The Wayne Gretzky of lacrosse is coming to town this winter, and local fans can do more than watch him. Someone might even get to play alongside him.

Gary Gait, 32, has been a star at Syracuse University, in his native Canada and in the pro National Lacrosse League, where he has been the MVP the past five years.

Gait will be suiting up at the Civic Arena when the Baltimore Thunder of the indoor NLL moves to Pittsburgh for the 2000 season.

A contest to rename the team is being staged this month. Anyone over 20 can enter. A more selective competition will be held in the fall, when the team sponsors an open tryout.

"We'd like at least one local player," General Manager Dave Huntley said at a news conference yesterday to formally announce the team's move. "We need a big, strong, fast guy who can protect Gary."

Gait is one of the few players in the NLL who doesn't need a full-time job outside the sport. He is a women's assistant coach at Maryland, which has won the past five NCAA titles. He has endorsements. He plays for Canadian national and pro teams.

Last night, the 6-foot-2, 220-pound forward was scheduled to fly from Pittsburgh to British Columbia to rejoin his wife, Nicole, and their two young children and play with his hometown Victoria Shamrocks in the Mann Cup playoffs in Canada's top lacrosse league.

"I stay very busy," said Gait, who, like the recently retired Gretzky in hockey, is as much a spokesman for lacrosse off the field as he is a star on it. He said he accepts the role of the game's top ambassador.

"He is the most recognizable name and face in lacrosse and has won award after award," John Tucker, coach of the Baltimore/Pittsburgh team, said.

Last season, Gait had 50 goals and 82 points for the Thunder. He is the NLL's all-time leading scorer with 536 points in 84 games.

Baltimore lost to the Rochester Knighthawks in the first round of the playoffs last spring, but the Thunder was the winningest team over the past two seasons (16-8) and the highest scoring club both years, amassing 395 goals in the 24 games.

In addition to Gait, the team includes 1998-99 NLL rookie of the year Jesse Hubbard, a 6-1, 200-pound forward out of Princeton who had 14 goals, 29 points.

The team, which started in Baltimore in 1987, is moving because of declining attendance. Team officials hope to draw at least 6,000 to the Civic Arena for each of its seven home games for 2000.

Team owner Dennis Townsend said the hard-hitting NLL should be a good fit because research has shown cities that support NHL and NFL teams "generally and outstandingly support the NLL."

"If you threw all the Pittsburgh sports into a blender, somehow indoor lacrosse is what comes out," NLL Commissioner John Livsey said.

The team's first home game probably will be in January. The season runs through April. The NLL is to release its schedule next month.

Single-game tickets will range from $27.50 for premium seating to $20, $15 and $10 for "regular" Arena seating. Season tickets for all seven home games range from $178.50 to $59.50. Four-game plans range from $106 to $36.

Because so many of the players live and work in Baltimore, the team will continue to hold most practices there. Players and staff will commute to Pittsburgh for home games and for a practice the day before those games. That practice will be open to the public.

Anyone interested in entering the contest to name the team can find entry forms in the Post-Gazette, at Iron City displays around town or online at www.civicarena.com or wxdx.com.

Team management will select five finalists from the entries, and fans then will vote for a winner. The fan who submits the winning name will receive two season tickets for life, a jersey, a photo with the team and a one-year supply of Iron City beer.

Besides Pittsburgh and Rochester, the eight-team NLL consists of expansion Albany (still unnamed), the Buffalo Bandits, the New York Saints, the Philadelphia Wings, the Syracuse Smash and the defending champion Toronto Rock.

Livsey said candidates for expansion teams in the near future include Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. He said the NLL also hopes to expand westward in the United States and Canada.