Ward took Krusher's soul - the signs were there before both Ward fights when he had that stonker against Chilemba.
I've watched the fight earlier and whilst it was a good fight, kov didn't quite seem to be himself and by the last two rounds his defence was dropping and you could tell that it wasn't going to be long before Alvarez upset the applecart. Maybe the ward fights did take something from kov and he will never be the same