The other day we took a look at how American players in the National Lacrosse League tend to be defense first players. After speaking with some American lacrosse players and some lacrosse executives, it seems clear that the skill set and foot work of the Americans is what makes them defenders, along with what NLL coaches are looking for.
To play defense in box lacrosse takes more athleticism, which field lacrosse players have, but they lack the skills of scoring in box lacrosse from lack of playing, an NLL executive told me. Canadians also play in the box leagues in the summer and have more time to practice offense in box, while the Americans go back to playing field lacrosse where finesse stick skills are not the same.
When Americans played in the NLL/MILL, it was because there was a limit on Canadians (mostly for cost reasons) and players got more time to develop. We are now in a league where there are 12 American players, and most of them are defenders and the players who do play offense are not in the league any more.
In leagues like the North American Lacrosse League, some of the top scorers were still Canadian despite being a league for mostly Americans. Travis Bland and Jesse Guerin were two of the best scorers in the entire league and they had arguably the most box lacrosse experience for scorers. Mike Stone succeeded on a Boston roster that was very athletic and lacked Canadians, so the Americans were able to adjust and make it their game.
I spoke with one American player who tried out at an NLL camp this fall. He told me, “I went to an NLL training camp this year and was given a defense jersey. Before the camp I told the coach I had worked on the two man game and played a lot of forward the last two years since I had last played forward in the NLL. I was told the only chance I had to make the team was if I played defense/transition. Then when I was called and released I was told I was more of an O guy than a D guy… so it’s pretty frustrating on the player’s side.”
This might show the reluctance of Canadian coaches to give Americans a chance on offense, or on a roster all together, especially with the shortened rosters now in effect. Most American forwards in the NLL the past few years haven’t even been scorers. Ryan Hotaling played more of a transition/defense game, while even guys like Ned Crotty didn’t exactly produce like they do in the field game, for those MLL players.
This is a story that will likely be revisited a few times in the coming years as just now youth box lacrosse is being developed in the states. Is this a problem for players to be limited to defense, or does it help make more well rounded players coming into box lacrosse?
