READY FOR HOMECOMING
Return special for goalie
Cam Ward had plenty of offensive flair as a kid, but he ended up with a big set of pads and an NHL goalie career path.
The Carolina Hurricanes goaltender, who was born in Saskatoon and played his first organized hockey here before moving away at age 10, is returning to his native city on Sept. 27 for a preseason game at SaskTel Centre against the Edmonton Oilers.
The 33-year-old, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as a rookie in 2006 while backstopping the Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup championship, talked to The StarPhoenix about his youth in Saskatoon, a memorable glove save on Tomas Plekanec, and the fact that he’s never been traded.
Q Is there anything special about coming back and playing in the town where you first pulled on a hockey jersey?
A The last time I played there, (my) Red Deer Rebels played the Saskatoon Blades. I can’t remember exactly how the game went, but I definitely remember the arena and the atmosphere. It’s going to be special to come back, knowing Saskatoon is really where it all began for me in organized hockey.
Q An old Saskatoon Flyers pre-novice teammate of yours, Bret Thompson, once said: “We always hated when he went in net because we’d lose all of our goal-scoring. He could just out-skate everybody. I remember him scoring a lot.” Why did you choose stopping pucks over scoring goals?
A Oh, man. That’s a good question. I loved those days, when you could be a goalie for half a year, and play forward for the other half. My dad was a goaltender when he played, nothing professionally or anything serious, but for whatever reason, I was drawn to the position. I liked to be the last line of defence, and I liked the mentality of being a goaltender. You could make the cool glove saves, and I was always drawn to that. But I’m glad I was able to play all positions at an early age. A lot of kids need to try all positions and work on their skating before they get planted in front of the net.
Q You’ve played in just two organizations since 2000 — the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels, and the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes. Can you appreciate that stability, given how rare it is?
A All you have to do is look around the locker-room, and talk to other players and teammates, to realize how rare that is. For example, Lee Stempniak joined our team last year. He’s the same age as me, broke into the league at the same time, and I think the Hurricanes were his ninth team. You feel really lucky. Twelve years down the road with the Hurricanes, my wife and I consider Raleigh home. We choose to stay in the area, even during the summers. We’ve become beach people with our two kids, and we have a lot of great friends here. It’s home.
Q You’re the last player left on the Hurricanes from that 2006 Stanley Cup winner. How often, if at all, do you get asked about that experience by the current crop of Hurricanes?
A A lot of guys want to know. Unfortunately, ... the last eight years, we haven’t been in the playoffs. I look at a guy like Jeff Skinner, Justin Faulk, guys who have played five or six years in the league and still haven’t played a playoff game. They’re curious about what it’s like. You hope those guys get that opportunity, to be able to shine and take their game to another level.
Q During that Stanley Cup season, you took the starting job from Martin Gerber in the third game of the playoffs, and made your first post-season start in Montreal. What do you remember about that game?
A Still, today, it’s one of the favourite games I’ve ever played in my career. I remember getting the word from coach (Peter) Laviolette when we landed and checked into our hotel, that I was going to start Game 3. He asked if I was ready. I said I’d been waiting my whole life for this. I remember going out during warm-up, stretching by the red line. I took a minute to absorb everything by looking around. The Bell Centre is one of the best atmospheres in hockey, especially come playoff time. To look around, to think ‘how cool is this?’ — here I am, started playing hockey in Saskatoon when I was six years old, and now I’m playing in the Stanley Cup finals at the Bell Centre?
I thought that, no matter what happened that night, I was going to enjoy it. That was my thought process the whole entire Cup run. There was no expectations, really — I could just go out there, play, and not over-think it. I could just have fun. I remember a glove save I made on (Montreal forward Tomas) Plekanec, right in the slot. It’s one of my favourite glove saves I’ve ever made in my career. It gives me goose bumps just thinking about it right now, to be honest with you.
Q You wrote last year in the Players’ Tribune about your son, Nolan, who was born deaf, and your decision to give him cochlear implants. The story raised awareness about hearing loss, and the potential for medical intervention. How have the implants changed his life, and yours?
A It changed his life completely. He’s going into Grade 1, and he’s excelling in all areas. His speaking is on par with a sixyear-old. To be able to have those moments with my son, to have the alone time and communicate with one another, to have him hear me, is a blessing. It was quite the roller-coaster early on, when he was born. We’re thankful for the hospitals here, which is another reason why we call this home and why I don’t want to leave. It’s nice to have that in our back yard. If something happens, it’s nice to know the hospital is 30-40 minutes away from us. It’s really been a blessing.
Q You’re involved with Special Olympics, and you host athletes with special needs at home games. The program is called “Cam’s Champs.” What led you down that path?
A That started in Red Deer. Our dressing room attendant, Mikel McIver, has Down syndrome, and he’s someone I became really close with. We called each other brothers. I just love that guy, and I always said that if I ever make it and I’m lucky enough to give back, that I’d do it for Special Olympics. I’ve been blessed to be able to do that my whole career. My wife and I support numerous charities, not just Special Olympics, but it’s nice to be on a platform where you can give back.