THE MEMORIAL CUP HISTORY
THE MEMORIAL CUP HISTORY
MEMORIAL CUP HISTORY
The trophy was originally known as the OHA Memorial Cup and was donated by the Ontario Hockey Association in March, 1919, in remembrance of the many soldiers who paid the supreme sacrifice for Canada in The First World War. In 2010 the Memorial Cup was rededicated to the memory of all fallen Canadian Military Personnel.
Initially the Cup was awarded to the national junior hockey champions of Canada. Later on it came to signify Junior 'A' hockey supremacy when in 1934, junior hockey in Canada was divided into 'A' and 'B' classes.
In 1971, when junior 'A' hockey was divided into major junior and Tier 11 junior A, the Memorial Cup was awarded to the higher category and was given to the major junior hockey champions of Canada.
In 1972, a round-robin tournament format replaced the old playdown system to determine the champions. Since then, the champions of the Western Hockey League, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and the Ontario Hockey League, have met each spring in a round-robin series with the two top teams playing off in a sudden-death game to determine the Cup champions, in one location.
The Memorial Cup became an international trophy in 1983 as the tournament, now a four team event, was held outside Canada for the first time, when the Portland Memorial Coliseum was the host arena.
The hometown Winter Hawks took home the title that year to become the first non-Canadian based team to win the Memorial Cup. Portland again hosted the tournament in 1986 and Seattle played host in 1992. In 1991, the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League became the second U.S. based team to claim the title. The Chiefs won the title again in 2008 in Kitchener, ON.
The names on the Memorial Cup include many of the game of hockey's greatest builders, coaches, managers and players. Thirty one members of the Hockey Hall of Fame have had their names engraved on the Memorial Cup including players like Guy Lafleur, Andy Bathgate, Harry Howell, Bobby Bauer, Ted Lindsay, Bernie Parent, Red Kelly and Toe Blake. Lionel Conacher, Canada's Athlete of the First Half Century, was a member of the Toronto Canoe Club's winning team in 1920. Conacher was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1961. Builders of the game such as Father David Bauer, Scotty Bowman, Sam Pollack, Glen Sather and Frank Selke were members of Memorial Cup winning teams.
Note: You will only find here the years from 1919 to 1970 because..... In 1971, Junior 'A' Hockey was divided, to form a 'Major Junior' and a 'Tier II' level. The 'Major Junior' continues to play for the Memorial Cup. The 'Tier II' level, commonly referred to as 'Junior A', play for a new National Championship Trophy, The Manitoba Centennial Cup.
MEMORIAL CUP
Memorial Cup Format
In the first nine years of its history the Memorial Cup final series was a two game total goal series.
In 1928 the championship final moved away from this format to become a best of three series. The championship final continued to be contested by two teams with the winners of the various branches of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association participating in playdowns, with the Eastern Canadian Champions taking on the champions from Western Canada.
In 1972 the tournament format was first introduced with the champions of the Western Hockey League, the Ontario Hockey League and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League participating. In that first tournament the Cornwall Royals, the QMJHL champions, defeated the OHL's Peterborough Petes by a score of 2-1 in the sudden death tournament final.
The 1983 tournament was expanded to four teams for the first time with the introduction of a host team.
Memorial Cup Firsts
1983 was the first time the final series for the Memorial Cup was held outside of Canada. The 1983 tournament was played in Portland, Oregon and the host Winter Hawks became the first United States based team to win the Memorial Cup as they defeated the Oshawa Generals 8-3. The tournament returned to Portland three years later and in 1998 Spokane, Washington played host to the 80th Memorial Cup. American based teams have captured the Memorial Cup on three different occasions with the Winter Hawks winning in 1983 and in 1998 while the Spokane Chiefs were the winners in 1991.
In 1999 the Ottawa 67's and the City of Ottawa played host to the Memorial Cup for the first time since 1972. The Acadie-Bathurst Titan of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League became the first team from Atlantic Canada to qualify for the Memorial Cup finals. The 1999 tournament, won by the host 67's, set a new attendance record as a total of 84,200 fans attended the eight game series.
History was made in 2000 as for the first time ever the Memorial Cup finals were held in the Maritimes. The City of Halifax and the Halifax Mooseheads hosted one of the most successful Memorial Cups as the tournament was held at the Halifax Metro Centre. The eight game tournament attracted close to 80,000 fans with the Rimouski Oceanic winning their first ever Memorial Cup.
MEMORIAL CUP RECAPS
1919
In 1919 the Ontario Hockey Association donated the Memorial Cup, to be awarded to the Dominion's junior champions, to honour the young men and women from Canada who paid the supreme sacrifice for their country in World War I. The University of Toronto Schools met the Regina Pats on March 19 and 22 of 1919 in the first Memorial Cup and both games of the two game total goal series were played in Toronto. The University of Toronto Schools, who were managed by Frank Selke Sr., outscored the Pats 29 to 8 to win the first Memorial Cup.
1919 - University of Toronto Schools - Jack Aggett, Donald Gunn, Steve Greey, Don Jeffrey, Richard Kearns, Duncan Dunc Munroe, Langton Rowell, Joe Sullivan, W.R. Baker (manager), Frank Carroll (coach).
1920
In the 1920 final a team from Toronto once again qualified for the Memorial Cup final as the Toronto Canoe Club, led by Lionel "Big Train" Conacher, met the Western Champions, the Selkirk Fisherman from Manitoba in Toronto on March 23 and 25. The first game of the two game total goal series was dominated by the Paddlers who skated to an easy 10-1 victory. The Fisherman provided to be more formidable foes in the second game as they lost only lost by a 5-4 score. For the first time, and only time until 1971, a team issued a challenge to the Memorial Cup champions as the Fort William Beavers issued an invitation to take on the newly crowned champions. The Beavers traveled to Toronto but were unsuccessful in their challenge as the Canoe Club trounced the Fort William squad on March 31 by a score of 11-1. Conacher went on to play 12 years in the National Hockey League and was selected as Canada's Athlete of the Half Century in 1950.
1920 - Toronto Canoe Club Paddlers - Harold Applegath, Billy Burch, Lionel Conacher, Sydney Hueston, Cyril J.Kelly, Francis McCurry, John A. Mollenhauer, Frank Moore, Wilfred White, Roy Worters, Cyril Reid (manager), Dick Carroll (coach).
1921
The 1921 final featured the NHL's next great star in Howie Morenz of the Stratford Midgets. Stratford met the Western Champions the Winnipeg Falcons in Toronto on March 24 and 26 in what turned out to be a highly competitive two game total goal series. The Falcons skated to a 9-2 first game win but only managed a two goal win as the squad from Stratford, with Morenz posting the hat trick, winning 7-2 in the second game.
1921 - Winnipeg Falcons - Freddie "Scotty" Comfort, Wally Fridfinnson, Sammy McCallum, Harold McMunn, Herb McMunn, Harry Neil, Frank Woodall, Art Somers, Dave Patrick, Bill McPherson, Connie Neil (coach).
1922
The 1922 Memorial Cup final was the first to be played outside of Toronto as Shea's Amphitheater in Winnipeg, the only artificial ice surface between Toronto and Vancouver, played host to the two game total goal series between the Fort William War Veterans and the Regina Pats who were making their second appearance in a final. The first game was played on March 20 and the War Vets trailed 4-3 going into the third period but rallied back scoring two unanswered goals en route to a 5-4 win. In the second game, played two days later, the Pats and the War Vets battled to a 3-3 tie giving Fort William the title. For Fort William this was their first and only appearance in a Cup final while the Pats would return again in 1925 in their third trip to the Memorial Cup final.
1922 - Fort William War Veterans - Walter Adams-Capt., Johnny Bates, Jerry Bourke, Ted D'Arcy, John "Chic" Enwright, Alex Philips, Fred Thornes, Clark Whyte, Stan Bliss (manager, coach).
1923
The Memorial Cup final series returned to Toronto in 1923 with the University of Manitoba taking on the Kitchener Colts in a two game total series that would be played on March 22 and 26. In the first game the students from the Winnipeg-based university would score five goals in the second period as they defeated the Colts by a 7-3 score. Four days later the University of Manitoba won by the same 7-3 score to give the City of Winnipeg its second Memorial Cup championship team in three years.
1923 - University of Manitoba at Winnipeg - A. Chapman, C.S. Doupe, "Nip" Johnson, Jack Mitchell, Bob Moulden, Murray Murdock-Capt., Art Puttee, F. Robertson, Blake Watson, Alston "Stony" Wise, Clare Williams, Hal Moulden (coach), R. Bruce (manager).
1924
The 1924 series shifted back to Winnipeg with four teams arriving in March to compete for the junior championship of Canada. To select who would be the representative from Western Canada that would face the Owen Sound Greys in the final, a pair of two game total goal series was created. It was determined that the winner of the Winnipeg Tammany Tigers-Regina Pats series would meet the Calgary Canadians in a series to decide who would move onto to the national final. After defeating Winnipeg in the first series the Pats moved onto take the first game against Calgary by a score of 4-2. In the second game Calgary won by the identical score forcing overtime to determine a winner. Calgary scored the winning goal six minutes into the overtime to move onto face Owen Sound. On March 26 the Greys, on two goals each from future NHL stars Butch Keeling and Cooney Weiland, defeated Calgary 5-3. Two days later the teams fought to a 2-2 tie giving the city from Ontario's Grey County its first of two Memorial Cup championships.
