Fan Control Knob Seized from Short Circuit?

Hi all,

In my '02 Rendezvous, my Fan Control Knob over the past couple weeks stopped letting me select different fan settings (1-5) and now has seized in place and does not work at all. (brrr...cold car!)

I ordered a new knob then took the old one out but found it had melted in the back where wires plug in and also melted the 'wire-harness connector plug' that plugs into it!

1) Can I/should I order and replace the 'wire-harness connector plug' and then just strip the melted wires back. plug them into the new wire-harness connector piece (then plug it into the new knob assembly)?

2) Do I need to determine WHY it shorted out? Any ideas? (could it be the "Blower motor resistor Pack" failed and made this short happen?

I found another post that talks about my exact problem but without the short circuit, if it helps. It talks about replacing the "Blower Motor Resistor Pack" as a possible solution.

http://www.automotiveforums.com/t572849-blower_fan.html

I have attached pics for reference. Other angles available on request

Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Scuba