Thunder Bay, Ont.- With the bidding war for Unrestricted Free Agents in full swing, the Thunder Bay Timberwolves will be sitting on the sidelines throughout the process.
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"We put a couple bids out there, but were beat out," said Timberwolves general manager, Blake Wendt. "We were on par with the numbers, just not the years. The guys we targeted were all picked up on three year contracts. Something we have no intentions of doing. Too much risk, and we're not in a position financially to be eating hefty contracts at length [i.e. Sheldon Souray who will be paid $12 million by the Timberwolves for this season, while currently sitting in the free agent pool]."
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When asked if the Souray situation was handcuffing the hockey club, he claimed it was not.
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"Obviously we'd rather not be in that contract the way were are," said Wendt. "It was a mistake to sign a player for that much and that length. Something we won't repeat. We cannot repeat. We have to be very responsible with our finances, and not get caught in paying players excessive amounts when you are getting nothing in return. The Souray deal taught us a lessen. But no, we're not any less involved in making this hockey club better. We're just being more responsible."
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The focus now for Thunder Bay will be the Entry Draft that begins on July 5th.
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"That's where we get better. The Draft is where champions are born and where teams that are serious about their long term stability comes from."
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