 Offered a job with a lumber company, and a C$1,000 bonus to play hockey for the Thistles, he stayed in the city, much to the disappointment of the Marlboros, who had wanted him to stay in Toronto.Rat Portage was amalgamated with neighbouring towns in 1905 and was renamed Kenora.Due to their proximity to Manitoba, the Thistles played in the Manitoba Hockey League.