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Keith Ballard was dealt to the Springfield Homers along with prospect goaltender Marco Cousineau in exchange for Springfield's 5th round pick in this summers Entry Draft.
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The Baudette, Minnesota-native has worn the 'C' for the Timberwolves since being named captain in the summer of 2008. He took over for Joe Thornton who served as the club's inaugural leader in 2007 until his trade in early 2008. Thunder Bay finished out the 2007-08 without a captain and went with three alternates instead.
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"It was not an easy trek to get to this day," said Timberwolves GM Blake Wendt who has been rather active on the trade front for the past couple of days. "Keith was our leader, and longest serving captain in our short history. He was very well respected and a vocal leader in the dressing room and on the bench. In the Thunder Bay community he was of course very active and the face of the Timberwolves. It saddens me that we have mutually agreed to move on. We wanted to find the ice-time and right fit that wasn't going to happen here to be honest. Keith was appreciative of this and we wish all the best in Springfield."
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Ballard played 80 games last season and racked up 7 goals and 26 assists for 33 points. He was a +30 while being paired most of the season on the number one unit with Anton Volchenkov. He along with Nick Schultz and Volchenkov were top-10 in the playoffs in blocked shots.
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The Timberwolves have not yet named a new captain and likely will wait until training camp in August to make any announcement. Players like Patrick Sharp and Mike Fisher are believed to be the front runners as they served as Ballard's alternates all of last season. Also considered could be Rick Nash, Ales Hemsky, possibly Marian Gaborik or even dark horses like John Tavares or Matt Duchene.
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