National Lacrosse League (1974–75)

National Lacrosse League
Sport Box lacrosse
Founded 1974
Ceased 1976
No. of teams 6
Countries  United States;
 Canada
Last
champion(s)		 Quebec Caribous

The National Lacrosse League was a box lacrosse league that lasted two seasons: 1974 and 1975. It is not related to the modern National Lacrosse League.

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 modern NLL, the league was dominated by Canadian players—the majority of the league's players were from Canada.

Besides featuring NHL players such as Rick Dudley (Rochester) and Doug Favell (Philadelphia), the league also included Bruce Arena (Montreal)—who went on to greater fame as the head coach of the United States men's national soccer team.

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 for boxing. After the 1975 season, there would not be another professional lacrosse league in North America until the birth of the Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League in January 1987.

Teams

1The Philadelphia Wings in this league are not related to the modern Philadelphia Wings of the modern National Lacrosse League.
2The 1974 Toronto team and the 1975 Long Island team had the same name (Tomahawks), but they were separate franchises.

Champions

Year Champion Runner-Up Games
1974 Rochester Griffins Philadelphia Wings 4-2
1975 Quebec Caribous Montreal Québécois 4-2

1975 season

Final standings

Team W L T PCT GB GF GA P
Long Island Tomahawks 31 17 0 .646 - 802 702 62
Montreal Quebecois 24 24 0 .500 7 643 649 48
Boston Bolts 22 24 2 .479 8 735 741 46
Quebec Caribous 22 24 2 .479 8 729 694 46
Philadelphia Wings 21 25 2 .458 9 690 713 44
Maryland Arrows 21 27 0 .438 10 670 770 42

Playoffs

Semifinals Finals
      
1 Long Island 2 games
4 Quebec 4 games
4 Quebec 4 games
2 Montreal 2 games
2 Montreal 4 games
3 Boston 3 games

Top Ten Scorers

Name Hometown Games Goals Assists Points Pen. Min.
Doug Hayes Long Island 48 104 126 230 52
Paul Suggate Maryland 48 92 127 219 71
John Davis Montreal 48 79 129 208 16
Ivan Thompson Boston 46 91 116 207 45
Dave Durante Quebec 48 89 117 206 22
Brian Tasker Maryland 48 73 125 198 58
John Grant, Sr. Philadelphia 47 64 134 198 52
Terry Lloyd Philadelphia 48 113 56 169 54
Jim J. J. Johnston Long Island 38 79 87 166 26
Jan Magee Long Island 47 57 103 160 49
*Bold indicates leader in category

References

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