 Alternate captain Steve Ward is this week's player in “Breaking the Ice with…” The feature will be a season long series on plymouthwhalers.com and showcase a different Whaler each week so we can get to know them better.
Selected in the 4th round (70th overall) in the 2002 OHL Draft by the Sarnia Sting, Ward was acquired on September 22, 2004 for Jordan Grant and a 9th round draft pick in 2005. Ward is the only Canadian of the four players serving as captains this year. Ward took a few minutes before practice to help us break the ice. » On scoring two goals Saturday vs. Toronto (11/5)… “Those were my first two of the year, but I got two last year against Saginaw. It’s good getting the first two out of the way.” » On the greatest lesson he has learned through hockey… “I think you just got to stick with it. I mean everybody says this, but you really just can’t let people get you down. I think you just have to be confident in your ability. If you know you can do it, just do it. I had a tough time my first year, I wasn’t getting played a lot. I didn’t know if that team had the most confidence in me. I kind of stuck with it. When I got traded here, it was just like a breath of fresh air. I knew Mike (Vellucci) had confidence in me and he told me that they wanted to try to get me and they had tried before. I just kind of stuck with it and now I can’t ask for much more. I’m in a great situation here.” » On the best advice he has ever been given… “I think my parents have always told me to just stick with it. My dad was always my biggest supporter and he was sometimes my biggest enemy in hockey. He would always want me to do the extra stuff, and sometimes when you’re younger you might not want to do it, but I think it has only helped me now. He always told me to stick with it, just work on the little things, just get that extra work in. I mean, it’s only an hour, two hours out of your time and then you’re done and you benefit from it.” » On how he started playing hockey… “It was actually my parents. This is the story I heard. They had asked me, ‘Do you want to play hockey?’ and I guess at first I said, ‘No, I didn’t want to.’ So they kind of dropped it and I guess I went up to them one day and just said, ‘Okay, I want to play hockey now.’ I guess I was six years old and they put me in and I’ve kind of never looked back.” » On who has influenced him the most in hockey… “I think I would have to say my parents. I mean, I have had some coaches who have taught me a lot, but my parents have always been my backbone. They have always been there through everything.”  » On his youth hockey highlight…
“Youth hockey highlight would probably be going to the Quebec tournament. It’s a big tournament with teams from all over Canada, the States, even European teams were there. That whole year was just a great year. We had an awesome team. There’s a bunch of guys from that team that are playing in the ‘O’ right now.” » On his most memorable goal… “Of my career, I think it probably would be my first year, my underage year, when I got called up to Sarnia and I scored in the playoffs. That was a pretty big goal. Last year, I scored to tie the game with I think it was under 10 seconds left at Saginaw. That was pretty big too.” » On his most embarrassing hockey moment… “Probably in minor hockey when I tried to hip-check someone and missed them and hit the boards. I had to go to the hospital afterwards because I thought I broke my tailbone.” » On his best moment in a Whalers' uniform… “My best moment in a Whalers’ uniform, unfortunately I can’t say much about our playoff run last year, but I’d like to talk about something like that. I think probably just a couple of the big wins we had last year. I mean, even this year, winning against Kitchener, that was a huge game. It did a lot for our confidence. Beating London last year was a big game at the end of the year.” » On being traded from Sarnia … “I was actually in the weight room working out with the guys and the assistant coach just called me out and he said, you know, 'We need to talk to you in the office.’ I didn’t think that was what was going to happen. I had no idea really because we had just traded away someone that day and everyone was still kind of in shock about that and they just called me in and said, ‘We traded you to Plymouth this afternoon and we have Mike (Vellucci) on the phone in the conference room if you want to go in there and talk to him.’ It was a shock.” » On adjusting to a new team… “It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. At first, like I said, I was shocked, I had grown pretty close to some of the guys on that team and then you’re in a whole new setting. I mean, it was pretty easy because I like the guys on the team and there are some good guys here.”  » On living with a billet family…
“You get used to it. My first year, I mean I think everybody in their first year, probably gets a little homesick because they’re not used to it. This is my third year now away from home. You get used to living away from home. My parents come to most of the games, so I see them on weekends and games during the week or whatever. We get to go home for Christmas. I think you just get used to seeing your parents less.” » On being so involved in the community… “I’m here in the mornings, I take online classes. I like getting out into the community and talking to little kids. I mean, it’s pretty cool when you think about it, someone my age and you have little kids running up to you asking for your autograph and stuff like that. I don’t know if there’s one memorable moment, but it’s always neat when you go to the schools and they have little pictures drawn for you and then there’s thank-you cards and they draw pictures of whales for you and stuff. I don’t know, it’s pretty neat.” » On the player he tries to model his game after… “I don’t know if there’s one player, I mean, my favorite player is Mario Lemieux. I think someone like