Mavs get bigger free agent pool to choose from

The Missouri Mavericks will have one less conference rival to worry about in their inaugural season.
And the Independence entry into the Central Hockey League will have more players to choose from starting now.
The Oklahoma City Blazers, apart of the Northern Conference, Northeast Division, folded, according to the Central Hockey League. The New Mexico Scorpions, of the Southern Conference, have also suspended operations for the 2009-10 season.
The Scorpions have been in trouble for months, according to the release, but the team and league’s efforts “fell short” in finding a home in Rio Rancho, NM.
The Blazers, on the other hand, have rumors circulating about them possibly playing in the American Hockey League. Missouri Mavericks general manager Brent Thiessen said the Blazers are hoping to play in the AHL the year after next.
CHL Commissioner Duane Lewis was not happy at the sudden announcement.
“We feel hurt by this late and surprising announcement,” he said in the league’s statement. “Representatives from our office have traveled to meet with team and city officials to assist and offer advice towards the Blazers’ next lease, which turns out wasn’t for a CHL team. This decision did not happen overnight, and to continue to work on the schedule and wait until July to inform us is disappointing.”
Thiessen was disappointed by the news, but admitted it was bittersweet, as all Blazers and Scorpions players become free agents effective immediately.
“It’s sad news,” Thiessen said. “You never want to see teams go. But from a recruiting standpoint, there are a lot of good players on those teams, and that just increases the talent pool to choose from.”
Thiessen said there’s no rush to get certain players who are now available, including former Scorpion center Christopher Robinson, who was ninth in the league in points, and former Blazer goalie Doug Groenestege, who led the league in goals against average.
“There’s really no one specifically we’re looking for,” Thiessen said. “We’ll be evaluating their rosters and seeing who has interest in our product here. I have a feeling we’re not alone in this.”
The two teams join the Rocky Mountain Rage and Austin Ice Bats as the most recent defunct teams in the CHL. The Rage have expressed hope to play during the 2010-11 season.
The league, which is expected to take 15 teams to the ice this season, said that it would announce new division alignments and work on the upcoming season schedule in the coming weeks. Thiessen said the Mavs don’t have their ear to the ground, though.
“It’s not really not a huge difference,” he said. “We’ll still have a couple of good rivals in Wichita and Tulsa, but we’re not concerned with who’s in our division. If you’re going to win a championship, you’ve got to put the best team out there from day one.”