Cole McWard

Cole McWard (born June 9, 2001) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman for the Abbotsford Canucks in the American Hockey League (AHL) under contract as a prospect to the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL). McWard played collegiate hockey at The Ohio State University.

McWard was born on June 9, 2001, in Fenton, Missouri, to parents Tina and Patrick. He began skating at the age of three after watching his older brother Gannon started playing ice hockey. He first played organized ice hockey with the Meramec Sharks before playing on multiple single-A and double-AA hockey teams growing up.

Amateur

While playing with the St. Louis AAA Blues during the 2016–17 season, McWard was drafted 80th overall by the Tri-City Storm in the 2017 United States Hockey League Phase I draft. Although he remained with the Blues through 2018, he also played with the Westminster Wildcats at the Westminster Christian Academy and helped them to back-to-back state championships. As a result of his outstanding play, McWard was a member of Team USA that won the 2017 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament in Ostrava, Czech Republic.

McWard eventually made his USHL debut on December 28, 2017, as an affiliate list call-up but remained with the Wildcats and Blues for the remainder of the season. He finished the 2017–18 season with 14 goals and 16 assists for 30 points with the Wildcats. McWard joined the Tri-City Storm full-time during the 2018–19 season and scored his first career USHL goal on November 9, 2018. McWard finished his rookie season with the Storm accumulating one goal and five assists for six points through 48 games and was named to the USHL All-Academic Team. McWard returned to the Storm for the 2019–20 season, which was eventually shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to the league stopping play, McWard brokout with eight goals and 10 assists for 18 points through 48 games.

During the 2020–21 season, McWard committed to Ohio State University starting in 2021–22. At the time, he led all Storm defencemen with one goal and four assists over seven games. Following the commitment, McWard and Carter Mazur were named co-captains alongside alternate captains Matthew Knies, Nick Portz, Kyle Aucoin, and goaltender Todd Scott. On February 10, 2021, McWard was named the USHL's Defenseman of the Week after he led all Storm players with four goals over two games against the Sioux Falls Stampede. He finished the season with a career-high 14 goals and 19 assists for 33 points to rank fourth in scoring among all USHL defencemen. As a result, he was selected for the All-USHL Team Second Team.

Collegiate

McWard played for the Ohio State Buckeyes at Ohio State University from 2021 to 2023. There, he enrolled in the Fisher College of Business where he majored in business. McWard scored his first collegiate point, an assist, on October 15 during a game against the UConn Huskies. He later scored his first collegiate goal on January 1 against the LIU Sharks. McWard finished his freshman season at OSU with four goals and 12 assists for 16 points through 36 games. He was also recognised as an Ohio State Scholar-Athlete. Prior to his sophomore season, McWard attended the New Jersey Devils development camp as a free agent invitee but he returned to the Buckeyes for the 2022–23 NCAA season. In his sophomore season, McWard continued to build off his successful freshman season. By early December, he had accumulated two goals and three assists and was recognized as the Big Ten Third Star of the Week.

Professional

On April 4, 2023, after his sophomore season at Ohio State concluded, McWard signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks. Two days following the signing, McWard made his NHL debut with the Canucks against the Chicago Blackhawks. He scored his first career NHL goal in his second career game against the Calgary Flames on April 9.