For those that don't know, Hockey is the official Winter sport of Canada and Lacrosse is the official Summer Sport of Canada.  Some of the top NHL players say lacrosse is a great cross-over sport that helped them become the great hockey players they turned out to be.

Hockey & Lacrosse - Prefect Together

Why Should Hockey Players Play Lacrosse?

• Lacrosse and hockey are very similar sports
• U.S. College scholarship opportunities in lacrosse are available
• Hockey players excel in lacrosse
• It’s a great method to increase physical fitness in hockey’s offseason
• Team sports build self-esteem, respect, integrity, & fairness
• Lacrosse teaches leadership skills
• It helps prevent sport burn-out by playing a new, fast-paced sport
• Players of all fitness levels and abilities can compete in lacrosse
• A player can learn basic plays and strategies
• A player can learn to play both offensive and defensive positions and make a quick transition from defense to offense and vice versa
• It reinforces the importance of quickness and agility around the net
• Lacrosse increases hand-eye co-ordination when stick handling
• It teaches players to play with their head up and to be more aware of their surroundings
• Offensive scoring skills are honed by shooting at smaller targets and picking corners
• Defensive skills are taught with individual and team concepts
• Lacrosse teaches the creativity of fakes, back passes, & shots
• Lacrosse is run in 5-player units and helps the hockey player practice playing a team concept
• It is inexpensive to equip lacrosse players as most hockey equipment can be used in lacrosse

"If sport has a high point of the year, it must be the first week of spring.  When I was growing up, I used to love this time of year. It was when I put my hockey equipment away and I was absolutely ecstatic to see the end of the hockey season. One of the worst things to happen to the game, in my opinion, has been year-round hockey and, in particular, summer hockey. "All it does for kids, as far as I can tell, is keep them out of sports they should be doing in warmer weather. I could hardly wait to get my lacrosse stick out and start throwing the ball around. It didn't matter how cold or rainy it would be, we'd be out firing the ball against walls and working on our moves as we played the lacrosse equivalent to road hockey." "All the good hockey players seemed to play lacrosse in those days and everyone of them learned something from the game to carry over to the other - things athletes can only learn by mixing up games they play when they are young."

-Wayne Gretzky, "The Great One"

“The toughness and physical aspect of lacrosse has definitely had an influence on my playing ability in hockey.  Lacrosse was a great thing for me because it let me get away from hockey for the summer as a kid,” he says. “My mom never really believed in summer hockey. I needed a break and I always looked forward to the lacrosse season. And when hockey season came around I was really looking forward to that. It was good both ways to help myself in both sports.”

-John Tavares, 2009 NHL First-Round Draft Pick by the New York Islanders

Click here for info on registration for Hopkins Youth Lacrosse, or one of the player development programs or clinics.