Ward willing to accept added pressure

With a quick stroke of the pen, Canes goaltender Cam Ward signed a new six-year contract that will pay him an average of $6.3 million a season. But while Ward is financially secure, he also is fully aware what a big contract entails. "I realize I'm being paid to be an elite goaltender," he said today. "I realize there's added pressure that always comes with something like this. "I do not want to shy away from it.  If anything, I want to rise to the occasion." Some would say Ward, the Canes' first-round draft pick in 2002,  already has reached that status. He's won a Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy for being the playoff MVP. He's set franchise records for wins and shutouts in a season. He may play for Team Canada in the upcoming Vancouver Olympics. Last season, as the Canes surged into the playoffs, Ward was named the NHL's player of the month for March. The top player, not just the top goaltender. "There&...