San Jose Sharks Ink Joel Ward To Three-Year Deal
By Felix Chow
The San Jose Sharks signed unrestricted free agent forward Joel Ward to a three-year contract on Friday. According to SportsNet, his contract is worth $9.75 million, with an average annual value of $3.25 million.
Originally undrafted, Ward spent the 2006-07 season mostly with the Minnesota Wild‘s AHL team, the Houston Aeros. According to hockey-reference, he played 11 games in the NHL with the Wild, only registering a point before playing for the Aeros again into the following ’07-08 season.
He then signed with the Nashville Predators as a free agent, where he scored 40 goals and tallied 58 assists in three seasons. Ward then moved on to the Washington Capitals, scoring 57 goals, 64 assists, and 121 points in 276 games. He also has 14 goals and 21 assists in 53 career Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer had this to say about the 34-year-old:
"I’ve known Joel since I coached Junior against him about 10-15 years ago. I admired how he played from afar. I did have a couple of conversations with him about where I felt he would fit and how important I thought what he brought to the table was for our group here in San Jose. Joel Ward is a class act, a great teammate. This guy is a jack-of-all-trades. When I had him at the World Championships, he could play on your first line, he can play on your third line, he can kill penalties, he can play on the power play. He goes to the blue paint, he scores in the dirty areas."
The Ward signing is another key roster addition from general manager Doug Wilson following the signing of former Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Paul Martin and the trade for former Los Angeles Kings back-up goalie Martin Jones.
Be sure to check back here at Blades of Teal for more Sharks’ offseason acquisitions and updates!