Blair Jones

Blair Jones helped the Lightning go deeper into the playoffs than most expected last season. (Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)

Mark Malinowski
2011-10-02 14:05:00

Status: Tampa Bay Lightning center

Ht: 6-2  Wt: 216

DOB: Sept. 27, 1986     In: Central Butte, Sask.

First Hockey Memory:  "When I got my first pair of skates, I just put ’em on and was walking around the house for the whole day. I wouldn't take them off."

Nicknames: “‘Jonesy’ obviously. Basically nothing too far from ‘Jonesy.’ ”

Hobbies/Leisure Activities: “Play cards. Love outdoor stuff, camping, hunting, boating – anything like that."

Favorite Movies: "<Rounders, Dumb & Dumber, The Hangover."

Hockey Inspirations: "My dad (Brent). He coached me for my first eight years of playing."

First Job: "I was a lifeguard for a few summers."

Favorite Meal: "Steak and tomatoes."

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: "Chocolate chip cookie dough."

Current Car: "I have a Chevy Avalanche."

Greatest Sports Moment: "Probably my first NHL game (in 2006). First NHL goal, maybe (vs. Sean Burke of the L.A. Kings in 2007). And my last year of junior we had a pretty successful season."

Most Painful Moment: "Might have been my first year of junior. We had the second-top team (the Red Deer Rebels) in the Western Hockey League and we ended up losing in the final (to the Kelowna Rockets). I think that was pretty disappointing because we felt we had the team to win everything."

Favorite Uniforms: "I'm a pretty big fan of the Chicago Blackhawks uniform. Other than that, I like some of the throwback jerseys. The Edmonton Oilers throwback is pretty cool."

Closest Hockey Friends: "Troy Brouwer, he's in Washington. Dustin Boyd. Then I got a couple of buddies that played university hockey in Canada that I stay in touch with."

Funniest Players Encountered: "Andre Roy, who used to play here. Todd Fedoruk for sure. Couple of guys in the minors like Norm Milley. There are a lot of funny guys."

Most Memorable Goal: "Probably overtime winner in the playoffs in junior."

Pre-game Feeling: "Just positive things. Think of good things that you've done in previous games, stuff that you're looking to do in that game. Just try to play it over in your head and make sure mentally you're as sharp as you can possibly be."

Last Book Read: "Theo Fleury's book, Playing With Fire. Finished it in a couple days. Unbelievable. Unbelievable."

Musical Tastes:  "Classic rock, pretty big AC/DC fan. I got to see them twice a couple of years ago in Regina. Then we had a day off and six of us drove to Greensboro, N.C., when I was in Norfolk. It was pretty awesome."

Personality Qualities Most Admired: "Just laid-back, easy to talk to. And people that like to joke around and have fun and aren't always serious. Life's short. You never know what can happen tomorrow."

Mark 'Scoop' Malinowski's second book "Marcelo Rios: The Man We Barely Knew" will be available on www.amazon.com in September. Malinowski is the creator of two websites: www.thebiofile.com and www.tennis-prose.com