Despite their recent struggles, the Thunder Bay Timberwolves are a far cry from the 9-win hockey club of two seasons ago.
>>>As Blake Wendt prepares his team for an extended season, the general manager sat down with CBC Thunder Bay for a rare 1-on-1 interview.
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Q: The direction of your organization has been a dramatic move forward in only a couple seasons since you've been at the helm. When you moved to Thunder Bay for the 2007-08 season, you finished dead last with nine wins. The next season you win twenty more. Then last season you make the playoffs for the first time and lose in seven games in the first round to Denver. This season you're one of the top clubs in the CCHL. How do you explain the turn around in what many view as a short period of time?
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A: Simply put, alot of work. When I took over, we needed to completely wipe the slate clean. There were little to no quality prospects in the system. Thus there was no future and nothing to look forward to. We had to start there. We moved high quality players out and brought in high quality prospects and a quanity of draft picks. As we built our foundation through the draft, we also started bringing pieces in here and there that would accent the youth coming up. We've stuck with the plan for the most part and we are where we want to be as we move forward.
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Q: Where have you deterred from the plan?
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A: This season kind of snuck up on us. We knew we'd be better. But we did not think we would be in the position we are in. With that, we changed gears some and added pieces to help with moving deep into the playoffs. We also added salaries while not moving players under contract out. So financially we've taken a hit.
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Q: How have you addressed the additional costs coming next season with the boost in pay for restricted free agents?
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A: We haven't addressed it in the sense that we're moving guys now to prepare for it. We know what our payroll roughly looks like for next season with the current players we have and the ones coming up. It's not a number we're comfortable with honestly. So likely guys will be moved in the offseason. But for the purposes of addressing that issue now? No. Our focus is success this season.
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Q: Does that mean that you are set with the current lineup you have to make a run in the playoffs?
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A: I wouldn't say set in stone. But I like this group alot as is, and feel completely comfortable with taking them deep into the playoffs.
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Q: The Timberwolves have struggled since the 41-game mark of the season. This after going 11 straight without a loss. Does a 2-6 record immediately following that streak concern you in regards to the mental makeup of this team?
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A: No. Absolutely not. Every team in these league goes through stretches of losses and stretches of success. Ours happened to coincide with each other. Our losses have not been a result of a lack of effort. Only one of them were we even outshot. The last one [against Portland], we outshot them 54-25. We've come up against solid goaltending and like Sharpie [Patrick Sharp] said the other day, we're just not getting the same bounces our way that we had. Sometimes the hockey gods are not on your side. But I'm not worried about not finding that success again.
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Q: Like the way that you've built up your club through the draft, Copenhagen has done much the same. They, like you are a top club in the league in a short period of time and have aspirations this season of a championship. How do you compare each others arsenals?
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A: First off, Bruce [Niblett, Crusaders GM] has done alot of things right. He's been patient with the process and drafted alot of high quality players throughout the draft. Anyone can fail a hockey season and pick a unanimous #1. We both have. But it takes alot of work, knowledge and luck to draft those studs thoughout the draft. Bruce has done that. To compare our clubs? Our rosters are deep and depth charts deeper. Successful teams come and go, but I see Copenhagen being one of our biggest rivals consistently for a very long time.
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Q: A typical trade offer either being made or asked about. How quickly does it take to strike a deal?
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A: There is nothing typical from one offer to the next. Usually I like to counter any offer made. But sometimes there's just no meat on the bone to work around. Some deals are quick and there are no counters made. Some take awhile to materialize. Even from one season to the next. But there is nothing typical.
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Q: How often are prospects in the Thunder Bay system evaluated?
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A: On a constant basis. Maybe not game-by-game, but we have our fingers on the pulse of our prospects. They are constantly monitored.
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Q: Who are you most impressed with this season and in their overall development?
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A: A couple that have struck me this season are Michael Latta in Guelph [Storm, OHL] and Anders Lee at Notre Dame [NCAA]. Latta's game has really broadened from when we drafted him. He's a real solid player that is consistent in all areas of his game. He brings alot more to the table than what we even seen when we drafted him. Lee is just an all-around stud. His high school game was stellar when we drafted him. But like everyone taken out of high school is tough to really read how good they really are. Anders excelled at the next level in the USHL, where alot of elite players end of struggling to adjust. At Notre Dame he keeps adjusting and overcoming and really has exploded there. Not typical of freshmen coming in at any NCAA school.
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CBC: Thank you for your time and good luck this season.
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Wendt: You're welcome. Thanks for having me.
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