He Makes HOW Much?

Iqaluit, NU (CP)

It had been heard in whispers before free agency began. With bank balances at an all-time high, team payrolls deflated with so much cheap young talent, and a scarcity of top-shelf talent available in the auction, the possibility was there for major fireworks in the bidding for the top stars available in free agency.

That said, I'm not sure anyone was ready for this.

When the dust had settled, defenseman Rob Blake signed the richest contract in RHL history with the three-time defending champions. Blake, who had previously won the Kings Cup with the Rovers in RHL13, signed a one-year contract for a total of $10.815M. The contract includes a full no-trade clause. It is the highest base and annual salary ever signed in the history of the league and only the second player to surpass $10M in salary, joining Mario Lemieux who earned $10.3M in RHL3.

"We are thrilled that Rob is re-joining the Rovers", GM Stringer said in introducing Blake. "Obviously we paid a huge price, but we had targeted him as our #1 goal in free agency and we worked at it until it finally happened today. He's going to make our power-play run smoothly, he'll kill penalties, and he'll be that stabilizing #1 Dman that will allow everyone else on the blueline just play their roles that much more effectively. It's a great day".

"When the Rovers said they were interested in bringing me back, I was pumped", Blake said. "I had a great time here the first time and obviously winning a title here gave me memories for a lifetime, and hopefully we can make even more memories this season".

The bidding was intense as Blake's former team, the Grand Prairie Stingers, made a huge effort to retain their star Dman. Pushing the envelope past $10M, Grand Prairie eventually changed course and turned their attention to other defensemen when Baffin Island showed they would not back down. While many now point at the huge price tag and say that expectations will be enormous, Stringer isn't phased. "We already had high expectations for the team. We expect to win and we think we can do it. Hopefully Rob can find his place, settle in, and do what we know he's capable of. We believe, and our fans believe, that he will".