1924 - Owen Sound Greys - James "Dutch" Cain, George Elliott, Bev Flarity, Ted Graham, Mel "Butch" Keeling, H. Silverthorne, Headley Smith, Ralph "Cooney" Weiland, E. "Shorty" Wright, Jim Jamieson (manager), E.T. Hicks (coach).
1925
After being a bridesmaid in its two previous visits to the Memorial Cup final, the Regina Pats were determined to avoid a repeat of events when they met the Toronto Aura Lee, a team of players who all shot left, in the 1925 final. The series was played at the Toronto Arena Gardens on March 23 and 25 with the Pats winning the first game in overtime by a score of 2-1. Regina won their first Memorial Cup two days later when they defeated the squad from Toronto 5-2.
1925 - Regina Pats - Sly Acaster, Jack Crapper, Jack Cranstoun, Jack Cunning, Ken Doraty, Bert Dowie, Stan Fuller, Johnny Gottselig, Frank Ingram, Ike Morrison, Al Ritchie (manager and coach).
1926
With the end of the two game total goal format in 1925, the 1926 Memorial Cup final series would be the first to use the best of three series system to decide the junior champions of Canada. The 1926 series also marked the last time a university team would compete in the final as the representatives from Eastern Canada was Queen's University from Kingston, Ontario. The Calgary Canadians captured the Western title and earned their second trip in three years to the national final. Game one went to the Canadians as they posted a 4-2 win but a third game would be required as Queen's fought back in the second game that was played two nights later on March 25, to win by a score of 3-2. The next night Calgary took a 3-0 lead into the third period and held on to defeat the group from Kingston 3-2 to win Calgary's first and only Memorial Cup. It would be 73 years before another team from Calgary qualified for the final game of the Memorial Cup.
1926 - Calgary Canadians - Charles "Chuck" Dunn, Irving Frew, Ronnie Martin, Joe McGoldrich, Donnie McFadyen, George McTeer, Tony Savage, Bert Taylor, Paul Thompson, Sam Timmins, Eddie Poulin (coach).
1927
The Owen Sound Greys won the Eastern Canadian Championship in 1927 to qualify for its second Memorial Cup final. The opposition for the Greys in the series what would be played in Toronto was the West Ends from Port Arthur. On March 25 Martin Lauder scored a natural hat trick in the third period to lift the Greys to a 5-4 win and a 1-0 lead in the best of three series. The second game, which was played on March 28, was tied 2-2 after regulation time and in a ten minute non sudden death overtime period Owen Sound outscored the West Ends 3-1 to record a 5-3 win and capture their second Memorial Cup. In winning the 1927 Memorial Cup, the Greys became the first team to capture the cup twice.
1927 - Owen Sound Greys - Johnny "Red" Beattie, Benny Grant, John Grant, Martin Lauder, Jack Markle, Harold "Shrimp" McDougall, Alvin Moore, Hillis "Paddy" Paddon, H. Smith, A. Bennett (manager), Father J. Spratt and Bill Hancock (coach).
1928
In 1928 Regina was once again represented in the Memorial Cup but this time it was the Monarchs who would compete for the honoured trophy. In the best of three series that was played in Toronto the Monarchs would take on the Ottawa Gunners. The first two games were split with Regina winning game one 4-3 and the Gunners took the second game of the series by a score of 2-1. In the third and deciding game the Monarchs broke things open winning by a margin of 7-1.
1928 - Regina Monarchs - Carl Bergl, Len Dowie, Jim Langford, Harold "Mush" March, G. Parron, Harold Shaw, K. "Swede" Williamson, Charles "Chuck" Farrow, John Achtzner, Howie Milne (manager and coach).
1929
The 1929 Memorial Cup finals would see the Toronto Marlboros compete in the national final for the first time. Led by coach Frank Selke and future NHL stars Charlie Conacher and Harvey "Busher" Jackson the Marlies met the Elmwood Millionaires from Winnipeg in the final series that was played in Toronto. On March 29 Toronto recorded a 4-2 overtime win and two nights later won their first Memorial Cup by posting a 4-2 win. The Marlies would go onto win six more Memorial Cups in their illustrious history, the most of any team.
1929 - Toronto Marlboros - Eddie Convey, Charlie Conacher, Clarence Christie, Jim Darragh, Bob Gamble, Max Hackett, "Red" Horner, Harvey "Busher" Jackson, Alex Levinsky, Alf Moore, Laurie Moore, Harry Montgomery, Ellis Pringle, Frank Selke (coach).
1930
The Regina Pats returned to the national final for the fourth time in the first twelve years of the Memorial Cup's history in 1930 when they traveled to Winnipeg to take on the West Toronto Nationals. The Pats won the best of three series in two straight games winning game one 3-1 and game 3-2 to capture their second Memorial Cup and the third title for the City of Regina.
1930 - Regina Pats - Yates Acaster, Frank Boll, Art Dowie, Joe Dutkowski, Ken Campbell, Dave Gilhooley, Lon McPherson, Ken Moore, Gordon Pettinger, Len Rae, Ralph Redding, Eddie Wiseman, Al Ritchie (manager and coach).
1931
After losing to the Toronto Marlboros in the 1929 finals the Elmwood Millionaires once again qualified for the national title with the Ottawa Primroses being their opponents in the 1931 Memorial Cup finals. The first two games of the best of three series were played in Toronto with Ottawa taking the opening game 2-0 and the Millionaires winning the second game 2-1. The series then shifted to Ottawa for the third and deciding game and a crowd of more than 9,000, the largest crowd to see a hockey game in Ottawa at that time, gathered at the Ottawa Auditorium in anticipation of its hometown boys winning the city's first ever Memorial Cup. Elmwood sent the crowd home disappointed as they defeated the Primroses 3-0 to win the 1931 Memorial Cup.
1931 - Winnipeg Elmwood Millionaires - George Brown, Archie Creighton, Albert "Spunk" Duncanson, John Boyd Johnston, Kitson Massey, Bill MacKenzie-capt., Gordie MacKenzie, Don "Duke" McDonald, Art Rice-Jones, Cliff Workman, Norm Yellowlees, Jack Hughes (coach), Earl Adam (manager).
1932
The 1932 Memorial Cup, the fourteenth time that the trophy would be competed for, was held at Shea's Amphitheater in Winnipeg featuring the hometown Monarchs and the Cub Wolves from Sudbury. The Monarchs advanced to the national final by defeating the Saskatoon Wesleys while Sudbury knocked off the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association in the Eastern Canadian finals.
The first game of the best of three series was played on March 31 with Winnipeg posting a 4-3 win to take a 1-0 lead in the series. In the second game of the series the Wolves displayed the defensive game that had taken them to the Memorial Cup finals as they won 2-1 in overtime to tie the series and force a third and deciding game.
Game three of the series was played in front of a capacity crowd of more than 5,500 and once again Sudbury played a strong defensive game. Dalton Smith scored the only goal of the game and Anthony Healey stopped everything that the Monarchs fired his was as the Wolves held on for a 1-0 win and in doing so they won the first and only Memorial Cup for the Nickel City.
A key member of Sudbury's winning team was Hector "Toe" Blake who would go to an illustrious career in the National Hockey League both as a coach and as a player. Blake would win three Stanley Cups as a player and coached the Montreal Canadiens to eight Stanley Cup titles including five in a row from 1995 to 1960, his first five years as a coach in the NHL.
1932 - Sudbury Cub Wolves - Max Bennett, Hector "Toe" Blake, Borden Caswell, Maurice Dabous, Peter Fenton, Ivan Fraser, Gordon Grant, Anthony Healey, Adelard LaFrance, Jr., Larry LaFrance, Jack McInnes, Bob McInnes, Redmond "Red" Porter-capt., A.J. Powell, Don Price, Dalton "Nakena" Smith, Max Silverman (manager), Sam Rothschild (coach).
1933
The 1933 Memorial Cup Finals were played in Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens for the first time as the Newmarket Redmen met the Regina Pats who were making their fifth visit to the Canadian junior hockey championship finals. The Redmen defeated the Montreal Royals to qualify for the best of three game series while the Pats knocked off the Brandon Native Sons to earn the trip to Toronto.
The Redmen were described as small and fast team that played a strong offensive style of hockey. The series opened on April 4 with Newmarket posting a 2-1 win to take a 1-0 lead in the series. Two nights later, with 8,000 fans in the stands, the Redmen's Don Willson scored late in the third overtime period to give Newmarket the Memorial Cup championship. For Willson it would be the first of two Memorials Cup as in 1933-34 he and teammate Pep Kelly moved on to play with the Toronto St. Michael's Majors championship team.
1933 - Newmarket Redmen - Tod "Silver" Doran, Ran Forder, Frank "Chief" Huggins, Regis "Pep" Kelly, Norm Mann, Aubrey Marshall, "Red" McArthur, M. Ogilvie, Jimmy Parr, Howard Peterson, "Gar" Preston, Melville "Sparky" Vial-capt., Don Wilson, Stan Smith (manager), Bill Hancock (coach).
