The Junior A hockey team from the Greater Metro Hockey League (GMHL) West that is soon going to be established in Burns Lake, already has a name – Burns Lake Timbermen.
A name contest was held earlier this year, which received a total of 60 entries, and Timbermen, Voyageurs and Sasquatch were chosen as the top three names. Bill Fritsen’s submission of Timbermen was finalized as the name for the team, said Alex Dyck, the director of player and community development, GMHL West.
The Timbermen will operate at the Lakeside Multiplex, and the team will consist of players between the ages of 16 to 21.
“Currently we have signed two players from our Edmonton ID camp and have our draft coming up this weekend to discuss prospects,” he said.
There will be a total of 21 home games in Burns Lake for the season, mostly on Friday and Saturday evenings.
The season will start in October, while practices begin early to-mid September.
“We do not have our schedule just yet,” confirmed Dyck.
The team is yet to have a coach and general manager as well, and they are in the final stages of the interview process to determine who the general manager or head coach would be.
The official website of the team has also launched and details, and any upcoming schedule can be found on: https://www.burnslakejuniora.com/. There is also a Facebook page Burns Lake Junior A Hockey Club: https://www.facebook.com/Burns-Lake-Junior-A-Hockey-Club-102064955814978 where announcements on upcoming schedules and games can be found.
During a council meeting, information that the Burns Lake Minor Hockey Association (BLMHA) is not supportive of the decision, came up for discussion. However, when asked about whether the Timbermen team organizers had since spoken with the BLMHA, Dyck said that they were yet to speak.
“We have not spoken to the Burns Lake Minor Hockey Association yet although, we make it a goal within our teams to provide as much support as we can within minor hockey programs, and love to see players graduate from said minor hockey into junior,” he said.