Sport Indoor lacrosse Eastern runners-up Philadelphia Wings Dates 27 Dec 2002 – 3 May 2003 Location United States of America Finals champion Toronto Rock | Eastern champions Colorado Mammoth Central champions Rochester Knighthawks Champion Toronto Rock Number of teams 12 | |
League National Lacrosse League Duration December 27, 2002 – May 3, 2003 Top scorer John Tavares (Buffalo Bandits) Season MVP Gary Gait (Colorado Mammoth) | ||
The 2003 National Lacrosse League season began on December 27, 2002 and concluded with the championship game on May 3, 2003.
Contents
- Team movement
- Milestones
- Regular season
- Semifinals
- Championship
- All Star Game
- Weekly awards
- Monthly awards
- Statistics leaders
- References
In 2003, the NLL became the first major men's sports league in North America to feature a woman playing in a regular-season game. Ginny Capicchioni, a stand-out goaltender at Sacred Heart University, was signed by the New Jersey Storm as their third-string goaltender. She dressed for three games, though only played in one. Capicchioni collected one loose ball and made six saves while allowing 7 goals in 11 minutes of play.
Team movement
2003 saw the Montreal Express suspend operations, and also saw the Washington Power move to Colorado, where even they were unprepared for the warm welcome they received in Denver. The franchise had drawn small crowds in Washington as well as in Pittsburgh and Baltimore before that, but averaged more than 16,000 fans per game in 2003, second in the league only to Toronto.
Milestones
Regular season
Reference:
x: Clinched playoff berth; c: Clinched playoff berth by crossing over to another division; y: Clinched division; z: Clinched best regular season record; GP: Games Played
W: Wins; L: Losses; GB: Games back; PCT: Win percentage; Home: Record at Home; Road: Record on the Road; GF: Goals scored; GA: Goals allowed
Differential: Difference between goals scored and allowed; GF/GP: Average number of goals scored per game; GA/GP: Average number of goals allowed per game
Semifinals
Colorado 11 @ Toronto 15
Buffalo 13 @ Rochester 16
Championship
Toronto 8 @ Rochester 6
All Star Game
No NLL All-Star game was held in 2003.
Weekly awards
The NLL gives out awards weekly for the best overall player, best offensive player, best defensive player, and best rookie.
Monthly awards
Awards are also given out monthly for the best overall player and best rookie.
Statistics leaders
Bold numbers indicate new single-season records. Italics indicate tied single-season records.