1934
The 1934 Memorial Cup final marked the first that the Memorial Cup would be awarded to the junior A champions of Canada as the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association divided junior hockey into A and B classes.
1934 was the first time that Toronto's St. Michael's College would compete in the national championship. From 1934 to 1961 St. Michael's would appear in the final five times winning the title on four of their five trips to the Memorial Cup final. St. Michael's outscored Charlottetown by scores of 12-2 and 7-2 to move onto the national championship.
The Edmonton Athletic Club were the opponents for Toronto in the 1934 final who had advanced by defeating the Port Arthur West Ends in the Western Canada Final. Featured players in Edmonton's line up include the Colville brothers Neil and Matthew who would go onto to play in the National Hockey League with the New York Rangers and they were members of the Rangers' 1940 Stanley Cup winning team.
The 1934 best of three series was played at Shea's Ampitheatre in Winnipeg with Toronto winning the first game by a 5-0 score on April 3. 4,500 people showed up for game two with St. Michael's scoring twice in overtime to win 6-4 and capture their first Memorial Cup championship.
Toronto's line up was viewed as one of the finest to ever win the Memorial Cups as the members of the 1934 Memorial Cup winning team would collectively win ten Stanley Cups. Bobby Bauer, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, won two Stanley Cups with the Boston Bruins while Nick Metz would win four Stanley Cups in his twelve years with the Toronto Maple Leafs. For two members of the St. Michael's squad the 1934 win would be their second Memorial Cup in as many years as Pep Kelly and Don Willson were members of the Newmarket Redmen's 1933 Memorial Cup winning team.
1934 - Toronto St. Michael's College - John Acheson, Frank Bauer, Bobby Bauer, J.J. Burke, Clarence "Mickey" Drouillard, Reg Hamilton, John Hamilton, Art Jackson, Regis "Pep" Kelly, Nick Metz, Leo McLean, Harvey Teno, Don Willson, J.J. Timmons (manager), Dr. W.J. LaFlamme (coach).
1935
The 1935 Memorial Cup final series was a rematch of the 1932 final with the Sudbury Cub Wolves taking on the Winnipeg Monarchs in the best of three series that would be played in Winnipeg. In 1932 the Wolves, led by Hector "Toe" Blake, defeated the Monarchs in three games to win the Memorial Cup.
Sudbury defeated the Ottawa Rideaus to advance to their second Memorial Cup appearance while the Monarchs, who were also competing in their second Memorial Cup final, defeated the Saskatoon Wesleys to move onto the national final.
As was the case in the 1932 series, all three games would be required to name a winner with Winnipeg posting a 7-6 win in the first game that was played on April 9. Two days later the Wolves scored three goals in the final two minutes of the game to win 7-2 and even the series up. In game three on April 13 the Monarchs got revenge on their 1932 loss by recording a 4-1 win to capture the 1935 Memorial Cup title.
1935 - Winnipeg Monarchs - Ken Barker, Pete Belanger-capt., Jack Boyd, Wilf Field, Paul Gauthier, Burr Keenan, Joe Krol, Romeo Martel, John "Ike" Prokaski, Paul Rheault, Fred White, Harry Neil (coach).
1936
After an absence of two years the Memorial Cup final returned to Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens with the West Toronto Nationals and the Saskatoon Wesleys as the two competing teams. The Nationals, who were managed by Harold Ballard, defeated the Oshawa Red Devils and Kitchener-Waterloo to advance to the Dominion final while Saskatoon eliminated the Elmwood Maple Leafs to earn the Western Canadian title.
The best of three series began on April 10 with West Toronto handing the Western Canadian champions a 5-1 defeat to take a 1-0 lead in the series. In the second game, played on April 13, the Nationals and Saskatoon entered the third period tied at 1-1and by the end of the period West Toronto scored three more times to defeat the Wesleys 4-2.
Behind the bench for West Toronto was Clarence "Hap" Day who would move on to coach the Toronto Maple Leafs to Stanley Cup titles in 1942, 1945, 1947, 1948 and 1949. Day was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1961. Nationals' teammates Bucky Crawford and Roy Conacher would both move on to the NHL and they were members of the Boston Bruins' 1939 and 1941 Stanley Cup winning teams. Conacher was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1998.
Clarence Campbell, President of the NHL from 1946 to 1977 was one of the two referees in the series.
1936 - West Toronto Redmen Nationals - Bert Conacher, Roy Conacher, Johnny "Bucky" Crawford, D. Fritz, Carl Gamble, Fred "Ginger" Hall, Robert "Red" Heron, Bill Jennings, Bob Laurent, F. Murray, Johnny "Peanut" O'Flaherty, Ted Robertson, Gord Shill, Bill Thompson, Harold Ballard (manager), Clarence "Hap" Day (coach).
1937
The 1937 finals returned to Maple Leaf Gardens for second year in a row with the Copper Cliff Redmen from Northern Ontario taking on the Winnipeg Monarchs. For the Monarchs this was their third trip to the Dominion championships since 1932 and their second in three years after winning the 1935 title. The Redmen were the former Newmarket Redmen, the team that won the 1933 Memorial Cup.
In 1937 the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association changed the format of the Memorial Cup finals making it a best of five series. From 1919 to 1925 the final series was a two game total goal series with the change to a best of three series taking place in 1926.
The series opened on April 10 and Winnipeg was well on its way to a victory before the Redmen got on the scoreboard late in the third period. Trailing 3-0 with just over two minutes left to play in the final period Copper Cliff 's Roy Heimer scored three times, including once on a penalty shot, to tie the game at 3-3. Heimer then scored shorthanded in overtime to give the Redmen the victory and a 1-0 lead in the series.
The Monarchs rallied back to take the second game by a 6-5 score and won game three to take a 2-1 lead in the series. The fourth game of the 1937 Memorial Cup finals proved to be the deciding game as 11,455 fans saw the Monarchs win their second and final Memorial Cup as they easily defeated Copper Cliff 7-0.
The Winnipeg roster included three players who would also add a Stanley Cup win to their Memorial Cup victory. Alf Pike would be a member of the New York Rangers' 1940 Stanley Cup winning team while Pete Langelle won the Stanley Cup with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1942. Johnny McCreedy was a member of the Leafs' Stanley Cup teams in 1942 and 1945. Pike would return to the Memorial Cup finals in 1952 when he would coach the Guelph Biltmores to a Memorial Cup victory.
From the Redmen Red Hamill and Pat McReavy would have their names engraved on the Stanley Cup as members of the Boston Bruins. Hamill played for the Bruins in 1939 and 1941 while McReavy would also be a member of Boston's 1941 Stanley Cup winning team. McReavy, who had his name engraved on the Stanley Cup despite never having played in a NHL regular season game, has been honoured by the Owen Sound Attack for his hockey achievements. Each season the Unsung Hero of the Attack is presented with the Pat McReavy Trophy.
1937 - Winnipeg Monarchs - Jack Atcheson, Ami Clement, Ted Dent, Zenon Ferley, Jack Fox, Dick Kowcinak, Pete Langelle, Lucien Martel, Johnny McCready, A. Peletier, Alf Pike-capt., Paul Rheault, Denny Robinson, Remi Vandaele, W. Webber (manager), Harry Neil (coach).
1938
The St. Boniface Seals traveled east from Manitoba to take on the Oshawa Generals in the 1938 Memorial Cup finals that would be played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. The best of five series would be the best attended final in the twenty year history of the Dominion finals as an average of 11,278 fans took in the series that went to the five game maximum.
The Generals defeated Guelph in three straight games to win the Ontario title and the J. Ross Robertson Cup. St. Boniface defeated the defending Memorial Cup champion Winnipeg Monarchs to earn their first ever trip to the Memorial Cup finals.
After the Oshawa won the opening game by a 3-2 score the Seals rebounded in the second game shutting out the Generals 4-0. Oshawa took a 2-1 series lead by posting a 4-2 win in the third game with Bob Forster making 41 saves in the Generals' goal. In game three it looked the Oshawa would win its first Memorial Cup as they had a 3-1 lead with less than eight minutes left to play in the third period. The Seals rallied scoring five goals in the final eight minutes en route to a 6-4 win and in doing so they forced a fifth and deciding game.
The fifth game of the series had the makings for an exciting contest and a crowd of 15,617, the largest crowd ever to see a hockey game in Canada, crammed into Maple Leaf Gardens in anticipation of an exciting game. The Seals spoiled the show as they outplayed Oshawa and recorded a 7-1 win to their first and only Memorial Cup.
Two members of the Seals' championship team would add a Stanley Cup title to their portfolio. Wally Stanowski, who was a stalwart on defence for St. Boniface, would play on the Toronto Maple Leafs' winning teams in 1945, 1947 and 1948 while Billy Reay was a member of the Montreal Canadiens' winning teams in 1946 and 1953. Reay would go on to win over 500 games as a coach in the National Hockey League with Toronto and the Chicago Black Hawks.
1938 - St. Boniface Seals - Herb Burron, Pete "Patch" Couture, George Gordon, Herm Gruhn, Bert Janke-capt., Jack Messett, Billy McGregor, Frank Nickol, Billy Reay, Wally Stanowski, Doug Webb, Jack Simpson, Gil Paulley (manager), Mike Kryschuk (coach).
