During the 1956-57 season defenseman Don Ward split his time between Senior hockey and the American Hockey League's Buffalo Bisons. During his first full-season as a professional Ward also played with the Bisons but also appeared in the National Hockey League briefly.
Ward suited up with the Chicago Black Hawks for three games in 1957-58 but was unable to register a point. All of the next campaign was spent in the minor leagues with the Calgary Stampeders but the Boston Bruins acquired him via the Inter-League Draft on June 9, 1959. Ward joined the Bruins and played 31 games on their blue line and registered the only point of his NHL career when he chipped in an assist. When his time with the Bruins ended, so did his NHL playing days.
After a season with the Winnipeg Warriors, he moved on to the Seattle Totems of the Western Hockey League where he settled in for a long, rewarding stretch. Over the next eleven seasons Ward was a regular part of the Totems defense unit and provided the team with toughness from the back-line racking up 1213 penalty minutes, good for fifth all-time in the WHL.
In 1972, after 11 seasons in Seattle, Ward left the club and moved on to the Greensboro Generals of the Eastern Hockey League for his final season as a player. Ward played just 13 games for the Generals before taking his final lap around the rink.
