The National Lacrosse League has voided the contracts of goaltender Gord Nash and forward Gavin Prout with the Colorado Mammoth, just one day after the pair signed with the club.

"The league found the contracts in violation of league by-laws by including conditions that would permit the players to become free agents at the conclusion of the season," the NLL said in a press release issued this morning.

With the NLL playing this season under the rules of the previous collective bargaining agreement, Nash and Prout can not legally become unrestricted free agents. That is limited to players 32 years of age or older who have played six seasons in the league.

Nash turns 26 next month, when he'll begin his fifth NLL season. Prout, 26 in March, is entering his third season.

Restricted free agency isn't an option, either, unless by some strange quirk, Nash and Prout are getting a pay cut this season or will be making less than the league's average salary.

That said, the two most-lusted-for free agents in league history won't be restricted free agents, either.

The league did not announce whether the Mammoth would be sanctioned in any way, or whether the club could still sign Nash and Prout.

Ironically, Nash and Prout know plenty about voided contracts -- that's how they became free agents in the first place. The New York Saints failed to pay them (and many others) in a timely manner last season, forcing the league to terminate their contracts with the now-suspended Long Island-based team.