1939
In 1939 the Oshawa Generals returned to the Memorial Cup final for a second year in a row after losing in the 1938 final series to the St. Boniface Seals in five games. In the 1939 best of five series, that was played at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, the Generals would face the Edmonton Athletic Club Roamers.
The 1939 series for the Memorial Cup can best be described as the Billy "The Kid" Taylor show as the Oshawa forward was the dominant figure of the series. In the opening game Taylor scored five times leading the Generals to a 9-4 win and he then followed up with an equally impressive showing in the second game, a 12-4 Oshawa win, as he scored four goals and added five assists.
In the third game the Roamers made adjustments to their game plan assigning centre Elmer Kreller with the responsibility of keeping Taylor in check. The adjustment worked as Edmonton scored a 4-1 win to narrow Oshawa's series' lead to 2 games to one and forcing a fourth game.
The defensive tactics of the Roamers worked for the first forty minutes of game four as Edmonton took a 2-1 lead into the third period. The Generals responded to the challenge scoring three unanswered goals in the third period to post a 4-2 win and capture their first Memorial Cup title. Taylor finished the series with an amazing 15 points on 9 goals and six assists in the four game series.
On defence for the Roamers was future Hall of Fame defenceman Kenny Reardon. As was the case for many junior players of this era, the pending Second World War would prevent these young players from lengthy careers in professional hockey. Reardon fit into this situation as he would play seven seasons in the National Hockey League with the Montreal Canadiens where he would be a member of the Habs' 1946 Stanley Cup team. Reardon was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966.
1939 - Oshawa Generals - Les Colvin, Don Daniels, Joe Delmonte, Jim Drummond, Gerry Kinsella, Nick Knott, Jud McAtee, Norm McAtee, Dinny McManus, Gar Peters, Roy Sawyer, Orville Smith, George "Nig" Ritchie, Billy Taylor-capt., Matt Leyden (manager), Tracy Shaw (coach).
1940
The 1940 Memorial Cup finals would be the first time that two teams from Ontario would be to decide the national junior hockey champions as the Oshawa Generals would meet the Kenora Thistles. The next time two teams from Ontario would meet in a game to decide the Memorial Cup champions would be in 1972 when the Cornwall Royals, the champions of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, would defeated the Ontario Hockey League's Peterborough Petes.
The Generals, who the defending Memorial Cup Champions, defeated the Verdun Maple Leafs to advance to the Memorial Cup while Kenora knocked off the Edmonton Athletic Club to win the Western Canadian berth in the Memorial Cup finals. The best of five series was played in Winnipeg who was hosting the Memorial Cup for the first time since 1935.
Oshawa won game one by a 1-0 score and took a 2-0 series lead after posting a 4-1 win in the second game. The Thistles rebounded in the third game winning 4-3 to force a fourth game in the best of five series. The Generals won game four 4-2 to become the first team in the 22 year history of the Memorial Cup to win back to back titles, a feat that would not be duplicated until 1995 and 1956 when the Toronto Marlboros would win consecutive titles.
1940 - Oshawa Generals - Don Daniels, Frank Eddolls, Jack Hewson, Bud Hellyer, Nick Knott, Jud McAtee-capt., Norm McAtee, Dinny McManus, Gar Peters, George "Nig" Ritchie, Roy Sawyer, Orville Smith, Doug Turner, Ron Wilson, Wally Wilson, Matt Leyden (manager), Tracy Shaw (coach).
1941
In the 1941 Memorial Cup Finals the City of Winnipeg was represented for the eighth time as the Rangers joined the Falcons, Monarchs, Elmwood Millionaires and the University of Manitoba in the group of teams from the Manitoba capital that would compete in the Dominion final. Joining the Rangers in the best of five series would be the Montreal Royals who were the first team from Quebec to play in the Memorial Cup final.
The Royals ended the Oshawa Generals streak of three consecutive Memorial Cup appearances as they knocked off the two time defending Memorial Cup champions in three games to one to win the Eastern Canada title. Winnipeg advanced by defeating the Saskatoon Quakers in the Western finals.
The 1941 series was also the first one that had games played in a province other than Manitoba and Ontario as the series shifted back and forth between Toronto and Montreal. The first game was played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens and the Rangers were 4-2 winners. Game two was played in Montreal and the Royals made positive use of home ice as they evened the series with a 5-3 win. The teams went back to Toronto for the third game of the series and Winnipeg won 6-4 scoring the game winning goal with 1:24 left to play in the third period to take a 2-1 series lead. The two teams then moved back to Montreal for the fourth game and the Royals forced a fifth and deciding game as they scored two power play goals in the final two minutes of the third period to win 4-3 and send the series back to Toronto.
Maple Leafs Gardens proved to be a great home away from home for the boys from Winnipeg as they won their third game at the Gardens by a 7-4 score to give the Rangers a 3-2 series win. The Rangers' Memorial Cup win gave the City of Winnipeg its sixth Memorial Cup title, which was a record at the time.
Two players that participated in the 1941 final would go on to win Stanley Cups. The Rangers' Glen Harmon was part of the Montreal Canadiens' Stanley Cup teams in 1944 and 1946 and Montreal's Ken Mosdell would win four Stanley Cups in his sixteen year career with the Canadiens. Mosdell and Harmon would be teammates on the Canadiens' 1946 Stanley Cup winning team.
Another participant of note in this series was Winnipeg's Manning "Babe" Hobday. Hobday, as would many junior age hockey players of the 1940's, lost in life on the Beaches of Normandy in 1944.
1941 - Winnipeg Rangers - Doug Baldwin, Bob Ballance, Bernie Bathgate, Sam Fabro, Earl Fast, Glen Harmon, Alan Hay, Bill Heindl, Les Hickey, Manning "Babe" Hobday, Hubbert "Hib" Macey, Lou Medynski, Hugh Millar-capt., Bill Mortimer, Mike Peters, Bill Robinson, Hal Thompson, Tom Bredin, Lawerence "Baldy" Northcott (coach).
1942
After a one year absence the Oshawa Generals once again qualified for the Memorial Cup finals as their appearance in the 1942 finals would be the fourth time in five years that they earned the right to play in the Dominion finals. Facing the Generals in the best of five series that was played in Winnipeg was the Portage La Prairie Terriers.
The Generals were coached by Charlie Conacher who was a member of the Toronto Marlboro's 1929 Memorial Cup winning team and he was attempting to become the first person to win the honoured trophy as both a player and as a coach. Oshawa swept the Montreal Royals in the Eastern Canada finals while the Terriers won the Western Canada title to extend their winning streak to 22 games.
Portage La Prairie extended their winning streak to 24 games as they defeated the Generals 5-1 in the opening game of the series and 8-7 in the second game to take a 2-0 series lead. Oshawa came back in the third game to post a 8-4 win but the boys from Manitoba proved to be worthy Memorial Cup champions as they easily handled the Generals by a 8-2 score in the fourth game to take the series 3 games to 1.
1942 - Portage LaPrairie Terriers - Gordon Bell, Jack Bell, Lin Bend, Don Campbell, Billy Gooden, Bill Heindl, Bobby Love, Jack McDonald-capt., Jack O'Rielly, Bud Ritchie, Lloyd Smith, Wally Stefanew, Jack Bend (manager), Addie Bell (coach).
1943
In 1943 the Oshawa Generals returned to the Memorial Cup for the fifth time in six years and their opponents would be the Winnipeg Rangers who won the Dominion title in 1941. The two teams would meet at Maple Leaf Gardens in mid April and for the first time ever the Memorial Cup be awarded to the winner of a best of seven series.
The Generals knocked off the Montreal Junior Canadiens to once again earn the right to compete for the Memorial Cup while the Rangers, who would be attempting to bring the Memorial Cup back to Manitoba for the third year in a row, defeated the Saskatoon Quakers to advance to the finals.
In the first game of the series Winnipeg scored four times in the second period to record a 6-5 win and draw first blood. Oshawa rebounded in the second game with a 6-2 win to even the series and then took a 2-1 lead after Bill Ezinicki, who would go on to win three Stanley Cups with the Toronto Maple Leafs, scored three goals in a 5-3 Generals' victory in the third game of the series.
Unfortunately for Oshawa, that would be the last time they would enjoy a victory in the series as the Rangers bounced back to win the next three games. Game four was decided by a 7-4 score and Winnipeg moved to within one game of capturing the Memorial Cup with a 7-3 win in the fifth game. In the sixth game of the series, played in front of a crowd of 14,485, the Rangers scored three unanswered goals in the third period to win 6-3 and capture their second Memorial Cup.
Stars of the 1943 final included Oshawa's Floyd ãBusherä Curry who would win four Stanley Cups in his ten seasons with the Montreal Canadiens. From Winnipeg Cal Gardner would move on to an outstanding career in the National Hockey League that would include Stanley Cups with Toronto in 1949 and 1951. Red Tilson was a player who showed great promise for a long and successful pro career but following the 1942-43 season Tilson enlisted in the Canadian Army and he was killed in action in Holland in October of 1944. Each season the Ontario Hockey League's most outstanding player, as selected by the writers and broadcasters that cover the OHL, is awarded the Red Tilson Trophy.
