Seth and Caleb Jones — sons of former NBA player “Popeye” Jones — joined the Chicago Blackhawks in July
Brothers Seth and Caleb Jones will get to play on the same NHL team this upcoming season. Which is an amazing feat on its own. However, what also stands out about both Seth and Caleb Jones is their almost nearly identical path to the NHL. Other than being separated by 3 years. Seth is a 1994 birth year and Caleb is a 1997 birth year. They both played junior hockey at the National Development Program before going on to play major junior in the WHL for the Portland Winterhawks. You can check out their stats on Elite Prospects here:
Chicago Blackhawks Made It Possible
In July, the Chicago Blackhawks acquired brothers Seth and Caleb Jones, putting siblings together on the same team for the first time.
Caleb was traded to the Blackhawks from the Edmonton Oilers, and Seth followed a few weeks later on July 23 when Chicago acquired him from the Columbus Blue Jackets. For two brothers who grew up living hockey, the moment the moves became official was “surreal.”
“When it happened, it was pretty crazy,” Seth, 26, recalls to PEOPLE. “Then Chicago ended up flying us out there that weekend and we had a great time out there, but I think everyone’s excited about it.”
“My dad’s excited,” he adds. “He doesn’t have to watch two sets of hockey games all the time. My mom’s excited. She doesn’t have to do that either. So I’m sure travel is going to be a lot easier for my mom, my grandma, and everyone involved.”
The brothers are two of former NBA player Ronald “Popeye” Jones’ three sons. Popeye, who played in the NBA for more than a decade and currently serves as an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets, would often bring his sons to Colorado Avalanche games when the team was contending for the Stanley Cup.
“We went to that game seven when they won against Jersey, saw Ray Bourque win his first cup, [Joe] Sakic of passing it to him,” Seth, who is promoting a new partnership with Uncle Bud’s Hemp, says. “And it was just a great experience. The city was booming after that. And really from there, we didn’t play anything else.”
Caleb, 24, says watching his brothers fall in love with hockey influenced him even more to try the sport.
“I was obviously youngest of three boys, so I kind of just followed my old brothers into hockey,” he remembers.
Fittingly, the first regular-season game the brothers will participate in as part of the Blackhawks will be in Colorado against the Avalanche on October 13.
Of course, the competitive brothers each have high expectations for themselves this season.
“I obviously want to earn my spot and then really establish myself this year as a good NHL player and play every night and just try to help the team win any way I can,” Caleb says. “I know if I accomplish that individually, I know I’ll be able to help the team out and help us get back to the playoffs because I know in Chicago they expect to be in the playoffs and competing.”
“I think our hopes for the season individually, for me continue to grow my game,” Seth adds. “I mean, I want to be a top player on the team and lead the team to as much success as we can have. The playoffs are where it all starts. So it’s never given every year, so we’re going to have to earn that right. And then hopefully go deep into playoffs and see where it goes from there.”
Part of that success on the ice will come from the siblings’ training and recovery approaches, which includes Uncle Bud’s for Seth.
“It’s a big part of my daily routine when it comes to working out off the ice and skating on the ice,” Seth explains. “I like to put it on my legs after games usually, it kind of helps with the soreness.”
