Predators' Seth Jones ready to move out on his own

It started as a running joke between mother and son.

Amy Jones sensed the hype surrounding her middle child, Seth, who was being widely regarded as a future No. 1 pick at a time when most kids are just trying to get through high school.

Knowing that her son would likely become a full-time NHL player as a teenager, Amy and Seth Jones playfully made a deal.

"You understand you're living with your mom," she would tell him.

When the Predators drafted Seth Jones with the fourth overall pick in 2013, Amy Jones moved to Tennessee to share a rented home with Seth in Brentwood. They originally agreed to live together for three years, but Seth renegotiated the terms.

"I cut it down a year," he said.

"'Are you sure? We're just having so much fun,'" Amy Jones recalled asking, laughing as she replayed the conversation. "He's like, 'Oh, I'm positive.' "

Those two years have come and gone. The Predators defenseman will move to downtown Nashville before next season, his third in the NHL, begins. Amy Jones, who has been working remotely for a Dallas-based hotel development company, is unsure if she'll return to Texas, though she's embraced Nashville.

"It'll be interesting for her, I think," Seth Jones said of his mother's impending move. "I have a 24-year-old brother and an 18-year-old brother. It's kind of slipping away from her faster than she may want it to. I'm sure every mother goes through that."

Seth Jones' teammates often marvel at his maturity, which Amy Jones said he has possessed since birth. She has seen him become even more poised during his first two seasons, a trait often required of a defenseman tasked with the kind of responsibility that Jones shoulders.

"I would like to think it made a huge difference and helped him quite a bit," Amy Jones said of their living arrangement. "I've been able to witness the transformation from year one to year two and his confidence and his relationship with teammates."

As one may expect from a 20-year-old man, Seth Jones is modest when speaking about his mother, but appreciative of the support she has provided.

"It helped me a lot," he said. "It helped the transition, I think, made it a lot easier. Sometimes you don't want to live at home with your mom, but sometimes you have to and that's kind of how it was. You take a little heat for it from the guys, but at the end of the day, I think it definitely helped me grow as a player and a person."

Amy Jones thinks her son will miss the random chats after games or road trips where he can share whatever's on his mind.

"Probably just having someone there," she said.

For Amy Jones, this was an opportunity to make up for lost time. Seth Jones left home around his 16th birthday, moving to Ann Arbor, Mich., to join USA Hockey's National Team Development Program before relocating to Portland, Ore., to play for the Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League.

He was barely home during his formative years, but as Seth Jones navigated his transition into the NHL, Amy Jones was there, cherishing every moment.

"It has been beyond what I could imagine; I think better than he ever thought it would (be)," she said. "I would not trade it for anything. It was one of the best decisions that I've ever made. I'm glad that I could do it."

Reach Adam Vingan at 615-259-8023 and on Twitter @AdamVingan