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Assistant Coach
Born: Chapleau, Ont.
Date: Jan. 16, 1979
Resides: Brampton, Ont.
Jason Ward joined the Brampton Battalion as a fulltime assistant coach prior to the start of the 2011-12 campaign after spending time behind the bench during two separate stints the previous season.
Ward, a first-round choice of the Montreal Canadiens in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, totaled 88 goals and 134 assists for 222 points in 204 OHL games with the Niagara Falls Thunder, Erie Otters, Windsor Spitfires and Plymouth Whalers.
He made his pro debut with the Fredericton Canadiens of the American Hockey League in 1997-98 after his OHL regular-season ended with the Spitfires, and played his first NHL game in 1999-00 with Montreal. He finished his 12-seaon pro career with 36 goals and 45 assists for 81 points in 336 NHL games with Montreal, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Ward received the Les Cunningham Award as the AHL’s Most Valuable Player in 2003 after leading all playoff scorers and guiding the Hamilton Bulldogs to the Calder Cup Finals. He was named winner of multiple awards, including Hamilton’s Man of the Year, Hamilton Spector Most Valuable Player, Molson Cup and the H.E.C.F.I. Community Leadership awards. Ward was named captain of the Bulldogs at the start of the 2004-05 campaign.
He played 373 games in the AHL with Fredericton, Quebec Citadelles, Hamilton, Norfolk Admirals and Adirondack Phantoms, scoring 111 goals and 159 assists for 270 points while being assessed 436 penalty minutes.
A two-time member of Canada’s national junior team, Ward and Battalion head coach Stan Butler earned silver medals in the 1999 World Junior Championship at Winnipeg after losing 3-2 in overtime to the Russians. Butler served as an assistant under Tom Renney, current head coach of the Edmonton Oilers.
Ward played minor hockey in Oshawa, Ont., before joining the junior A Oshawa Legionnaires in 1994-95. He was selected by Niagara Falls in the 1995 OHL Bantam Draft.
Ward resides in Brampton with his wife Kelly and sons Eric, Nathan and Lucas. Eric and Nathan both played organized hockey in Brampton.
