The National Lacrosse League was a

box lacrosse Box lacrosse, also known as boxla, box, or indoor lacrosse, is an indoor version of lacrosse played mostly in North America. The game originated in Canada in the 1930s, where it is more popular than field lacrosse. Lacrosse is Canada's official ...

league that lasted two seasons: 1974 and 1975. It is not related to the current

National Lacrosse League The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The NLL currently has fifteen teams: ten in the United Stat ...

. Originally conceived by hockey owners as a means to fill their arenas in the summer months, the league was not very successful, with only Philadelphia and Montreal drawing sizeable crowds. The league folded in 1976 after the demise of several franchises and the inability of the Montreal franchise to play home games in 1976 because of the Summer Olympics. Like the current NLL, the majority of the league's players were from Canada. Besides featuring NHL players such as

Rick Dudley Richard Clarence Dudley (born January 31, 1949) is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive, former coach and former player. Dudley is presently serving as a Senior Advisor for the Florida Panthers. Dudley has previously served as an executiv ...

(Rochester) and

Doug Favell Douglas Robert Favell (born April 5, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender and former box lacrosse player. Favell played in the National Hockey League for the Philadelphia Flyers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Colorado Rockies. ...

(Philadelphia), the league also included

Bruce Arena Bruce Arena (born September 21, 1951) is an American soccer coach who is the head coach and sporting director of the New England Revolution. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame and the NJCAA Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Arena has had ...

(Montreal)—who went on to greater fame as the head coach of the

United States men's national soccer team The United States men's national soccer team (USMNT) represents the United States in men's international soccer competitions. The team is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and is a member of FIFA and CONCACAF. The U.S. team ha ...

History

The type of play during this short-early lived era of the NLL was a faster paced game, played more like an NHL style as opposed to the basketball style of the current league. Equipment differences include no face guards and wooden sticks. The 1976 season was cancelled due to three of the six teams going bankrupt and the Montreal team having to go two months without a home game because the 1976 Olympics would be using the

Montreal Forum Montreal Forum (french: Le Forum de Montréal) is a historic building located facing Cabot Square in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by ''Sporting News'', it was an indoor arena which served as the h ...

for boxing. After the 1975 season, there would not be another professional lacrosse league in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

until the birth of the

Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The NLL currently has fifteen teams: ten in the United States and five in Canada. The N ...

in January 1987.

Teams

* Maryland Arrows (1974-1975) * Montreal Quebecois (1974-1975) * Philadelphia Wings (1974-1975) ¹ *

Rochester Griffins Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent **City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area **History of Rochester, Kent **HM Prison Roc ...

(1974)/ Long Island Tomahawks (1975) ² * Syracuse Stingers (1974)/ Quebec Caribous (1975) *

Toronto Tomahawks The Toronto Tomahawks were a team in the original National Lacrosse League. The Tomahawks played their home games at Maple Leaf Gardens during the league's first season in 1974 and compiled a 17-23 record. This placed them fifth out of six teams i ...

(1974) ²/ Boston Bolts (1975) :''¹The Philadelphia Wings in this league are not related to the modern Philadelphia Wings of the modern

.'' :''²The 1974 Toronto team and the 1975 Long Island team had the same name (Tomahawks), but they were separate franchises.''

Champions

1975 season

Final standings

Playoffs

Top Ten Scorers

References

* *

External links

1974–1975 National Lacrosse League film page
at Lax-TV.com {{DEFAULTSORT:National Lacrosse League (1974-1975) Defunct sports leagues in Canada Sports leagues established in 1974 1976 disestablishments Lacrosse leagues in the United States Lacrosse leagues in Canada Defunct sports leagues in the United States 1974 in Canadian sports 1975 in Canadian sports 1974 in lacrosse 1975 in lacrosse 1974 in American sports 1975 in American sports Sports leagues in the United States Professional sports leagues in the United States