Dixon Ward

Dixon McRae Ward III (born September 23, 1968) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He was drafted in the seventh round, 128th overall, by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1988 NHL entry draft. Ward spent his NHL career with the Canucks, Los Angeles Kings, Toronto Maple Leafs, Buffalo Sabres, Boston Bruins, and New York Rangers. In his NHL career, Ward appeared in 537 games, scoring 95 goals and adding 129 assists.

Personal life Ward was born on September 23, 1968, in Leduc, Alberta, Canada, to Dixon Ward II. His father was a goaltender with the senior Edmonton Movers and a scout for the Medicine Hat Tigers. Both Dixon and his younger brother Colin played collegiate ice hockey. Ward's son Taylor is also a professional hockey player.

Career Junior As a youth, Ward played two seasons with the Red Deer Rustlers in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. He finished the season with 131 points and was recognised as team MVP. Prior to his freshman season at UND, Ward was drafted in the seventh round of the 1988 NHL entry draft by the Vancouver Canucks.

Collegiate Ward spent four seasons with the North Dakota Fighting Sioux at UND while earning a degree in journalism.

While playing the majority of his freshman season with a hand cast, Ward scored eight goals and nine assists through 37 games. He scored his first collegiate goal on November 26, 1988, against the Denver Pioneers. During the opening round of the 1988 Great Lakes Invitational tournament, Ward recorded his first collegiate hat-trick. He finished the season as the team's Most Improved Player. Ward improved drastically in his sophomore season and finished with a career-best 35 goals and 69 points.

At the end of his college career, Ward set numerous program records, including becoming the first Sioux player to record 100 goals and 100 assists. He also ranked second all-time in scoring with 219 points, although this record was later surpassed by Greg Johnson.

Professional After earning his journalism degree from UND, Ward signed a $150,000 contract with the Canucks for the 1992–93 season. He made his NHL debut on October 6, 1992, against the Edmonton Oilers and recorded an assist on Greg Adams' goal. Ward wore jersey number 17 in his debut, as his usual jersey number has been retired by the Canucks. He recorded two more points over the Canucks' next two games to help them start the 1992–93 season with a perfect 3-0-0 record. Ward scored his first career NHL goal on October 16 against the Winnipeg Jets to help lead the Canucks to a 6–2 win. He continued to score through October and November and tallied 10 points through his first 10 games. By mid-December, Ward had tallied 10 goals and 12 assists for 22 points through 26 games. George McPhee, the team's director of operations, praised Ward's quick acclimation into the Canucks lineup. He was on pace to best the Canucks' rookie scoring record before suffering an ankle injury on March 14, 1993, during a game against the Calgary Flames. Even once he recovered, Ward struggled to return to the Canucks lineup due to an abundance of qualified players. He finished his rookie season with 22 goals and 30 assists for 52 points. However, while he spent most of training camp on the left wing, an impromptu signing shifted him into a right wing role. After struggling in this position, Ward was sat out for the third game of the season. Shortly after returning to the Canucks' lineup, Ward was suspended for three games and fined $500 for illegially checking Gary Roberts. Following the suspension, Ward was deployed as a centreman for the Canucks' fourth line to replace an injured player. He was eventually rotated back into a top-six role at the end of October after Pavel Bure suffered a groin injury. Ward's continued struggles in his sophomore season resulted in a mid-season trade to the Los Angeles Kings. Before the start of the 1994–95 season, Ward was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Post-playing career As of 2010, Ward is a VP with the Okanagan Hockey School in Penticton, BC.

Awards and honors Award Year Ref All-WCHA Second Team 1990–91 All-WCHA Second Team 1991–92 Jack A. Butterfield Trophy 1995–96 Calder Cup (Rochester Americans) 1995–96

Career statistics Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1986–87 Red Deer Rustlers AJHL 59 46 40 86 153 20 11 11 22 16 1987–88 Red Deer Rustlers AJHL 51 60 71 131 167 — — — — — 1988–89 University of North Dakota WCHA 37 8 9 17 26 — — — — — 1989–90 University of North Dakota WCHA 45 35 34 69 44 — — — — — 1990–91 University of North Dakota WCHA 43 34 35 69 84 — — — — — 1991–92 University of North Dakota WCHA 38 33 31 64 90 — — — — — 1992–93 Vancouver Canucks NHL 70 22 30 52 82 9 2 3 5 0 1993–94 Vancouver Canucks NHL 33 6 1 7 37 — — — — — 1993–94 Los Angeles Kings NHL 34 6 2 8 45 — — — — — 1994–95 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 22 0 3 3 31 — — — — — 1994–95 St. John's Maple Leafs AHL 6 3 3 6 19 — — — — — 1994–95 Detroit Vipers IHL 7 3 6 9 7 5 3 0 3 7 1995–96 Buffalo Sabres NHL 8 2 2 4 6 — — — — — 1995–96 Rochester Americans AHL 71 38 56 94 74 19 11 24 35 8 1996–97 Buffalo Sabres NHL 79 13 32 45 36 12 2 3 5 6 1997–98 Buffalo Sabres NHL 71 10 13 23 42 15 3 8 11 6 1998–99 Buffalo Sabres NHL 78 20 24 44 44 21 7 5 12 32 1999–2000 Buffalo Sabres NHL 71 11 9 20 41 5 0 1 1 2 2000–01 Boston Bruins NHL 63 5 13 18 65 — — — — — 2001–02 SC Langnau NLA 23 8 19 27 38 — — — — — 2002–03 New York Rangers NHL 8 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2002–03 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 67 23 41 64 108 — — — — — 2003–04 SC Rapperswil–Jona NLA 35 22 11 33 44 — — — — — NHL totals 537 95 129 224 431 62 14 20 34 46