NLL in Canada Part I

ARRIVALS OF PRO LACROSSE TEAMS IN CANADIAN CITIES; advantages, advantages, advantages!!

By Pierre Filion and partners

The arrival of the Ottawa Black Bears within the NLL gave us the opportunity to ask lacrosse specialists and analysts to look at the impact of pro teams arriving in a ‘’new’’ city. Here is what we found.

This week: Halifax and Ottawa. Next week: Saskatoon, Calgary and Vancouver.

Halifax Thunderbirds; Halifax has a pro lacrosse team since 2019. Two contributors write about it from different perspectives.  Tony Mancini and Gary Bottomley.

Tony Mancini is a Halifax city councilor and shares here the political and financial advantages for a city to home a professional team.

‘’The Halifax Regional Municipality’s vision for the future is to enhance our quality of life by fostering the growth of healthy and vibrant communities, a strong and diverse economy, and a sustainable environment. We are committed to investing in creating involved communities, where residents enjoy participating and volunteering in a wide range of leisure, learning, social, recreational, and civic opportunities.

Team sports, such as Lacrosse, are a powerful connector, bringing together people to root on their team. Supporting a professional Lacrosse team in Halifax not only brings economic and social benefits, it encourages more young people to get involved in a sport that will motivate our youth to work collaboratively, foster sportsmanship and provide a sense of achievement they can build on for their bright futures.

In the 2023-2024 Scotiabank Centre Annual Report, about 80% of Scotiabank Centre attendance was for sporting events, 26% of their event bookings were for outside sporting events and 45% of events were hosted by the Mooseheads, Halifax Thunderbirds and the NS International Tattoo. The economic impact to the Provincial Tax Revenue of these sporting events can be estimated at around $2M for our community and the overall economic benefit of events in 2019 was confirmed to be $58M by Discover Halifax. These funds go directly back into our local economy contributing to the diverse cultural and economic fabric of our thriving community.

It is without reservation that I am supporting our professional lacrosse team. ‘’

Gary Bottomly is a former great lacrosse player who starred with the Nova Scotia junior and senior provincial teams in the 70s; he shares the impact of a pro lacrosse team on the former great players in Nova Scotia. ‘’Why has pro lacrosse arrived so late?’’ How do the former great Nova Scotia players connect with their new pro team? How can they help the game they loved?

‘’To answer the question as to why it took so long to have a pro lacrosse team in this province, I put it down to simple economics. Although teams from this province have had notable successes there have been no Canadian championships obtained. Player registrations throughout the years have fluctuated from strong to weak. The registrations improved during the years that lacrosse was televised nationally. As an investor in a pro lacrosse team it would have been a gamble to bet on Halifax as being a suitable destination for a pro team. Interestingly the Thunderbirds arrived in 2019 and success was found very early. I believe this was due to this team being competitive, highly skilled, promotion through multimedia and television coverage. On the floor the game sold itself.

When the Thunderbirds arrived in Halifax I was prepared to help the team in any way I could. I was introduced to the ticket sales manager and I offered my services to him. Even with the covid shutdown the Halifax fans continued to support the team with ever increasing numbers in the stands. I attended the final league game this year and sat among a sellout crowd.

There were no missed opportunities or challenges to help out and have the communities benefit from the Thunderbirds. Early on the team took it upon itself to visit schools and partner with the minor lacrosse associations to involve players from various levels to take part in the Junior Thunderbirds program. These two tactics were a great way to connect with the youth and as a spin-off connect with their parents. It was a win-win for all.

The Thunderbirds are a class act operation offering a high caliber team committed to playing their hearts out for the Halifax fan base. In return the fans will be there in numbers I hope this will last for a long time. ‘’

Ottawa Black Bears; the Bears have arrived in Ottawa (from New York) and already are making an impact. Jason Tassé, a high-level athlete and successful businessman, identifies how the arrival of a pro lacrosse team (owed by the NHL’s Ottawa Senators) will create a momentum in the Ottawa area and will propel lacrosse as a credible and entertaining sport.

‘’I was fortunate to play for the original Ottawa Rebel in the early 2000s. Twenty years later, I am overjoyed to welcome the NLL back to the Ottawa-Gatineau market.

What are my thoughts on adding an NLL team in any given market?

Before I dive into that answer, I would like to address the impact of the “arrivals” of NLL teams.

Expansion of a sport that aspires to join the apex status of the 5 majors is no easy task. Yes, there have been failed attempts and many relocations, yet what success story is not loaded with iteration, proof of concepts and learnings? We are not overlaying a professional league on top of a sporting activity that has the same mass adoption as the other majors, so understandably, it will take continued effort, resilience, and determination. We are attempting to grow a sport to effective critical mass adoption while at the same time attempting notable professional status. These are two concurrent, massive undertakings. With each attempt to add or relocate a new team, learnings and long-term opportunities will be unlocked. No one wants to see a team fold, but we should appreciate that success of this magnitude is a long winding, bumpy road.

Ok, onto the question on the impact of a new NLL team to Ottawa.

Initially, my mind raced to the obvious – A professional team in Ottawa will help grow this beautifully unique, historically, and culturally rich game. The collective horsepower of the NLL resources continues to drive lacrosse awareness at the regional, national and international levels. The league has established a platform that showcases the skill, speed and excitement of the game at the professional level. For Ottawa specifically the NLL will attract media coverage comparable to that of the NHL, elevating the sport's profile and athlete recognition, which will inspire a new generation of families to engage in lacrosse. It will boost minor system enrollment, help build lacrosse-specific infrastructure, drive economic growth in sports & entertainment (via expanded fandom), and cultivate pride for the community and game.

So that’s the obvious impact.

What’s not so obvious about the expansion of the NLL into a new market is the “multipliers” and “long game” impact of rooting into a community. I will explain using a single point of reference – my own.

Twenty years ago, I was fortunate to have made the Ottawa NLL team and coached by the best in the game, playing against the best. It was a rush and terrifying all at once. I remember my first game at the now CTC, beaming with pride, standing for the national anthem, facing my hometown crowd, thinking how surreal this was. It remains one of life’s great moments. What I did not realize at that very moment, was that this exposure to the NLL would, twenty years later had inspired me to grow the game for decades- in multiple countries- and impact many lives. This one NLL experience would effectively multiply into a lifetime commitment to growing the game. Over the past two decades, I focused intently on helping build the Nepean minor program into an A center, building a new senior lacrosse program in Ottawa, building a high school lacrosse program, building a Jr C program to accommodate our growth in numbers, helping coach Nepean to its first national title, coaching in the PLBA in Hampton and the Arena Lacrosse League, and helping build a Belgium national lacrosse program. My objective in sharing my life’s commitment to lacrosse, is not to sound boastful about a litany of lacrosse activities I am passionate about - Honestly, I was an okay player among great players and quite fortunate to be surrounded by remarkable people who shared a love for building. The key takeaway here is that the introduction and impact of the NLL into Ottawa ignited a flame in one person that has since multiplied and created expansive momentum that will continue for years to come. All the players and coaches along my journey share that spark and are igniting their own growth story.

What I can tell you today is that twenty years after the first NLL entry into Ottawa, we are a stronger and very different lacrosse market … all attributed to the impact of the first NLL team in Ottawa. Back in 2000, there were 2 active Ottawa players in the NLL, today there are close to 15, with record draft and D1 kids well representing the Ottawa lacrosse community.

No matter where the NLL comes and goes on its long, inspiring journey to grow lacrosse, it will surely leave multiplier sparks that will seed growth with every community it touches. ‘’

Next week we’ll look into Saskatchewan, Calgary and Vancouver. See you then.