees something in my game and I’ll give him a little advice every once in a while too – keep him honest.”

He’s registered six assists in ten games with the Colorado Eagles so far and plays on both their powerplay and penalty kill unit. He has valuable penalty kill experience in the NHL too, especially from his last year in Chicago.

Head coach Aaron Schneekloth has been grateful to Colorado’s front office for the welcome addition to his d-corps.

When asked what Jones brings to the organization, both Bednar and Schneekloth touted his experience.

“He spent the last three years in the National Hockey League,” said Schneekloth, referring to his full NHL seasons. “He’s another puck-moving, strong-skating defenseman for our group. He’s going to provide some good leadership back there for the younger players.”

In addition to his experience, he brings versatility. He is a natural left-handed defenseman but has NHL experience on the right-side too.

“All the way back to junior when I was 18 in Portland, I played the right because there’s always way too many left defenseman,” he explained. “It seems like every year I end up over there at some point with a partner. I’m comfortable either way, I just like to play.”

He’s settled in with the Eagles nicely. “It hasn’t been too big of an adjustment. Their system is something I’m used to,” he said.

“It’s kind of weird because I went to Carolina and they play a really weird system with their team – it’s different from any other team. Trying to adjust to that and then coming back full circle to a system I’m used to, it’s been nice to get back to something I’m familiar with.”

Colorado complements the way he likes to play.

“They like their D to skate and move the puck and get up the ice. That’s something I can do really well. Skating is my best attribute, so I just try to use that, join the rush, and make good plays with the puck.”

He’s has been unafraid to activate on the offensive attack during his time with the Eagles, but he prioritizes his defensive responsibilities above all.

“You definitely have to make sure your defensive game is good, especially at [the NHL] level,” he added. “The offense: when it happens, it happens. Down here [in the AHL] I can try to be a little more creative and try a couple more things, but you still have to be careful. It’s a fine balance.”

He recognized that it’s motivating to get an opportunity on a good team.

“They don’t accept anything less than the best. You can tell they work really hard.”

“[They’re] first class, obviously champions. They’ve won,” he said. “They have a standard of play. You have to play at a certain level or they’ll get rid of you. Every time I’ve played Colorado it’s a tough game. They’re a fast team. Everyone plays within the structure and I’m looking forward to trying to fit into that.”

It’s a bit of a waiting game for Jones, but there’s opportunity if he can be patient. Bednar likes to carry seven defenseman. Their practices have already been a bit disrupted with only five D at times.

It makes it hard to run the drills that he’d like.

The Avs took defenseman Corey Schueneman on their recent East Coast road trip likely as a precaution and to help balance those numbers.

The challenge is not sitting him idly any more than necessary, so it wasn’t a surprise to see him log big minutes with the Eagles on their Canadian road trip last week.

The Eagles were at home this past weekend and he was added to their lineup in time to contribute back-to-back assists in each game.

He has valuable pro-experience that can help the Avs, and Makar and Byram won’t be the last players that might need a night off.

If he can seize the opportunity when he does receive it, returning to a full-time NHL role is possible.