1943 - Winnipeg Rangers - Bill Boorman-capt., Eddie Kullman (Coleman), Tom Fowler, Cal Gardner, Jack Irvine, Doug Jackson, Ben Juzda, Ritchie McDonald, Joe Peterson, Church Russell, Gus Schwartz, Bill Tindall, Bill Vickers, Stan Warecki, Frank Mathers, George Mundrick, Jack Taggart, Bob Kinnear (coach).
1944
The 1944 best of seven series for the Memorial Cup saw the Oshawa Generals return for the six time in seven years and for the first time in the twenty six year history of the Dominion championship the Province of British Columbia would be represented in the final as the Trail Smoke Eaters captured the Western Canada title. The Smoke Eaters knocked off the Port Arthur Navy in the western final while the Generals needed four games to move past the Montreal Royals in the eastern final.
Oshawa bolstered their line up by adding players from the Toronto St. Michael's Majors for the final that was played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens for the third year in a row. In the first game the Generals skated to a 9-2 win and followed that up with a 5-2 win in the second game. It was all Oshawa in game three as they fired 67 shots at the Smoke Eaters' goal, scoring nine times in the second period en route to a 15-4 win. The Generals posted an 11-4 win in game four to sweep the series and become the first team to win three Memorial Cups.
Oshawa coach Charlie Conacher, who played with the Toronto Marlboros' 1929 Memorial Cup winning team, became the first person to win the Cup as both a player and as a coach, a feat that would only be duplicated by four other individuals over the history of the Memorial Cup. Alf Pike was a member of the Winnipeg Monarchs 1937 Memorial Cup winning team and in 1952 he would coach the Guelph Biltmores to a title. In 1938 Billy Reay was a player with the St. Boniface Seals winning team and in 1950 he helped coach the Montreal Junior Canadiens to their first of three Memorial Cup titles. Father David Bauer played with the 1944 Generals and in 1961 he was the coach of the Toronto St. Michael's Majors' championship team. Rounding out the group was Paul Emms who would play for the Barrie Flyers in 1951 when they would win the Memorial Cup for the first time and 17 years later he would guide the Niagara Falls Flyers to a Memorial Cup title.
The Oshawa line up include Bill Dawes and Bill Ezinicki who would later be team mates on the Toronto Maple Leafs 1949 Stanley Cup team. Ezinicki would play for nine seasons in the National Hockey League and would also play on the Maple Leafs' 1947 and 1948 Stanley Cup winning teams. Among the players added to the Generals' roster from St. Michael's were Ted Lindsay and Gus Mortson, two players who between them would win eight Stanley Cups. Mortson played with Toronto's winning teams in 1947, 1948, 1949 and 1951 while Lindsay would play for the Detroit Red Wings' 1950 Stanley Cup team and he was the captain of Detroit's Stanley Cup teams in 1952, 1954 and 1955. Lindsay was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966.
1944 - Oshawa Generals - Bill Barker, Don Batten, Dave Bauer, Harvey Bennett, Johnny Chenier, Floyd Curry, Bob Dawes, Bill Ezinicki, Ted Lindsay, Bobby Love, Johnny Marois, Murdie McMillan, Gus Mortson, Bob Porter, Bert Shewchuck, Ken Smith, Jack Taggart, Matt Leyden (manager), Charlie Conacher (coach).
1945
The Toronto St. Michael's Majors returned to the Memorial Cup final series for the first time since 1934 when they were crowned Canadian junior champions. The opponents for the Majors in the best of seven series that was played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens were the Moose Jaw Canucks who were making their first trip to the national final.
Toronto won the Ontario Hockey Association title and the J. Ross Robertson Trophy by beating Galt in four games to advance to the Eastern Canadian finals where they knocked off the Montreal Royals in six games. Moose Jaw reached the Canadian finals by defeating Prince Albert, Edmonton and the Winnipeg Monarchs.
The Majors took the first game of the series by a 8-5 score as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the game was eight minutes old. In the second game the Canucks, who had lost just once in 16 playoff games leading up to the final, tied the series as they recorded a 5-3 win. Toronto won the next three games by scores of 5-3, 4-3 and 7-2 to win their second Memorial Cup championship.
The Majors were coached by former Toronto Maple Leafs' great Joe Primeau. Primeau, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1963, spent the next several years coaching in the Leafs' chain. In 1950 he led the Toronto Marlboros to an Allan Cup title as the senior champions of Canada and he followed that up the year later as he was behind the bench when the Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup. Primeau is the only coach to win a Memorial Cup, an Allan Cup and a Stanley Cup.
Featured players in the 1945 series included Moose Jaw's Bert Olmstead and Toronto's Gus Mortson and Les Costello. Olmstead would play 14 seasons in the National Hockey League with the Chicago Black Hawks, Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs where he would win four Stanley Cups with the Canadiens and one with Toronto. The first coach of the Oakland Seals, who joined the NHL in 1967-68, Olmstead was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1985.
Mortson would play in the NHL with Toronto, Detroit and Chicago and in his 13 seasons he would win four Stanley Cups while playing for the Maple Leafs. Costello, who played parts of three seasons with the Maple Leafs, would take a career change and be ordained as a priest. As a priest Costello would create the Flying Fathers hockey team who continue to raise funds for worthy causes through charity hockey games played across North America.
1945 - Toronto St. Michaels College - John Arundel, John Blute, Pat Boehmer, Les Costello, Leo Gravell, Bob Gray, Johnny McCormack, Ted McLean, Jim Morrison, Gus Mortson, Bobby Paul, Joe Sadler, Phil Samis, Tod Sloan, Jimmy Thompson, Frank Turik, J. Frezell (manager), Joe Primeau (coach).
1946
The 1946 Memorial Cup final would be contested by the defending Memorial Cup champion Toronto St. Michael's Majors and the Winnipeg Monarchs who were out to collect their third Dominion title. The Majors won the J. Ross Robertson Cup by winning three games in a row to defeat the Oshawa Generals 3 games to 2 in the Ontario final and they then swept the Montreal Junior Canadiens in a best of five series to advance to the Memorial Cup. The Monarchs advanced to the national finals by knocking off the Edmonton Canadians in five games.
For the fourth year in a row the best of seven final series for the Memorial Cup would be played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. Winnipeg took the opening game 3-2 and the Majors rallied back recording a 5-3 win in the second game and winning the third game by a 7-3 score. The Monarchs evened the series up at 2-2 with a 4-3 game four victory and the two teams split the next two games, Toronto winning game five 7-4 and the Monarchs taking game six 4-2, to force a seventh and deciding game.
In front of a crowd of 15,819, the largest crowd to ever watch an amateur hockey game in Canada, Winnipeg broke a 2-2 tie with just over 12 minutes left to play in the third and then added an insurance marker in the final minute of play to post a 4-2 win. The Monarchs would add the 1946 Memorial Cup to their wins in 1935 and 1937 as they joined the Oshawa Generals as the only teams to win three Memorial Cups. The win had some history for the city of Winnipeg as it was the Manitoba capital's eighth Memorial Cup championship, the most of any city. However, it would also be the last time that a team from Winnipeg would win the Memorial Cup.
1946 - Winnipeg Monarchs - Clint Allbright, Hy Beatty, Al Buchanan-capt., Ted Chitty, Dunc Daniels, Gord Fashoway, Jack Gibson, "Tank" Kummerfield, Eddie Marchant, Laurie May, Don "Red" McRae, Cam Millar, George Robertson, Tom Rockey, Gord Scott, Harry Taylor, Bill Tindall, P. Lyon (manager), Walter Monson (coach).
1947
The Toronto St. Michael's Majors returned to the Memorial Cup final in for the third year in a row as they swept the Montreal Junior Canadiens in three games to win the Eastern Canadian title. The opponents for the Majors would be the Moose Jaw Canucks, the team that they defeated in the 1945 final. The Canucks advanced to the Dominion final by defeating the Brandon Elks in an eight game series.
In the Majors the Canucks met an offensive power as Toronto scored 37 goals, including 21 in the final game, in their three game sweep of the Junior Canadiens. The Majors continued to show their offensive abilities against Moose Jaw as in the opening game of the series they easily handled the Canucks 12-3 in Winnipeg.
The series then shifted to Moose Jaw and Regina as for the first time ever the Memorial Cup finals would be played in the Province of Saskatchewan. Toronto won game two in Moose Jaw by a 6-1 score and they won the third game of the series 8-1 after the game, which was played in Regina, was halted with eight minutes left to play due to bottles being thrown on to the ice. St. Michael's won their third Memorial Cup as they defeated Moose Jaw 3-2 in the fourth game of the series.
A featured member of Toronto's 1947 Memorial Cup winning team was Red Kelly who would go onto a 20 year career in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Kelly, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1969, would win eight Stanley Cups in his NHL career.
1947 - Toronto St. Michael's College - Les Costello, Ray Hannigan, Ed Harrison, Howard Harvey, Len "Red" Kelly, Fleming Mackell, John McLellan, Clare Malone, Rudy Migay, Bobby Paul, Harry Psutka, Ed Sandford, John Williams, Warren Winslow, Benny Woit, Joe Primeau (coach).
1948
The Port Arthur West End Bruins returned to the Memorial Cup final after an absence of 21 years as they last appeared in 1927 when they lost to the Owen Sound Greys in the Memorial Cup final. The opponents for Port Arthur would be the Barrie Flyers who advanced by defeating the Montreal Nationales in the Eastern Canadian finals.
