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| Ward exits Canes, not Carolina |
| Rangers get defenseman, who plans to keep home in Triangle |
| July 04, 2006 12:30 AM |
| Source: Lorenzo Perez, Staff Writer NewsObserver.Com |
| For Aaron Ward, leaving the Carolina Hurricanes won't mean leaving the Raleigh area altogether. |
| The free-agent defenseman agreed Monday to a two-year contract worth $5.5 million with the New York Rangers. Following those negotiations, Ward's next financial transaction may revolve around selling his Michigan home. |
| Ward, 33, said he and his wife and two young children plan on keeping their Raleigh-area house as their offseason home. |
| "We love the area, we love the people. We love everything about living in North Carolina," said Ward, who scored the Canes' first goal in their 3-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals. |
| Shortly after the Stanley Cup playoffs ended, however, it became evident that the Hurricanes' top re-signing priorities did not include Ward, who joined the team in 2001 in a trade with the Detroit Red Wings. The Canes have $32.3 million in salary tied up with the 19 players under contract for next season, and the team intends to keep its payroll at $40 million. |
| Ward's new deal with the Rangers ($2.75 million a year) was more than half a million more a year than the Hurricanes were prepared to offer. He made $1.52 million last season. |
| "They made it clear at the draft where they stood," Ward said of the Hurricanes. "We just made a decision to explore the market. It was a tough decision, having been there five years." |
| Citing the potential for another Stanley Cup run in New York, Ward said also that the relatively lighter travel demands of the Rangers' 2006-07 schedule made the move appealing. |
| "At 33, my family had a bearing on the decision," he said. |
| Ward became the fourth Hurricanes player to leave from the championship team and will join Matt Cullen in New York. |
| Ward played in 71 games last season and notched career highs in regular-season goals (six), assists (19) and points (25). In the Canes' 25 playoff games, Ward scored twice and was credited with three assists. |
| Ward denied any hard feelings concerning Carolina's efforts to retain him. |
| "Honestly, it's not frustrating," he said. "With the new NHL, you understand there are so many other things that go into the makeup of a team and signing guys, taking into consideration the chemistry and the salary cap." |
| Having lost Ward, the Hurricanes are still waiting to hear whether veteran defenseman Glen Wesley, 37, will return or retire. Rick Curran, Wesley's agent, said Monday that Wesley had left town with his family for a short vacation and that a decision had not been made yet. |
| "When he gets back, we're going to have a chance to chat further," Curran said. |