Scott Niedermeyer, who is a puck rushing defenseman, I try and model my play after him.” » On the toughest player he has played against… “I think probably someone like Jeff Carter. I mean I was the only young defenseman when I played him. My first game was actually against the Soo in the Soo. I know whenever he came out on the ice, they tried to get me off the ice and get the older guys out there. He could just control games when he wanted to. There were a couple times that I would get stuck out there against him and I was just like, ‘Oh, no.’” » On his pre-game routine… “I like getting my pre-game nap in and I’m pretty superstitious, so if I do something and it works and I have a good game, then I’ll stick with it. I know me and (Zack) Shepley, we started doing our own little stretch and doing some sprints after the team stretch and we both kind of just stuck with it because we both have been playing pretty good hockey.” » On his jersey number #26… “Well, 6, I’ve always had a 6 in my number. That was the first number I was given when I played house league. I was given #6 and I went from 6 to 16 and 16 again and back to 6, 96, 62, so it’s just kind of my thing. I have to have a 6 in my number.” » On his nicknames… “Wardo, Wardy, nothing too funny.” » On what he would do if he didn't play hockey… “If I wasn’t a hockey player I think I would be going to school somewhere. I mean, I’m taking some classes online, but I really don’t know what I would be doing. I can’t really think of something. I’m in a marketing class. I’d like to get into business. I think marketing is interesting. I like the one class I am in right now, it’s like an intro to marketing class. It’s pretty interesting and I like how the course is set up. The instructor is good, even though I’ve never met her. You have to go to the discussion board and she always posts and replies to things that we have said. She seems like a really good teacher. I have an online test on the 19th of this month, but I’m getting it switched because if you’re outside of three hours away or three-and-a-half, you get to write it off campus, so I’m going to write it in Windsor. It’s through York University back home.” » On the funniest thing that has happened on the road… “We always have fun on the road. We do leaners where you put the garbage can on the door. I remember we turned over someone’s bed. I mean turned their whole bed just completely upside down, the frame and everything. So the mattress ended up on the ground and the frame was on top. I don’t know, it was just funny, good times on the road.” » On his funniest teammate… “This year I think it’s (Ryan) Stephenson. I know I think probably everybody has said that so far. I’ve never seen someone who always has a comeback for everything. You try to make fun of the guy or joke around with him and he always has a comeback with everybody all the time. I don’t know, he’s pretty funny.” » On being named an alternate captain… “I knew I came in last year and I played a lot bigger role and I knew coming into this year that I would be one of the older guys and I wanted to step up my leadership role and I wanted to try to be a leader on this team. It means a ton to me. I was an assistant, you know, through minor hockey, but to be named on a team like this is a pretty big honor.” » On what he brings to the team… “I think this year I’ve got to be a leader. I think I have to be someone that they can look to that will step up when something needs to be done. Either play great defensively or jump into the rush or just little things. You know, me and (Mike) Letizia have talked about it. I think we just need to try to step it up a bit. More than we did last year, play a bigger leadership role and just kind of try and help lead this defense. I mean, we have a solid group of guys back there and we just have to keep going how we’re going.” » On what reality show he would be on… “A reality show, man, I have no idea. We were talking about, me and my roommate Joe (Gaynor), were talking about how we should start a reality show with our billets just because there is always something going on in that house, whether it’s our friends over or our billet daughter’s friends over. There’s always something funny going on there. I don’t know, I think a reality show about hockey, something like this, following a team around like us, I think would be pretty funny. I think we have a pretty funny group of guys and it’s just the little things that guys say in the room and guys do on the road and the bus. I think it could be a pretty funny show.” » On the rule changes in hockey… “I think the rule changes have helped me because I’m more of a skater than anything and guys not being able to hang on is a good thing for me, if I try to jump into the play. I mean, it has gotten a lot tougher for the defense because forwards can’t be held up when they dump it in and sometimes it is open season on us when you go back to get the puck, you just know you’re going to get nailed. I think the rule changes have helped, I think they have opened up the game a bit and I think that’s what they were looking to do with the rule changes and they have done that. As for any changes, I like how they are right now, I think I would do what the NHL has done and move the blue line back and the goal line back to make the end zones a little bigger. I’m sure they would’ve done that if they had more time. I think the rules are ok. It’s a little hard getting used to knowing you can’t tie up a guy in the corner, but you have to get used to it.” » On what other five players he would want on the ice with him… “I’d put Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, and geez, I’m trying to think of one of the older players. Maybe someone like a Gordie Howe or someone like that. Goalie would probably be Martin Brodeur and my defense partner would be Bobby Orr.” -Natalie Shaver, November 8th, 2005- -- Other Players' "Breaking the Ice" Features -- | 