The best of seven series was played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens with Port Arthur winning the first game in a shootout by a 10-8 score. The Bruins once again demonstrated their offensive talents in the second game as they posted an 8-1 win to take a 2-0 series lead. The Flyers came closer in the third game losing 5-4 but Port Arthur swept the series by winning the fourth game 9-8 in overtime.
In the Bruins' line up was Rudy Migay who won his second Memorial Cup in as many years as he moved to the Bruins after being a member of the Toronto St. Michael's Majors' 1947 Memorial Cup winning team. Also in Port Arthur's line up was Dave Creighton who would go on to play 12 years in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Black Hawks and New York Rangers. Dave's son Adam would share a similar experience as in 1984 he was a member of the Ottawa 67's Memorial Cup winning team.
1948 - Port Arthur West End Bruins - Fred Baccari, Barton Bradley, Lorne Chabot, Alfie Childs, Dave Creighton, Pete Durham, Bobby Fero, Bert Fonso, Allan Forslund, Art Harris, Bill Johnson, Danny Lewicki, Rudy Migay, Norval Olsen, Benny Wiot, Robbie Wrightsell, Jerry Zager, E.C. Whalen (manager), Ed Lauzon (coach).
1949
For just the second time in the thirty one year history of the Memorial Cup the Province of Quebec was represented in the final series as the Montreal Royals returned after making their first trip to the final back in 1941. The Royals, who defeated the Barrie Flyers in the Eastern Canadian finals, would meet the Brandon Wheat Kings who had advanced to the national final by knocking off the Calgary Buffalos.
The series was scheduled as a best of seven affair that would shift back and forth from Winnipeg and Brandon. Game one was in Winnipeg and the Royals took a 1-0 series lead by virtue of their 3-2 victory. The teams then moved to Brandon for games two and three and the Wheat Kings evened the series with an identical 3-2 win in the second game. History was made in the third game of the series as for the first time in the history of the Memorial Cup overtime failed to declare a winner. The teams remained tied at 3-3 after neither team was able to score during the fixed overtime period.
In game four, which was played in Winnipeg, Montreal took a 1-0 win to take a 2-1 series lead and they then moved to within one win of the Memorial Cup title by winning game five, which was played in Brandon, 7-4. The remaining games of the series were scheduled to be played in Brandon and the Wheat Kings made use of home ice advantage as they won games six and seven by scores of 2-1 and 5-1 respectively to force an eighth game.
Officials of the Canadian Hockey Association determined that the eighth game should be played in a neutral site and it was moved to Winnipeg. Brandon appeared to be on their way to their first ever Memorial Cup win as they had a 4-2 lead in the third period but the Royals scored four answered goals to record a 6-4 win to give Quebec its first ever Memorial Cup winning team.
A star for Montreal was Dickie Moore who would go on to play 14 seasons in the National Hockey League with the Montreal Canadiens, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the St. Louis Blues. Moore, who would win five Stanley Cups with the Canadiens, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1974.
1949 - Montréal Royals - Eric Appleby, Gordon Armstrong, Matthew Benoit, Robert Bleau, Frederick Burchell, Mike Darling, Victor Fildes, Robert Frampton, John Hirschfeld, Gordon Knutson, Neale Langill, Peter Larocque, Tommy Manastersky, Richard Moore, William Rattray, Donald Rose, Roland Rousseau, Gus Ogilvie (general manager), J.T. Millar (coach).
1950
For the second year in a row the Province of Quebec was represented in the Memorial Cup finals as the Montreal Junior Canadiens would attempt to win back to back Memorial Cups for the province as the Montreal Royals had won Quebec's first ever national title in 1949. After an absence of 17 years, the Regina Pats returned to the Memorial Cup final. For the Pats, who last appeared in 1932 when they lost to the Newmarket Redmen, this would be their fifth trip to a Memorial Cup final and they would be looking to add to the titles that they won in 1925 and in 1930.
The Junior Canadiens advanced to the Memorial Cup final by defeating the Quebec Citadels, the Halifax St. Mary's and the Guelph Biltmores. Regina reached the national final by eliminating Moose Jaw, Lethbridge, Prince Albert and Prince Arthur.
Coached by Sam Pollack and Billy Reay, who was a member of the St. Boniface Seals 1938 Memorial Cup winning team, the Junior Canadiens won 8-7 in game one and 5-2 in game two as the first two games of the series were played at the Montreal Forum. The series moved to Toronto's Maple Leafs Gardens for the games three and four with Montreal winning 5-1 in the third game. The Pats rallied from a 4-1 deficit midway through the fourth game of the series scoring six times to post a 7-4 win and force a fifth game. The series returned to Montreal for game five and the Junior Canadiens skated past Regina 6-3 to win their first Memorial Cup.
The Junior Canadiens line up featured many players that would eventually move up and play for the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadiens. After winning the 1949 Memorial Cup with the Montreal Royals, Dickie Moore moved across the city to be a part of the Junior Canadiens' winning team. Moore, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1974, would win six Stanley Cups with the parent Habs and in 1957-58 and again in 1958-59 he would win the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer. Don Marshall would move on to play in the NHL with the Canadiens and the New York Rangers and he was a member of Montreal's five Stanley Cup winning teams from 1956 to 1960. Charlie Hodge was the goaltender on the Junior Canadiens' Memorial Cup winning team and he would play 14 seasons in the NHL with Montreal, the Oakland Seals and the Vancouver Canucks. Hodge played with Montreal's Stanley Cup winning teams in 1959, 1960, 1965 and 1966.
1950 - Montréal Canadiens - Doug Binning, Kevin Conway, Bob Dawson, Herb English, Bill Goold, Reg. Grigg, Charles Hodge, Gordon Hollingworth, Don Marshall, Dave McCready, Brian McKay, Dick Moore, Roger Morissette, Bill Sinnett, Ernie Roche, Kevin Rochford, Art Rose, Frank LeGrove (manager), Sam Pollock / Bill Reay (coach).
1951
In 1951 a familiar face returned to the Memorial Cups as the Winnipeg Monarchs returned to the national stage for the fifth time. The Monarchs were winners of the Memorial Cup in 1935, 1937 and in 1946 and they also played in the 1932 finals losing to the Sudbury Wolves. The opponents for Winnipeg would be the Barrie Flyers who lost in the 1948 finals to the Port Arthur West End Bruins.
The Monarchs, who would also be seeking an eighth Memorial Cup title for the City of Winnipeg, defeated the Regina Pats to win the Abbott Cup and move on to the Memorial Cup final. Barrie knocked off the Quebec Citadels, who had future National Hockey League great Jean Beliveau in its line up, in the Richardson Trophy final to advance to the 1951 Memorial Cup final.
The opening two games of the best of seven series were played in Winnipeg and the Flyers won by identical 5-1 scores to take a 2-0 series lead. The two teams then moved to Brandon for game three with Barrie posting a 4-3 win to move to within one game of its first ever Memorial Cup title. Game four was played in Winnipeg and the Flyers handled Winnipeg by a 9-5 score to sweep the series in four games.
The 1951 series marked the end of an era as it was the last time that the Monarchs would appear in a Memorial Cup final and it was also the last time a team from Winnipeg would make it all the way to the Canadian junior championship. From 1921 to 1951 eleven teams from Winnipeg competed in the Memorial Cup final and on eight occasions the honoured trophy was taken home by a team from the capital of Manitoba.
The Flyers' line up included future NHLers in Real Chevrefils, Leo Labine and Jerry Toppazzini who would play with the Boston Bruins. Also on the winning team was Jim Morrison who would play 12 seasons in the NHL with Boston, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, New York Rangers and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
1951 - Barrie Flyers - Lionel Barber, Marvin Brewer, Real Chevrefils, Don Emms, Paul Emms, Bill Hagan, Lorne Howes, Leo Labine, Jack McKnight, Doug Mohns, Jim Morrison, Daniel O'Connor, Lloyd Pearsall, George Stanutz, Jerry Toppazzini, Doug Towers, Ralph Willis, Chuck Woods, Jack White, Howard Norris (manager), Leighton "Hap" Emms (coach).
1952
In the 1952 Memorial Cup finals the Guelph Biltmores met the Regina Pats who were making their seventh appearance in the national finals and they would be looking to add to the titles that they won in 1925 and 1930. For the Biltmores, this was their first trip to the Memorial Cup final.
Guelph advanced to the Memorial Cup final by defeating St. Catharines TeePees in five games to win the J. Ross Robertson Trophy and the Montreal Junior Canadiens in six games to capture the Richardson Trophy. Regina won the Abbott Cup and the right to represent Western Canada by knocking off the Fort William Hurricanes.
The 1952 finals proved to be a one sided contest as the Biltmores opened the series with an 8-2 win at the Guelph Memorial Gardens. The series then shifted to Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens where Guelph made short work of capturing their first Memorial Cup by recording wins of 4-2, 8-2 and 10-2 to sweep the 1952 Memorial Cup final.
The Guelph line up featured eight players who would move on to National Hockey League careers. Included in that group of eight was Captain Andy Bathgate who would play 17 seasons in the NHL with the New York Rangers, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Bathgate, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978, won the Hart Trophy in 1959 as the NHL's Most Valuable Player and he was a member of the Maple Leafs' 1964 Stanley Cup winning team.
