Ford firing on all cylinders after Jets recall

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This article was published 30/01/2025 (233 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BOSTON — Parker Ford was in a deep sleep, though this jarring phone call was one he’d been waiting for his entire life.

As he awoke in a hotel room in the Chicago suburbs preparing to suit up for the Manitoba Moose on Wednesday night, the voice on the other end of the line told him he’d been recalled by the Winnipeg Jets.

This was not a dream though, it was very much a reality.

“We were on a road trip and I was actually pre-game napping and my phone started ringing,” Ford said after the morning skate on Thursday. “I thought it was my alarm, but it was the call. Yeah, just pure joy in the moment.”

Adding to the storybook nature of the circumstances was that the Jets play the Boston Bruins on Thursday at TD Garden, which meant he would have the support of multiple friends and family members as he made his NHL debut.

That joy extended to a phone call to his parents, who made the roughly 90-minute trek to Boston from his hometown of Wakefield, R.I., to share in the monumental moment.

As he spoke Thursday, Ford expressed his gratitude to his folks for the sacrifices they made over the years.

“My whole family, extended family, friends and coaches, they all believed in me from Day 1 and made me believe in myself,” said Ford. “It’s super special. I wasn’t sure I was coming here (to Boston), but when I heard that on the call, I was smiling ear to ear, for sure.”

Ford, now 24, grew up a fan of the Bruins and can pinpoint the moment hockey became his passion.

“Yeah, I was 10 or 11 years old and that was the first time I really fell in love with hockey. Seeing that Cup run,” said Ford, referring to the Bruins Stanley Cup victory in June of 2011.

As for his favourite Bruins player, that was an easy choice.

“Patrice Bergeron,” said Ford. “I was always a centre growing up and he always played the game the right way, really. I really liked his game.”

Ford rounded out that game during four seasons of NCAA hockey with the Providence College Friars, where he served as a co-captain during his senior season.

“Those were a great four years, I really developed as a person and a player there,” said Ford. “I met some of my best friends there. The hockey was great and I got to play a bunch of Boston schools, so it was probably the best four years of my life.”

In 131 career games with the Friars, Ford had 41 goals and 53 assists for 94 points and also suited up for Team USA at the 2020 World Junior Hockey Championship.

“Nah, I’m not surprised. I’m surprised it’s taken this long, to be honest,” Friars head coach Nate Leaman said Thursday. “He always showed up to play hard and the right way. He always made a big impact on the game. He competes. Good on the forecheck, very strong for his size and he’s got a good release.

“For me, he was always a winning hockey player.”

Leaman spoke at length about how Ford was able to overcome some of the obstacles put in front of him and not take on a woe-is-me attitude while riding the buses and playing in the minors.

He also applauded him for battling through concerns about his size that the 5-10, 180-pound Ford has faced for as long as he can remember.

“When he was in college, there were a lot of doubters,” said Leaman. ” Everyone watched him and was intrigued, but ultimately there were some doubters. Winnipeg was one team that always believed in him.”

Ford was scouted heavily by Mark White and after his junior year, the player informed the Jets it was important for him to finish school and go back for his senior season.

At its conclusion, Ford inked a two-year entry-level deal with the organization in March of 2023.

The feisty forward appeared in eight games with the Moose that spring on an amateur tryout offer and took his taste of the pro game into his first NHL training camp fall and turned heads throughout.

Ultimately, Ford was the last forward sent to the Moose, where he enjoyed an excellent season, producing 18 goals and 41 points in 72 games.

He was rewarded with his first NHL recall in April but didn’t appear in the Jets regular-season finale.

The silver lining was that it pushed the NHL debut to Thursday night in Boston.

“It’s a surreal moment stepping out there,” said Ford, noting he took some time to soak in the moment and look at the banners that hang inside TD Garden.

Morgan Barron got hurt late in the third period of Tuesday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens, suffering an upper-body injury after delivering a punishing check to Kirby Dach.

Barron was placed on injured reserve and is officially listed as week-to-week, so that opened up a spot on the Jets’ fourth line as they continue a three-game road trip that wraps up Saturday against the Washington Capitals.

Jets head coach Scott Arniel made the decision to insert Ford alongside David Gustafsson and Alex Iafallo and it wasn’t simply for sentimental reasons.

Ford had scored seven goals in his previous nine games for a Moose team that’s having trouble putting the puck in the net this season.

“He’s a kid that every opportunity, he’s made the most of it” said Arniel. “He works hard, he’s a competitive kid. He’s not big in stature, but he plays hard. That’s kind of why we wanted him in this building.”

Ford plays a robust game and his enthusiasm is contagious.

“It’s just really exciting,” said Jets forward Cole Perfetti. “It takes a lifetime of hard work to get to the NHL. It’s a dream come true. Everyone can relate, I remember how I felt in that first game. It’s the coolest thing in the world.

“To do that against his home team, it makes it even cooler.”

Having the stars align for the debut is something that will make the occasion even more memorable, but Ford isn’t going to be happy with just getting his name in the NHL register.

This is merely the next step in his inspirational journey and he’s hoping that there will be many more entries to come.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @WiebesWorld