Cam Ward hoping to sign extension with Hurricanes: 'Nowhere else I want to be'
Cam Ward wants to stay with the only NHL team he's ever played for.
One of only two remaining players from the 2006 Stanley Cup championship - along with captain Eric Staal - the Carolina Hurricanes goaltender is entering the final year of his contract and doesn't appear to have a desire to see what life is like elsewhere around the league.
"Obviously, it's no secret I love being here and there's nowhere else I want to be," Ward told Chip Alexander of the News & Observer. "In a perfect world I'd like to have something done, but there's no pressure. I've just got to prepare myself for a great year, not just for myself but for the team. It's team first. We want to be ready."
Ward will make $6.3 million in 2015-16, with his six-year deal set to expire next summer. It's a contract the Hurricanes have been rumored to have been looking to jettison in recent years, based on Ward's increasing age and steadily decreasing save percentage.
The 31-year-old posted a record of 22-24-5 this past season, with a save percentage of .910, equal to his career average. It's a far cry from his career-high mark of .923, and his playoff-MVP performance as a rookie during that run to the Cup in '06, one of only two postseason appearances.
Further complicating matters is the addition of Eddie Lack earlier this summer, who could supplant Ward as the starter as he arrives from Vancouver carrying a much more reasonable cap hit ($1.15 million).
Ward, for his part, is eager to embrace the challenge, and feels he can still play at a high level.
"From what I understand he's a great guy and obviously will push (me) and vice versa," Ward said. "It will be a similar situation to last year (when Anton Khudobin served as backup). Nothing is given to me. You've got to go out there and earn your ice time and right to play.
"I still think I've got a lot of game left in me, to be at the elite level. It's up to me to go out there and prove it."