Defenceman Harry Howell would play 21 seasons in the NHL winning the James Norris Trophy as the league's top defenceman in 1967 and he would join Bathgate in the Hall of Fame in 1979. Other Biltmores of note were Dean Prentice who played in the NHL for 22 seasons, Ron Stewart whose 21 year NHL career would include three Stanley Cups with Toronto, and Ron Murphy who was a member of the Chicago Black Hawks' 1961 Stanley Cup team.
The Biltmores were coached by Alf Pike who was the captain of the Winnipeg Monarchs when they won the Memorial Cup in 1937. Pike, who was a member of the New York Rangers' 1940 Stanley Cup team, became the third individual, joining Charlie Conacher and Billy Reay, to win a Memorial Cup as a player and as a coach.
1952 - Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters - Doug Ashley, Andy Bathgate, Frank Bettiol, Marvin Brewer, Fontinato, Ken Graham, Aldo Guidolin, Terry Hagan, Chuck Henderson, Harry Howell, Ken Laufman, Doug Lessor, Bill McCreary, Ron Pirie, Dean Prentice, Ron Murphy, Ray Ross, Ron Stewart, Ken Uniac, Roy Mason (manager), Alf Pike (coach).
1953
In 1953 the Barrie Flyers returned to the Memorial Cup finals for the third time in six years and for the second time in three years as they met the St.Boniface Canadiens in the best of seven finals. The Flyers lost to the Port Arthur West End Bruins in 1948, but captured their first ever Memorial Cup in 1951 defeating the Winnipeg Monarchs in a four game sweep. The Canadians were the second team to represent St. Boniface as the Seals defeated the Oshawa Generals in the 1938 final series.
Barrie defeated the Toronto St. Michael's Majors in the Ontario Hockey Association final and in doing so they won their fourth J. Ross Robertson Cup in six seasons. In the Eastern Canadian final, for the second time in three years, the Flyers defeated the Quebec Citadels to advance to the Memorial Cup. In the west, St. Boniface defeated the Lethbridge Native Sons in the Abbott Cup final. The Canadians were coached by Bryan Hextall who was a member of the New York Rangers' 1940 Stanley Cup winning team. Hextall, who played in the 1932 Memorial Cup final with the Winnipeg Monarchs, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1969.
The best of seven Memorial Cup final series was set for Winnipeg with game two scheduled for Brandon. In game one the Flyers trailed 4-2 going into the third period but rallied with four goals to post a 6-4 win. Barrie faced similar circumstances in game two as this time they erased a 3-2 Canadians' lead with four consecutive goals to record a 6-3 win and take a 2-0 lead in the series. Game three went in favour of Barrie by a 7-3 but St. Boniface rebounded with a 7-4 win in game four to force a fifth game in the series. The Flyers proved to be too much for their opposition as they won 6-1 to win their second Memorial Cup.
For Hap Emms, the coach of Barrie, this was his second Memorial Cup as he became the fifth coach in the 35-year history of the Memorial Cup to coach two Memorial Cup winning teams. Emms joined the Joe Primeau (Toronto St. Michael's Majors, 1945 and 1947), Tracy Shaw (Oshawa Generals, 1937 and 1940), Harry Neil (Winnipeg Monarchs, 1935 and 1937) and Al Ritchie (Regina Pats, 1925 and 1930) as two time winners of the Memorial Cup. In 84 year history only twelve coaches have won two Memorial Cup titles.
The Flyers' roster included Don Cherry who scored two goals in the final series against the Canadians. Cherry, the star of Hockey Night in Canada's Coach's Corner, would win coach of the year titles in both the American Hockey League and in the National Hockey League. Also in Barrie's line up was Orval Tessier who would return to the Memorial Cup in 1972 as the coach of the Cornwall Royals. Doug Mohns captured his second Memorial Cup in 1953 and he would move onto play for 22 seasons in the NHL with the Boston Bruins, the Chicago Black Hawks and the Minnesota North Stars. Don McKenny would win a Stanley Cup with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1964.
1953 - Barrie Flyers - Orin Carver, Don Cherry, George Cuculick, Marv Edwards, Bill Harrington, Jack Higgins, Tim Hook, John Martin, Don McKenney, Doug Mohns, Fred Pletsch, Tony Poeta, Allen "Skip" Teal, Ken Robertson, Jim Robertson, Orval Tessier, Larry Thibault, Ralph Willis, Bob White, Howard Norris (manager), Leighton "Hap" Emms (coach).
1954
The 1954 Memorial Cup finals featured two teams that were making their first ever appearance in the national finals. From the east the St. Catharines TeePees earned the right to compete for the Memorial Cup by knocking off the Toronto Marlboros to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup and the Quebec Remparts in the Richardson Trophy final. The Edmonton Oil Kings were the first team to represent Edmonton in the finals since the Edmonton Athletic Club lost in the 1939 finals to the Oshawa Generals. The Oil Kings had advanced to the 54 Memorial Cup finals by defeating Fort William.
The best of seven series was played at Toronto's Maple Leafs Gardens with St. Catharines winning game one by an 8-2 score. In game two the TeePees scored four times in the third period to post a 5-3 and take a 2-0 series lead. Game three went in favour of St. Catharines by a 4-1 score and Edmonton forced a game five as the teams were tied 3-3 after overtime in the fourth game. In game five the TeePees skated to a 6-2 win to take their first ever Memorial Cup title.
The St. Catharines line up featured two future NHL star defencemen in Pierre Pilotte and Elmer Vasko. Pilotte and Vasko would be teammates on the Chicago Black Hawks' 1961 Stanley Cup champion team. Pilotte, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1975, was a three-time winner of the James Norris Trophy as the NHL's top defenceman.
From the Oil Kings two of their top players who move onto NHL careers and would be future members of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Johnny Bucyk was captain of the Boston Bruins' Stanley Cup winning teams in 1970 and 1972 and he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1981. Norm Ullman would follow his Edmonton teammate into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982 following a distinguished career with the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs.
1954 - St. Catharines Tee Pees - Jack Armstrong, Hugh Barlow, Hank Ciesla, Barry Cullen, Brian Cullen, Nelson Bulloch, Ian Cushanen, Marv Edwards, Jack Higgins, Cecil Hoekstra, Pete Koval, Bob Maxwell, Don McLean, Wimpy Roberts, Reg Truax, Elmer Vasko, Chester Warchol, Rudy Pilous (coach).
1955
The 1955 Memorial Cup finals featured two of Canada's most honoured junior franchises as the Regina Pats met the Toronto Marlboros in the national final. The Marlies were making their first appearance in a Memorial Cup final since they captured the Memorial Cup back in 1929. For the Pats, this would be their eighth trip to the final, the most of any team in the 37 year history of the Memorial Cup.
Coached by future Hockey Hall of Fame member and former Toronto Maple Leaf goaltending great Turk Broda, the Marlboros won the J. Ross Robertson Cup by defeating the St. Catharines TeePees to advance to the Eastern Final against the Quebec Frontenacs. The Pats knocked off the Winnipeg Monarchs to win their eighth Abbott Cup.
The best of seven series was played in Regina and the Pats took advantage of home ice as they posted a 3-1 win in the opening game of the series. Toronto won the next two games by scores of 5-2 and 3-2 and moved to within one game of their second Memorial Cup championship when Billy Harris scored in overtime to give the Marlies a 3-2 win in game four. An 8-5 win in the fifth game wrapped up the Memorial Cup for Toronto.
The Marlies' line up featured many players who would move onto the parent Toronto Maple Leafs. Billy Harris was one of those players as he was a member of the Leafs' Stanley Cup winning teams in 1962,1963 and 1964.
Bob Turner of the Pats would later play in the National Hockey League with the Montreal Canadiens. Turner, who would coach the Pats to their next Memorial Cup title in 1984, won five Stanley Cups with the Canadiens in the late 1950's.
1955 - Toronto Marlboros - John Albani, Gary Aldcorn, Bob Baun, Ron Casey, Gary Collins, Glenn Cressman, Bob Dodds, Ken Girard, Billy Harris, Gerry James, Ron Kendall, Bill Kennedy, Al MacNeil, Mike Nykoluk, Gord Onotsky, Bob Pulford, Jake Smola, Ross Sneddon, Stafford Smythe (manager), Walter "Turk" Broda (coach).
1956
The 1956 Memorial Cup final was a rematch of the previous year between the Toronto Marlboros and the Regina Pats. The Marlies were seeking to join the 1939 and 1940 Oshawa Generals as the only teams to successfully defend their Memorial Cup title. The Pats, who were in their ninth final, were looking to snap a streak of four losses in the final as they last won the Memorial Cup in 1930.
Toronto was coached by Turk Broda and the line up included seven players who were returning for a second year in a row to the national junior final.
The series was played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens and the opening game ended in a 4-4 tie. The Marlies, led by Bob Pulford, would dispose of the Pats in four straight games after the opening game tie winning by scores of 5-1, 4-2, 6-1 and 7-4 to win their third Memorial Cup. Pulford led both teams in scoring with ten goals in the series.
For Broda, he became just the sixth coach in the history of the Memorial Cup to win two Memorial Cups. This achievement was another step in Broda's great hockey career as he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1967.
