Rob Blake has kept busy during the season pause and “goaltending depth” was on his list. This afternoon, the Kings’ General Manager signed goaltending prospect Jacob Ingham to a three-year entry-level contract. Blake drafted Ingham in the sixth round (175th overall) of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.
Though he was drafted from the OHL’s Mississauga Steelheads, the 19-year-old spent last season with the Kitchener Rangers where he posted a career-high .917 save percentage (third among all OHL starting goaltenders) and a 33-8-4 record, including two shutouts. Those 33 wins led the OHL, marking Ingham as the first Rangers goaltender to lead the league in wins since the 2002-03 season. His 2.96 goals-against-average ranked fifth among starting goaltenders.
I am honoured to have signed my first NHL contract with @LAKings . 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. pic.twitter.com/6qrqXFfrsb
— Jacob Ingham (@JacobIngham_) April 18, 2020
Ingham was also named the 2019-2020 Ted Scharf Humanitarian Award recipient, given to the Rangers player who contributes most to the community. In 2018, an accident in the family resulted in Ingham working with Hockey Gives Blood, an organization formed after the Humboldt Broncos tragedy, centered on education and raising awareness within the hockey community about the importance of blood donation.
That partnership gave birth to “Jake Saves,” a campaign where the Ingham family donated $4 for every save the goaltender made. The campaign’s first season ended with a $5,572 donation to Canadian Blood Services. When he brought the program to Kitchener, the pledge was bumped up to $5, matched by a second pledge from the team. At $10 per save, Ingham led the league and raised $15,010.
Adding to his accolades are the results of the 2019-20 OHL Coaches Poll a few weeks ago, where he was voted the best shoot-out goaltender in the Western Conference (he was ranked third in the Eastern Conference in 2018-19 with Mississauga) and the conference’s second-best puck-handling goaltender.
Ingham will be AHL-eligible next season, but sitting behind Jonathan Quick, Cal Petersen, Matt Villalta and Cole Kehler means he may choose to return to the OHL for an overage season.