Over the next nine days, we will be looking at the top nine stories of the year in lacrosse, based off of our most read and covered stories. Today is #8 with the American hold outs in the National Lacrosse League.
The National Lacrosse League has historically been a Canadian league but some star American players have broke through. In 2014, that seems it will not be the case, as several American players will not be playing.
In some cases there are hold out situations because of Team USA this summer, but other factors like injuries are happening as well. Nevertheless, several star Americans are not going to be playing in the NLL this year.
Out for the Philadelphia Wings, historically an American roster, will be Paul Rabil, Brendan Mundorf, Ned Crotty, Rob Pannell and Tucker Durkin. Before we call conspiracy, Mundorf and Rabil have injuries from MLL season; but the reasons the others are out is not as clear.
Casey Powell is also out with an injury for the Colorado Mammoth, but they still have Drew Westevelt, an American foward. Meanwhile the Rochester Knighthawks still have Joe Walters and the Buffalo Bandits have Joe Resetarits.Kevin Buchanan and Kyle Hartzell are also not playing for Philadelphia this season and that is not because of injury, and both are on the team USA roster. However, the Wings have added several American players to their roster such as Mike Poppelton, Kyle Buchanan and Garrett Thul.
Durkin and Pannell, both on team USA, were drafted by the Wings and never showed up. Chad Weidmaier and Brian Megill, both Americans, did make the roster. The question isn’t, where are the Americans going, but where the big American names are going.
This season the Knighthawks have one American (Walters), Bandits one (Resetarits), Wings 10, Mammoth two, and Stealth one (O’Doughtry). Is this a problem for the NLL, and will any of the Americans sitting out this season come back?
