Aaron Ward (ice hockey)
Aaron Christian Ward ( born January 17, 1973 in Windsor, Ontario ) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player who played during his playing career for the Detroit Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, Boston Bruins and Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League.
Career
Aaron Ward was drafted during the NHL Entry Draft in 1991 by the Winnipeg Jets in the first round at position five. But he never played for Winnipeg. In the summer of 1993 he was transferred to the Detroit Red Wings. From 1993 to 1996 he played mainly at the former farm team of Detroit in the American Hockey League with the Adirondack Red Wings. In the National Hockey League, he came in the three years only six times for use.
In the 1996/97 season he was part of the NHL team the Red Wings and won the Stanley Cup. He could repeat with the team the following year 's success, but it lacked in the playoffs due to injury. In the summer of 2001 he was transferred for a second-round draft pick to the Carolina Hurricanes.
In his first season in Carolina, he reached the Stanley Cup final and calculated against his former team from Detroit, he had to play in the final series. Carolina won the first game in itself, but Detroit won the next four games and thus the Stanley Cup.
The following two years in Carolina were very unsuccessful and we missed the playoffs. The NHL season 2004/ 05 fell out due to the lockout and Aaron Ward signed a contract with ERC Ingolstadt in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. With the team he moved to the semifinals one of the German championship and won the DEB - Pokal.
The NHL season 2005/ 06 took place and Carolina finished second in the league an excellent third place. In the playoffs, the Hurricanes from lap to lap fought and stood at the end in the final of the Stanley Cup against the Edmonton Oilers. Carolina dominated the early games and led by four games with 3-1, so that only a victory was missing. But Edmonton could win the next two games and so it came to the decisive seventh game. Aaron Ward brought Carolina in the first third with 1-0 lead before the Oilers compensated. However, Carolina went back in front. In the final minutes of the game, the Oilers took their goalkeeper off the ice to still force with another striker to compensate, but this project failed, and Carolina took a minute before closing the decisive 3-1 into the empty gates of the Oilers.
The Treaty of Aaron Ward at the Carolina Hurricanes ran out in the summer of 2006, he signed a two -year contract with the New York Rangers, but was transferred in February 2007 on the Boston Bruins. Due to multiple injuries Aaron Ward could never dispute the entire 82 games a season. His personal record is from the 2001/ 02 season with 79 matches played. On 24 July 2009 he was given in exchange for Patrick Eaves and a fourth- round option for the NHL Entry Draft in 2010 to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Although he scored at the Hurricanes to the permanent employees and 60 games completed in the 2009/10 season, he was released in an exchange of business on March 3, 2010. Ward went to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange received the Hurricanes goalie Justin Pogge and the a fourth -round vote. By the end of the season the defender played 17 games for the Ducks and scored two points scorer. On August 24, 2010, he ended his active career.
Awards and achievements
- Stanley Cup in 1997, 1998 ( with Detroit ) and 2006 ( with Carolina)