Don't be fooled by the large crowds the Toronto Rock has drawn at Maple Leaf Gardens the past two years -- the National Lacrosse League is far from healthy.

While the Rock has succeeded at the box office, several franchises in the eight-team league are struggling to make ends meet.

Five teams in the NLL saw their attendance slip this season, while the expansion Albany Attack attracted an average crowd of only 5,749 to the 14,000-seat Pepsi Arena.

Meanwhile, following tomorrow's championship game between the Rock and the Rochester Knighthawks at the Gardens (3:00 PM, on CTV SportsNet, Empire Sports Network, Fan 590, WYSL-AM, and WBER-FM), the owners of two franchises -- the Syracuse Smash and the Pittsburgh CrosseFire -- likely will announce their intentions to sell their teams.

Smash owner Howard Dolgon said last month he has been approached by prospective buyers from cities in the U.S. and Canada, while a source told the Toronto Sun yesterday that CrosseFire owner Dennis Townsend wants to unload his team and has received inquiries from several undisclosed groups.

"Until the players, the players' association and the owners are on the same page, this league will continue to struggle in certain places," Rock general manager Johnny Mouradian said. "We need to see some more success stories for this league to continue to grow."

Attendance, though, isn't the only problem facing the league.

Mouradian believes the CrosseFire and the Attack have had trouble generating local interest because most of their players live out of town and generally are visible to the communities only on game days.

"How can you operate a successful franchise if no (players) live in that market?" Mouradian said. "It's tough to relocate teams when there are no lacrosse players in many cities."

Despite the problems, Mouradian and NLL commissioner John Livsey Jr. feel the league has the potential to prosper over the next few years.

Among Livsey's hopes for next season are two expansion teams (Columbus and Detroit are thought to be the front-runners) and increasing the schedule to 14 or 16 games from 12.

"Any time you are trying to build a league, you are going to have success on an individual basis and disappointments on an individual basis," Livsey said. "According to all estimates, this is a sport and a league that is on the upswing."

Notes: Close to 13,000 tickets in the 15,587-seat Gardens have been sold for tomorrow's game... Many Rock fans won't be able to attend the final because the Ontario Lacrosse Association's field leagues have a full slate of games tomorrow... The Rock prefers to play its games on Fridays, but since its TV carrier, CTV Sportsnet, had a previous commitment tonight, Mouradian opted for a Saturday matinee.