Aaron Ward Articles - INSIDE THE BRUINS: Ward-ing off boo birds won't be easy

INSIDE THE BRUINS: Ward-ing off boo birds won't be easy

September 14, 2007

Source: Mick Colageo | South Coast Today

BOSTON — Bruins fans have always had their blue-line fall guy, the defenseman who took the heat in the blame game.

In the 1980's, it was "Mad" Mike Milbury. In the 90's, it was Glen "Over the net in double overtime" Wesley. And in the new millennium, it was Hal "Too nice a guy" Gill.

None of it was fair, of course. All three were completely different players, but they shared three things in common: a media-friendly personality, the fact the Bruins were a better hockey team when they were in the lineup and, unfortunately for them, the misfortune of becoming symbolic of particular team failures.

The heir apparent is Aaron Ward, a brief Bruin of 20 games whose counts against him include his $2.75 million hit against the salary cap and his inappropriate casting as a top-three defenseman on a team that was second-worst last season at keeping the puck out of its net. Ward's willingness to take a leadership role upon his arrival spared captain Zdeno Chara, and front-liners Patrice Bergeron and Marc Savard, from same-old, same-olds with the media.

But his effort as a spokesman backfired, especially in light of the result on the ice.

"It's funny. That's a double-edged sword, though, because I'm finding that, in the seven weeks I was here, I did enough talking in the media that — I wouldn't say I'm a premier player, I like to talk about the game, I have no problem with that — and sometimes, when things are going wrong and your name's out there in the paper, you associate yourself with what's going on. You get a bull's eye," said Ward after Thursday's skate at TD Banknorth Garden. "And I found out this summer that I'm key enemy No. 1 right now, not an admired guy here in Boston. When you're associated with something that goes wrong, you understand that that goes with the game."

Unrealistic expectations for defensemen is common in Boston — after Chara, Ward is the only player whose resume doesn't peg him for depth or entry-level duty. But demands on the 34-year-old are necessarily higher because he came to Boston in a Feb. 27 trade with the New York Rangers for Paul Mara, whom general manager Peter Chiarelli had made a $3 million player after acquiring him from Phoenix in 2006, only to realize Mara is a power-play specialist whose 5-on-5 play hovers slightly below sea level on the plus-minus meter.

So Chiarelli swapped problems with Rangers GM Glen Sather, who had to deal Ward on the heels of the latter's spat with Jaromir Jagr. Energized by his trade to Boston, Ward became synonymous with a season that fell apart with season-ending injuries to top-line wingers P.J. Axelsson and Glen Murray. The new guy was at the scene of the crime, his voice was on sound bites and his words in the papers.

Naturally, he became a focal point for the angry consumers of Bruins hockey.

"It's difficult coming in with seven weeks (to go) because you're always worried about upsetting the balance of the locker room," Ward said. "You don't know the role of the previous you got traded for on the team. You don't know the existing components to the team.

"No matter what happens, there's a hierarchy in the locker room. There's the leaders and there's the guys that kind of follow. You want to be a guy that follows, but as a veteran you want to think you're going to have some effect on the direction so, starting off fresh right now, it really gives me an idea where guys are. You get personalities away from the intensity of the game."

Training camp should do Ward as much good as it will head coach Claude Julien, who indicates a preference for four alternates to rotate wearing the "A" on their jerseys rather than a static twosome augmenting Chara's captaincy. It would figure, on the surface, that the outspoken Ward would make a perfect alternate captain, considering the wealth of experience he brings as the member of Detroit's 1997 and Carolina's 2006 Stanley Cup champions.

His own appetite for a role, though, is more cautious in light of what went wrong last spring.

"For me right now, it's reestablishing myself here in Boston, making some sort of positive impact on the team, on the city. Get this team back in the right direction," he said. "I understand where some people are disheartened the way things have gone with the Bruins, but there's a definite attempt, an honest attempt, (from) the players in the locker room, the management upstairs, everybody top to bottom, to fix this, go in the right direction and reestablish our connection with what being a Boston Bruin is."

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