Burnaby Express

The Burnaby Express are a Tier II Junior "A" ice hockey team from Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. They are a part of the British Columbia Hockey League and play in the (Mainland Division / Coastal Conference).

:Coquitlam Express 2001-04:Burnaby Express 2004-present

History

Burnaby originally had a junior "A" team by the name of the Burnaby Bulldogs, which played in that city for 4 seasons (1998 - 2001). That team relocated to the City of Port Alberni, on Vancouver Island for the start of the 2002 season, and was renamed the Alberni Valley Bulldogs.

The "Coquitlam Express" began play as a new franchise in the neighboring city of Coquitlam for the 2001-2002 hockey season, and played in the city for four seasons at the Coquitlam Sports Centre. Due to unsatisfactory conditions at the Sports Centre (specifically a reduction of parking due to the construction of a new aquatic complex next door), the team relocated to Burnaby for the 2005-2006 season.

Most notably the owners of the Burnaby Express are Pat Delasalle, Tim Delasalle, Robert Lambie (Treasurer), Darcy Rota (President), Ian Mansfield, Brian Hannigan, Kirk McLean, Bill Ranford, Robert Clough, and Dave Lowry.

The 2005-06 season saw the Express win the league championship (Fred Page Cup) and the Mowat Cup by defeating Langley Hornets, 4 games to 0, Chilliwack Chiefs, 4 games to 1, Victoria Salsa, 4 games to 1 and the Penticton Vees, 4 games to 2. The team then defeated the Fort McMurray Oil Barons, 4 games to 2, for the Doyle Cup and enter the National Championship Tournament as Pacific Region winners.

The Express won the Royal Bank Cup 2006 (National Championship) by defeating the Yorkton Terries by a score of 8 - 2. In the Semi-Final they almost lost to the Fort William Northstars 3 - 2 in overtime and scored the tying goal with 12 seconds left in regulation time.During the round-robin they had a record of 3 - 1, which seeded them 2nd in the Tournament, behind the hometown hosts Streetsville Derbys.

In 2006-07 the Express were highly touted as a top team in the CJAHL. With the likes of Kyle Turris and Tyler McNeely. They set out to repeat as Royal Bank Cup champions again, but fell short. In the first rounds of playoffs the team beat the Langley Chiefs in 7 games and in the second round lost to the eventual BCHL league champions Nanaimo Clippers in 7 games.

In 2007-08 saw a coaching change from Rick Lanz (Colorado Avalanche Western Scout) to David McLlelan. The team has not been very well-supported since the move from Coquitlam, and struggled in attendence for the 3rd straight year. Although the team enjoyed a little success in the regular season it was the Victoria Grizzlies that ended the careers of Carlo Finucci, Brodie Reid, Brad Hunt, and Mike Rempel.

eason-by-Season Record

"Note: GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against"

ee also

*List of ice hockey teams in British Columbia

External links

* [http://www.burnabyexpress.com/ Burnaby Express Website]