Burnaby makes pre-draft splash

It took some doing, but the Burnaby Lakers have put themselves in the catbird seat.

Vying to join the Western Lacrosse Associationâ€™s upper echelon, the Lakers wheeled and dealed themselves into a position of strength by parcelling up Casey Jackson and a handful of draft picks to acquire Eli McLaughlin and the No. 1 selection in next monthâ€™s junior draft.

After last yearâ€™s disappointing playoff miss -- finishing fifth overall in a three-way tie for third place -- the Lakers were itching to add an impact player.

With two of the top-three ranked graduating juniors of the transition variety, Burnaby decided to shoot for the moon and shipped their third overall pick, both their second and third round choices, a third in 2017 and Jackson to Nanaimo for the top pick in the Feb. 10 draft.Â