Education
He finished his college career as the Broncos" second all-time goal scorer (behind teammate and future NHLer Dan Dorion) and seventh all-time point getter.
He finished his college career as the Broncos" second all-time goal scorer (behind teammate and future NHLer Dan Dorion) and seventh all-time point getter.
College career
Burnie played his college hockey with the Broncos of Western Michigan University. He received All-Academic honorable mention citations in 1985 and 1986. His collegiate career culminated with the team"s first appearance in the National Collegiate Athletic Association hockey playoffs, in 1986.
Burnie broke the school record for goals in a season and for a single game that season, as well as being named to the CCHA All-Tournament and Second Team All-Star teams.
Professional career
Undrafted by any National Hockey League team, Burnie signed a three-year minor league contract with the New York Islanders to play for their Springfield Indians farm team, and played the 1986, 1988 and 1989 seasons in Springfield. Although the team did not meet with success, Burnie was the second leading scorer for the team over those three seasons, behind minor league scoring legend Bruce Boudreau.
The 1990 season saw Burnie signing with JoKP Joensuu of the Finnish Master of Science-liiga. His tenure was not successful - he finished 14th in team scoring - and Burnie signed the following season with the Albany Choppers of the International Hockey League.
One of the more mismanaged teams in recent hockey history, the Choppers folded in February 1991.
Burnie signed for the remainder of the season with the Fort Wayne Komets, after which he retired from professional hockey. International play
Burnie played in two stints for the Canadian National Team, in 1986 and 1991, scoring a total of four goals and three assists in seven games.