After finishing the regular season with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL, the Los Angeles Kings announced on Saturday the signing of goaltender Jacob Ingham.
Ingham, 19-years-old, joined the Kitchener Rangers back in June after being dealt from the Mississauga Steelheads with a package of draft picks being sent in return.
Ingham joined the OHL back in April of 2016 when he was selected by Mississauga in the draft’s second round, 26th overall. Since then, he has become a sensation while finding his footing over four years in junior.
In his first year with Kitchener, Jacob was named as the team’s starting goaltender and he surely didn’t fail to surprise, winning 33 games of the 46 he started in. Not only that, but he dropped just eight while leaving his mark in the Rangers record book.
Alongside his star-studded numbers, Ingham also added two shutouts, this leading the Rangers to the OHL playoffs. However, due to COVID-19, the season was cancelled to stop the spread of the virus. Before that, the goaltender posted a .917 save percentage and 2.96 goals-against average.
Looking at his records in Kitchener, Ingham became the first Rangers backstop to lead the league in wins since Scott Dickey in 2002-2003. As a result, with his 33 posted, he was named as recipient of the Rangers three stars award. To further compliment that, he became the first Kitchener goaltender since John Murray in 2006-2007 to mark that feat in the wins category.
As if that wasn’t enough, Ingham’s .917 save percentage ranked third and his 2.96 goals-against-average ranked fifth among starting goaltenders. Having been named the first-star a whopping 10 times with the Rangers, one of those selections this season was awarded after the annual Teddy Bear Toss game. That would be one of his two shutouts with a 4-0 victory over the London Knights.
For his outstanding work which led the Rangers from worst to first, Ingham was named the winner of this year’s Jim Malleck Memorial Award. The 6’4 goaltender is recognized, having been named as the Most Valuable Player.
In a statement from Mike McKenzie with regards to the backstop from Barrie, Ontario, he said, “Jacob has been the backbone of our team all season long. Without him, there is no way we could have had the success we had throughout the year.”
During his time in Kitchener, Ingham’s work wasn’t just on ice as he also got involved when off the ice. For his work within the community, Ingham was also named as this year’s winner of the Ted Scharf Humanitarian Award. Having been recognized by the franchise, Ingham participated in team community initiatives, such as the Kitchener Rangers School Tour, while continuing his #JakeSaves partnership with Canada’s Lifeline and Hockey Gives Blood.
Through the five months he spent there, Jacob became an example of what it means to be a Kitchener Ranger. It is for that very reason he won the award presented by Kitchener Sports Association.
In a statement from Mike McKenzie with regards to the work Jacob did in the community, he said, “It is rare to see a 19 year-old have the maturity that Jacob shows. He has given a lot of his time and effort to help in various areas – most notably his Hockey Gives Blood project – and has made our community a better place by doing so.”
To round out his numerous accomplishments, Ingham was recognized in December, this earning him OHL Goaltender of the Month honours. Not only that, but for the time and work he put in, Ingham also found himself named as a nominee for the OHL’s Red Tilson Trophy.
The trophy is distributed yearly to the Ontario Hockey League’s Most Outstanding Player. Despite an impressive resume, the OHL veteran fell just short of acknowledgement. However, he was named by the CHL to the Canada/Russia Series hosted in November. Unfortunately, due to injury, he had to pull out and was replaced by Nico Daws.
Speaking of outstanding talents, Ingham has been one himself between the Steelheads and Rangers over four OHL seasons. Through an impressive total of 177 career OHL games, the Canadian backstop tallied a record of 93-61-9. As well, he adds five shutouts, a .899 save percentage and 3.23 goals-against-average.
Majority of that, he amassed over three seasons spanned with the Mississauga Steelheads. Digging further into his time there, Ingham also found himself starting in 15 career playoff games in southeastern Ontario. During that time with the Steelheads, he racked up a record of 6-7-2. As well, he would go on to register a .877 save percentage and 3.40 goal-against-average.
After closely drawing their interest, Ingham was selected by the Kings back in 2018 in the draft’s sixth round. He joined the Los Angeles franchise after having been picked 175th overall.
Making things official on Saturday, Ingham said goodbye to the Rangers and agreed to a three-year ELC with Los Angeles. After signing off from his hometown, the netminder said of the privilege on Twitter, “I am honoured to have signed my first NHL contract with the Los Angeles Kings. It has been an amazing journey to get to this point in my career. I am so thankful to everyone that has played a role in helping me become the player I am today.”
With his signing now in the books, Ingham joins Akil Thomas with the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League. Having led by example, paving the way for Lucas Pfeil, expect the Owen Sound native to pull the reigns as the team’s starting goaltender. He’ll do so come September in Kitchener as the NHL prospect makes the jump to the pro ranks.