# 1999 NLL season

The 1999 National Lacrosse League season is the 13th season in the NLL that began on December 26, 1998, and concluded with the championship game on April 23, 1999. The Toronto Rock celebrated their first season in Toronto by winning the championship, defeating the Rochester Knighthawks 13–10 at Maple Leaf Gardens.
The playoffs featured the lowest score by a team in NLL history, when goaltender Bob Watson and the Toronto Rock defeated the Philadelphia Wings 13–2.

## Team movement

The only change of teams from the 1998 NLL season to 1999 was the movement of the Ontario Raiders from Hamilton down the QEW to Toronto to become the Toronto Rock.

### Teams

1999 National Lacrosse League :
| Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
| Baltimore Thunder | Baltimore, Maryland | Baltimore Arena | 10,582 |
| Buffalo Bandits | Buffalo, New York | Marine Midland Arena | 18,595 |
| New York Saints | Uniondale, New York | Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum | 16,297 |
| Philadelphia Wings | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | First Union Center | 19,519 |
| Rochester Knighthawks | Rochester, New York | Blue Cross Arena | 10,662 |
| Syracuse Smash | Syracuse, New York | Onondaga County War Memorial | 5,800 |
| Toronto Rock | Toronto, Ontario | Maple Leaf Gardens | 15,726 |

## Regular season

Reference:
| P | Team | GP | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | GF | GA | Diff | GF/GP | GA/GP |
| 1 | Toronto Rock – xyz | 12 | 9 | 3 | .750 | 0.0 | 6–0 | 3–3 | 157 | 139 | +18 | 13.08 | 11.58 |
| 2 | Baltimore Thunder – x | 12 | 8 | 4 | .667 | 1.0 | 5–1 | 3–3 | 211 | 175 | +36 | 17.58 | 14.58 |
| 3 | Rochester Knighthawks – x | 12 | 8 | 4 | .667 | 1.0 | 4–2 | 4–2 | 169 | 160 | +9 | 14.08 | 13.33 |
| 4 | Philadelphia Wings – x | 12 | 5 | 7 | .417 | 4.0 | 4–2 | 1–5 | 153 | 153 | −-0 | 12.75 | 12.75 |
| 5 | New York Saints | 12 | 5 | 7 | .417 | 4.0 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 149 | 156 | −7 | 12.42 | 13.00 |
| 6 | Buffalo Bandits | 12 | 4 | 8 | .333 | 5.0 | 1–5 | 3–3 | 158 | 177 | −19 | 13.17 | 14.75 |
| 7 | Syracuse Smash | 12 | 3 | 9 | .250 | 6.0 | 3–3 | 0–6 | 161 | 198 | −37 | 13.42 | 16.50 |
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

## All Star Game

The 1999 All-Star Game took place at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, where Team Canada defeated Team USA by a score of 25–24.

## Playoffs

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Championship | Championship | Championship |
| 4 | Philadelphia | 2 | | | |
| 1 | Toronto | 13 | | | |
| 1 | Toronto | 13 | 3 | Rochester | 10 |
| | | | 1 | Toronto | 13 |
| 3 | Rochester | 14 | 1 | Toronto | 13 |
| 2 | Baltimore | 12 | | | |

## Awards

| Award | Winner | Team |
| MVP Award | Gary Gait | Baltimore |
| Rookie of the Year Award | Jesse Hubbard | Baltimore |
| Championship Game MVP | Colin Doyle | Toronto |

### Weekly awards

Each week, a player is awarded "Player of the Week" honours.
| Week | Player of the Week |
| 1 | Sal LoCascio |
| 2 | Matt Shearer |
| 3 | Gary Gait (tie) Paul Gait |
| 4 | Joe Hiltz |
| 5 | Derek General |
| 6 | John Tavares |
| 7 | Jake Bergey |
| 8 | Gary Gait |
| 9 | Bob Watson |
| 10 | Jake Bergey |
| 11 | Dallas Eliuk |
| 12 | Jake Bergey |
| 13 | Pat O'Toole |
| 14 | Jim Veltman |
| 15 | Gary Gait |
| 16 | Paul Gait |

### Monthly awards

Awards are also given out monthly for the best overall player and best rookie.
| Month | Overall | Rookie |
| Jan | Gary Gait | Chris Sanderson |
| Feb | Bob Watson | Matt Disher |
| Mar | Jake Bergey | Casey Powell |

## Statistics leaders

Bold numbers indicate new single-season records. Italics indicate tied single-season records.
| Stat | Player | Team | Number |
| Goals | Gary Gait | Baltimore | 50 |
| Assists | Joe Hiltz | Baltimore | 46 |
| Points | Gary Gait | Baltimore | 82 |
| Penalty Minutes | Tony Millon | Syracuse | 59 |
| Shots on Goal | Gary Gait | Baltimore | 157 |
| | Tom Marechek | Philadelphia | 157 |
| Loose Balls | Jim Veltman | Toronto | 166 |
| Save Pct | Dallas Eliuk | Philadelphia | 76.4 |

## Attendance
### Regular Season

| Home Team | Home Games | Average Attendance | Total Attendance |
| Philadelphia Wings | 6 | 16,040 | 96,237 |
| Toronto Rock | 6 | 11,075 | 66,451 |
| Buffalo Bandits | 6 | 9,638 | 57,829 |
| Rochester Knighthawks | 6 | 9,067 | 54,400 |
| Baltimore Thunder | 6 | 7,057 | 42,340 |
| New York Saints | 6 | 6,704 | 40,223 |
| Syracuse Smash | 6 | 4,546 | 27,277 |
| League | 42 | 9,161 | 384,757 |

### Playoffs

| Home Team | Home Games | Average Attendance | Total Attendance |
| Toronto Rock | 2 | 13,859 | 27,717 |
| Baltimore Thunder | 1 | 6,325 | 6,325 |
| League | 3 | 11,347 | 34,042 |