What's in a name? Well, quite a lot if you happen to belong to the Burnaby Minor Hockey Association.
After 47 years without a formal moniker, the well respected Lower Mainland amateur sports body is searching for an appropriate identity.
"We think it's about time that we established our own identity and we want everyone to be a part of this process," said Burnaby Minor executive director Larry Hayes. "We want to select a name that is original, exciting and something that all BMHA teams will be proud of."
Although Burnaby minor teams have shunned a collective nickname through the decades, a number of local city clubs have adopted various names over the years.
The first was the Burnaby Rams of the Pacific Coast Lower Mainland junior hockey league in 1965.
In the 1970s, Red Gladson coached the new Burnaby Blazers in the West Coast junior B league.
A popular name in Burnaby hockey circles was the Lakers, which lent the name to a team in the Northwest intermediate hockey league in 1975.
In the 1980s, the Vancouver Bluehawks junior A hockey franchise was transferred to Burnaby and later purchased by local businessmen Mike Krgovich, Jack Crosby and Len Dodman.
Looking beyond hockey, the City of Burnaby sports a stylized eagle on a yellow and blue background on its official flag - a symbol that might appeal to some individuals looking for a possible West Coast theme.
All members of the community and former Burnaby Minor members are invited to take part in the find-a-name contest by submitting their ideas to the association's website.
For more information on the topic, go to www. burnabyminor.com and scroll down to We need a Name and click on the contest icon.
Deadline for entries is Feb. 28.
