House League Rules

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BASIC LACROSSE RULES

Although Box Lacrosse looks similar to Hockey & is played in the same setting (arena, without ice of course) it really is more like Basketball – below are some guidelines to introduce new people to Lacrosse:

Unlike Hockey, the Game of Lacrosse involves a full TEAM offence & defence - there are NO Defensemen in Lacrosse!
The 5 players are referred to as Left Crease (like Left Wing in Hockey), Left Corner (like Left Defense), Right Crease (Right Wing), Right Corner (Right Defense) & Point (Centre).
Like Basketball, there is no offside or icing - this keeps the pace of the game moving very quickly! - there are rules, regulations & features that are unique to Lacrosse & most of these are used in House League - many other rules are the same as in Hockey – ignore any Hockey markings that may be on the arena floor like blue lines or red line.
When one team offends & no penalty is called, the other team is awarded possession; i.e. if a player shoots or bounces the ball out of bounds the other team is given possession - a whistle signifies the stoppage & re-starting of play – there must be 2 whistles in each such sequence – the first whistle you hear stops the play & play ALWAYS re-starts with another whistle – these may occur very quickly in sequence.
There is almost always a face-off after a goal unless a penalty occurs during the stoppage in play after the goal - after a penalty, or when the ball strikes the goalie in the helmet area, there will be change of possession only, & not a face off.
Checking from behind (CFB) is dealt with severely as it is one of the leading potential injury factors - checking is an important part of the game but CFB & violent checks into the boards are strictly enforced.
High Sticking (HS) is another area of confusion for parents - "Incidental" contact with the opposing player, including the helmet, by an opposing player's stick is not automatically a penalty! - it is a Referee's judgment call & Refs are instructed to ignore “Incidental” contact which is illegal contact that has no effect on the play – Lacrosse is a fast game & every effort is made to “let them play” & “keep the game moving” – Hockey today is dominated by Face Offs while Lacrosse has very few & is a fast “possession” game much more like Basketball WITHOUT all those annoying Time-Outs! – there are no team Time-Outs in H/L Lacrosse & only one (1) in minor Rep.
In Minor Lacrosse, unlike in the NLL, heavy slashing is NOT permitted - a player may NOT strike an opponent with that portion of the stick NOT held between the hands - only stick to stick contact is allowed - swinging the stick with one hand often leads to a penalty as a player must always be “in control” of his stick & is penalized if the Ref deems that he isn’t.
If a player ducks into an opposing player's legal Crosscheck, no matter how severe that check is, it is not a penalty unless it is from behind - remember proper Crosschecking in Lacrosse is both legal & a very important & proper method of checking.
Players, or Goalies out of their crease, will be penalized if they catch the ball in their hand - if they just contact it with the hand it is possession to the other team.
Face-Offs are taken with the open face of the stick facing your own net - the ball must come out of the 2' small face-off circle before any other players can cross the restraining lines - an offence against this does not cause another face-off as in Hockey (remember we minimize face-offs in Lacrosse), it results in possession to the other team.
A player with the ball cannot push off with his free hand or arm - if he does, possession is awarded to the other team – also you can check an offensive player, whether he has the ball or not - however, checking of an offensive player, who does not have the ball, is restricted to the area within the dotted lines at PeeWee & below, & if you are on the offensive team you cannot check back, you must take the checking without aggressively responding - any response or checking by a member of the team who has possession (within proximity of the ball) may result in loss of possession as minor interference, called a “moving pick” – interference away from the ball, that is not considered a “moving pick” is either ignored if it does not affect the play or is called an Interference Penalty – under no circumstances can it be deemed to be minor interference with a possession change.
The ball can be kicked but not directly into the net for a goal.
When a change of possession occurs, the player awarded possession must be given at least 9 feet of room by the defending player until the whistle signifies restarting of play - the player may pass or run with the ball when the whistle to restart play is signalled.
If 2 players are going after a loose ball they must play the ball & not check the other player until he has possession - this again is a very common occurrence in House League which causes many possession calls - neither new players nor parents adapt to this rule very quickly! – the principle of “equal shoulder contact” is observed.
Another big difference between Hockey & Lacrosse involves the Goal Crease - if you go into the other team's crease with the ball, to shoot or cut thru it, you lose possession - this again is very common in House League – if you encroach on the other team’s crease without the ball & do not affect the Goalie & do not affect the play then nothing is called - if you go thru the other team's crease to make a check or you interfere with the Goalie while he is in his crease, it results in a penalty - if you are pushed into the crease you are OK but you must make every effort to get out ASAP.
When defending your own net you can never pass the ball back to your own crease - your Goalie or player has 5 seconds to get the ball out of the crease after stopping & gaining control of it (at younger ages in H/L this rule is enforced leniently as the primary aspect of H/L is education not penalization – the Goalie must have both feet out to be considered out & once out, he or any other player, cannot go back in or through while in possession of the ball – any contact with the Goal Line is “IN” the crease - you can pass to the Goalie as much as you want if he is out of the crease - the Goalie in Lacrosse can function just like any other player - there is no centre red line for off-side purposes & a Goalie can go anywhere on the floor.

These rules will be enforced with the idea of teaching the kids! – a Referee's judgment is an important factor & is guided by Board policy, Referee-in-Chiefs directions & Conveners' guidance - any violent hitting or infractions are intended to be strictly enforced.