NotOpie
"Puck don't lie"
Ward has played only 25 games so far this year so unlike prior seasons, he's relatively fresh. On top of that, he's coming off of a recent bye week and the all-star break.
Canes have 31 games left. Let's say they give Ward 23 and Darling 8. That still puts Ward at only 48 games, his lowest total in years. Even if he played all 31 (which he won't), he'll have played less than last season, where he played 61. At this point, I'm not too worried about riding Ward until he breaks.
So doesn't "breaking Ward", get rid of Ward? There, problem solved....