On the Forecheck
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It’s Ward’s World
by Forechecker on 10/22/08 at 11:49 PM ET
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With Jason Arnott and Nick Tarnasky set to join the Nashville Predators lineup Thursday against Calgary, the numbers game will force Barry Trotz into some tough roster decisions. Either promising rookies or veterans who played regularly last year are going to sit in the press box. But one guy in that mix isn’t just likely to make the lineup, but he may well get promoted to the top line; Joel Ward, the surprise coming out of training camp who continues to make an impact in the regular season.
Per John Glennon’s update this afternoon at the Tennessean:
Predators coach Barry Trotz said Wednesday the team has told Ward, who’s been living in a hotel ever since the start of training camp, to start looking for more permanent housing….
Ward also found himself in a surprising position during Wednesday’s practice: on the team’s first line, alongside Jason Arnott and J.P. Dumont.
The general opinion about Ward was that he’d be a marginal, 3rd- or 4th-line role player should he even make the Nashville roster. Throughout the exhibition season and now six games into the regular campaign, however, Ward has shown a useful combination of defensive commitment (1st among team forwards in Blocked Shots), physical presence working the puck along the boards, and opportunistic offense (2 goals on 11 shots in just 8:41 of even-strength ice time per game).
Basically, he’s capitalized on every opportunity that’s been placed in front of him in Nashville, and if indeed he gets a cameo on the top line, the next few games suddenly have a new, captivating storyline worth following. Having a relatively unknown player going like this early in the season has got to be Barry Trotz’s dream; by rewarding the effort and results that Ward produces, a crystal-clear message gets sent to the rest of the squad that hard work carries individual, as well as team benefits.
All Joel Ward has to do is look at Dan Ellis, who just a year ago seemed to be in a very similar situation, but is now the #1 goaltender on a team bidding for a fifth consecutive playoff berth. At 27 years of age, Ward was probably running out of chances to land a regular NHL job. While it’s still the early part of the season, he’s done a heck of a job carving a spot for himself here in Nashville.
Filed in: Nashville Predators | On the Forecheck | Permalink
Tags: Joel+Ward,
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