National Lacrosse League (1975)
Tombstone
Born: 1975 – The Toronto Tomahawks relocate to Boston, MA
Folded: February 1976
First Game: April 21, 1975 (W 14-12 vs. Quebec Caribous)
Last Game: September 16, 1975 (L 16-8 @ Montreal Quebecois)
Nations Cup Championships: None
Arena
The Boston Garden (16,000)
Marketing
Team Colors: Green & Gold
Ownership
Owners: James Herscot, William H. Brine, Jr., Peter Brine
Trophy Case
NLL Most Valuable Player
- 1975: Ivan Thompson
Background
The Boston Bolts lacrosse team played box (indoor) lacrosse for one season at the Boston Garden in the summer of 1975. The Bolts were members of the short-lived National Lacrosse League (1974-1975). The franchise started out as the Toronto Tomahawks in 1974. The club fared poorly at Maple Leaf Gardens and relocated to Boston prior to the NLL’s second and final season.
Lowell, Massachusetts businessman James Herscot was the front man for the new ownership group that brought the franchise in from Toronto. Midway through the 1975 season, there was a management upheaval and Herscot was pushed out. Brothers William and Peter Brine of the W.H. Brine sporting goods company, a prominent maker of lacrosse equipment, took control of the Bolts.
Roasting in the Garden
The Bolts debut match at the Boston Garden on April 28, 1975 drew an announced crowd of 8,724 to watch the Bolts play the Long Island Tomahawks. The sport of box lacrosse and its environs would have been unfamiliar to most of those in attendance that night. The teams played on a hardwood surface laid over an ice rink and surrounded by hockey boards. (Today the sport is played on synthetic carpet, just like indoor soccer and Arena Football). The Bolts and the Tomahawks, delivered on the high scoring, hard-hitting action promised by NLL promoters. But the Tomahawks spoiled the Bolts’ debut, hanging a 19-17 overtime loss on the Bostonians.
NLL teams planned an intense 56-game schedule (later scaled back to 48). The summer time games in the old Boston Garden were particularly grueling, since the building had no air conditioning. The average NLL player earned about $10,000 during the 1975 season, according to this 1975 Sports Illustrated feature on the league.
Bolts captain Ivan “The Terrible” Thompson finished 4th in the league in scoring with 91 goals and 116 assists in 46 games. Thompson earned First-Team NLL All-Star recognition and Most Valuable Player honors in 1975. Goaltender Ted Gernaey picked up Second Team honors. The Bolts finished tied for 3rd place in the six-team NLL with a 22-24-2 record. Their season ended with a 4 games to 3 loss to the Montreal Quebecois in the playoff semi-finals.
Demise
The Bolts ownership group dissolved sometime after the 1975 season ended. The National Lacrosse League folded in February 1976, after financial troubles reduced the league to only three viable clubs in Maryland, Philadelphia and Quebec City.
The box lacrosse Bolts are not to be confused with the Boston Bolts professional soccer team, which played at Boston University’s Nickerson Field from 1988 to 1990 as a member of the American Soccer League.
Boston Bolts Video
Stunning 1975 footage of the Boston Bolts unearthed by RetroLax in 2019.
In Memoriam
Former Bolts General Manager James Logan died of a heart attack on September 16, 2012.
Links
National Lacrosse League Media Guides
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8 Responses
From the SI story:
“But some observers are not so negative about the ability of U.S. players. Maryland is eager to sign University of Maryland star Frank Urso, who still has one year of college eligibility remaining. And the Boston Bolts plan to trade for several Americans, perhaps Bruce Arena and John Sheffield of Montreal, considered the best U.S.-born players.”
That’s our Bruce Arena, right? I know he was a lacrosse guy.
Montreal would have probably been able to come back for the ’76 season, but the Montreal Forum was being prepared/used for the Summer Games for the entire month of July.
Is there an7y value to programs as collector’s items?
I like the Bolts. I use to skip school(1976/77) and go practice with the team at the Gardens. I was even offered a contract to play while I was in practice by Jim Logan. But I was only 17 and Jim pulled that contract out of hands. I had a lot of fun with Moose Liscomb and the boys.
Played that year and had a fantastic time being among some great players who later played against me for other clubs in the WLA.If the 3 B’s restaurant is still there across from the Gardens I left one of my sticks hanging from one of the walls
I worked as the Bolts Equipment Manager for a short time in 1975. I was sad to see that Bram Wilfong passed away a few years ago. It was a great group of guys.
Any original Boston Bolts jerseys around?
Yes
I know someone who could have one