Defenseman Zac Jones Signs Two-Year, Two-Way Contract with Utah Mammoth

TUCSON, AZ – The Utah Mammoth announced today that the club has signed defenseman Zac Jones to a two-year, two-way contract. The deal carries an NHL salary of $875,000.

Jones, 25, recorded 62 points (10g, 52a) and 14 penalty minutes (PIM) in 60 American Hockey League (AHL) games with the Rochester Americans, the AHL affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres, during the 2025-26 season.

He led the AHL in assists and all league defensemen in points while earning First Team AHL All-Star honors and representing the North Division at the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic for the first time in his career.

The 5-foot-11, 190-pound defenseman also paced all AHL skaters in power-play points (38) and power-play assists (36), while leading all league defensemen with 168 shots on goal.

Over four AHL seasons, Jones has totaled 129 points (28g, 101a) and 73 PIM in 168 regular-season games with Rochester (2025-26) and the Hartford Wolf Pack (2021-25). He has also recorded six points (2g, 4a) and eight PIM in 12 career Calder Cup Playoff games.

Jones has appeared in parts of five NHL seasons with the New York Rangers (2020-25), registering 28 points (4g, 24a) and 38 PIM in 115 career NHL games.

The left-shot blueliner established NHL career highs in games played (46), points (11) and assists (10) during the 2024-25 season. He also ranked third among Rangers defensemen in takeaways per 60 minutes (1.20), trailing only Adam Fox (1.39) and K’Andre Miller (1.73), and finished second among the club’s blueliners in average power-play ice time per game (1:29).

The Richmond, Virginia, native made his NHL debut on April 22, 2021, against the Philadelphia Flyers, becoming just the sixth Virginia-born player to appear in an NHL game.

Jones was selected by the Rangers in the third round (68th overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft.

Prior to turning professional, Jones played two seasons at UMass and helped the Minutemen capture the program’s first NCAA national championship in 2020-21. As a sophomore, he was named a NCAA (East) Second Team All-American and earned First Team All-Hockey East and NCAA All-Tournament Team honors after finishing second among NCAA defensemen in goals (9) and recording 24 points in 29 games.

As a freshman in 2019-20, Jones was named to the Hockey East All-Rookie Team after ranking third among NCAA rookie defensemen in scoring with 23 points (3g, 20a) in 32 games.

Internationally, Jones won a bronze medal with Team USA at the 2021 IIHF World Championship, recording three assists in 10 tournament games. He also represented Team USA at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship, posting two points (1g, 1a) in five tournament games.