Pulford would join his coach in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1991 after a career that would include Stanley Cup titles with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1962, 1963, 1964 and 1967. Pulford was joined by Bob Baun, Gary Collins, Al MacNeil, Ron Casey, Ken Girard and Bill Kenney in the group of seven players who were part of the back to back Memorial Cup wins by the 1955 and 1956 Toronto Marlboros' teams.
1956 - Toronto Marlboros - Bob Baun, Walt Boyer, Carl Brewer, Len Broderick, Stan Buda, Charlie Burns, Ron Casey, Gary Collins, Jim Crockett, Ron Farnfield, Ken Girard, Gord Haughton, Bill Kennedy, Al MacNeil, Jim Murchie, Harry Neale, Bob Nevin, Bob Pulford, Stafford Smythe (manager), Walter "Turk" Broda (coach).
1957
In 1957 the Province of Manitoba was represented in the Memorial Cup finals for the seventeenth time in the 39-year history of the Memorial Cup as the Flin Flon Bombers met the Ottawa Canadiens in the finals. The Bombers won 48 of 56 regular season games and defeated Fort William to advance to the national final. The Canadiens, who were coached by Sam Pollack and Scotty Bowman, defeated the Guelph Biltmores to become the first team from Ottawa to play in the Memorial Cup finals since the Ottawa Primroses lost to the Elmwood Millionaires in the 1931.
The first three games of the 1957 best of seven series were to be played in Flin Flon with the remaining games set for Regina. The Bombers opened the series at home with a 3-1 but Ottawa won games two and three by scores fo 4-3 and 5-2 respectively to take a 2-1 lead in the series as the two teams moved to Regina. Flin Flon took a 3-2 series lead when they won the first two games in Regina by scores of 3-1 and 3-1 and the Canadiens forced a seventh and deciding game by posting a 4-2 win in game six. The final game followed the pattern set in the six previous games as it was another close game with the Bombers holding on to win 3-2 and win their first and only Memorial Cup.
Flin Flon's line up included Jean Gauthier and Orland Kurtenbach who would go on to double figure careers in the National Hockey League. Gauthier played in the NHL for 10 seasons and he was a member of the Montreal Canadiens 1965 Stanley Cup winning team. Kurtenbach spent 13 years in the NHL as a player with the New York Rangers, Boston Bruins and the Vancouver Canucks. Kurtenbach joined the expansion Canucks in 1969 and he was named as their first captain.
1957 - Flin Flon Bombers - Barry Beatty, Jean Gauthier, Patty Ginnel, Harvey Fleming, Carl Forster, Ted Hampson, Ron Hutchinson, Mike Kardash, George Konik, Orland Kurtenbach, Rod Lee, Cliff Lennartz, Mel Pearson, Duane Rupp, Ken Willey, George Wood, Bobby Kirk (coach).
1958
In 1958 the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens returned for the second year in a row and in the Memorial Cup final they faced the Regina Pats who were competing in their tenth national final. What was unique about the 1958 Memorial Cup final series was that the Pats and the Canadiens were the two top junior teams in the Montreal Canadiens' development system and several players from both teams would move on to play for the Canadiens in the National Hockey League.
The Canadiens, who lost in seven games to the Flin Flon Bombers in the 1957 final, defeated the Toronto Marlboros in five games to advance to the Memorial Cup. The Pats, who were winners in 1925 and 1930, knocked off the St. Boniface Canadiens to qualify for their third Memorial Cup in the past four years.
The best of seven series was played in Ottawa and Hull with game one going to the Pats by a 4-3 score. Ottawa-Hull jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first twelve minutes of game two and posted a 4-2 win to even the series. The Canadiens won game three by a 6-2 score and Regina recorded a 4-3 overtime win in the fourth game of the series to tie it at 2-2. Ottawa won the next two games by scores of 6-3 and 6-1 to bring the Nation's Capital its first ever Memorial Cup title.
The Canadiens were managed by Sam Pollack and coached by Scotty Bowman, two men who would go on to many Stanley Cup titles as well as membership in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Between Pollack and Bowman their names would be engraved on the Stanley Cup nineteen times, this would be the only time that Bowman was part of a Memorial Cup winning and for Pollack this would be his second Memorial Cup title.
Included in the Ottawa-Hull lineup were two future winners of the Calder Trophy as the NHL's rookie of the year as Ralph Backstrom would win the title in 1958-59 and Bobby Rousseau would capture rookie of the year honours in 1961-62. Backstrom would win six Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens while Rousseau would be a member of two cup winning teams with Montreal. Gilles Tremblay also won two Stanley Cups while playing in Montreal and J.C. Tremblay was a member of five Montreal Canadiens' Stanley Cup winning teams.
Four members of the Pats would also play a part in Stanley Cup winning teams in Montreal. Terry Harper won five Stanley Cups in his years as a Canadien while Billy Hicke, Red Berenson and Dave Balon all played on two Stanley Cup winning teams in Montreal.
1958 - Ottawa-Hull Canadiens - Jon Annable, Ralph Backstrom, Jacques Begin, Bob Boucher, Bill Carter, Claude Cyr, Dick Dawson, Claude Fournel, Bruce Gamble, Terry Gray, John Longarini, Nick Murray, Bob Olajos, Claude Richard, Bob Rousseau, Claude Ruel, Andre Tardif, Gilles Tremblay, Jean C. Tremblay, Harold White, Sam Pollock (manager), Scotty Bowman (coach).
1959
In the 1959 Memorial Cup final the City of Winnipeg was represented for the 12th time as the Winnipeg Braves would attempt to win the Manitoba capital's eighth Memorial Cup title. The opponents for the Braves would be the Peterborough Petes who were coached by Scotty Bowman.
The Petes defeated the Toronto St. Michael's Majors to win the Ontario Hockey Association title and their first ever J. Ross Robertson Cup before eliminating the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens in the Eastern Final. Winnipeg defeated the Flin Flon Bombers to advance to the national final.
Winnipeg and Brandon were the sites for the 1959 Memorial Cup finals and the Petes took a 1-0 lead in the series as they took game one, which was played in Winnipeg, by a 5-4 score. Games two, three and four were also played in Winnipeg and the Braves won all three games by scores of 5-2, 5-2 and 5-3 respectively to take a 3-1 series lead as the teams moved west to Brandon for the fifth game of the series. Winnipeg would not require anything beyond game five as they defeated the Petes 6-2 to win the Memorial Cup. For the Province of Manitoba, 1959 marked the 12th that the honoured trophy was won by a team from the province and it would be the last Memorial Cup championship for a team from Manitoba. The next time a team from Manitoba would compete in a game to determine the winner of the Memorial Cup would be in 1979 when the Brandon Wheat Kings qualified for the final.
Defenceman Ted Green was an important part of the Braves' 1959 championship as he was added from St. Boniface for Winnipeg's drive for the Memorial Cup. Green played in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins and he was a member of the Bruins' 1972 Stanley Cup team. Green would also be part of five Stanley Cup wins as an assistant coach with the Edmonton Oilers.
Jim Roberts graduated from the Petes and he went on to a 15-year career in the NHL with the Montreal Canadiens and the St. Louis Blues. Roberts was a member of five Stanley Cup winning teams with the Canadiens.
1959 - Winnipeg Braves - Pat Angers, Don Atamanchuk, Al Baty, Gary Bergman, Ed Bradawski, Rene Brunel, Ted Green, Howie Hughes, Allan Ingimundson, Ken King, Ted Knight, Gerry Kruk, Wayne Larkin-capt., Al Leblanc, Bobby Leiter, Doug Monro, Zenon Moroz, Lew Mueller, John Rodgers, P. Sexsmith, John Sutherland, Ernie Wakely, Wanye Winstone, Bob Wales, Laurie Langrell, Bill Addison (manager), Bill Allum (coach).
1960
The 1960 Memorial Cup final was a rematch of the 1954 final with the Edmonton Oil Kings meeting the St. Catharines TeePees in the best of seven series. In 1954 the TeePees won their first Memorial Cup as they defeated Edmonton in five games.
For both teams' 1960 was their second trip to the Memorial Cup finals but the Oil Kings would emerge as the dominant junior team in the west as from 1960 to 1966 the team from Edmonton would represent western Canada in the Memorial Cup final. The Oil Kings defeated the Brandon Wheat Kings in seven games to qualify for the national final while St. Catharines needed eight games to eliminate the Brockville Canadiens.
The first game of the 1960 final was played in St. Catharines with the Oil Kings taking a 5-3 win. The series then shifted to Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens where the TeePees won game two 6-2 and the third game of the series 9-1 to take a 2-1 series lead. Edmonton rebounded in the fourth game as they posted a 9-7 win but St. Catharines outscored the Oil Kings 9-6 in game five and 7-3 in game six to win their second Memorial Cup title.
For the TeePees and St. Catharines this would be their last Memorial Cup title while the Oil Kings would return to the National championship for each of the next six years.
Max Kaminsky was the Head Coach of the winning TeePees but within a year he would die of cancer. Kaminsky's contributions to the game of hockey are recognized each April when the Ontario Hockey League awards the Max Kaminsky Trophy to its most outstanding defenceman.
The St. Catharines' line up featured future National Hockey League stars in Chico Maki, Pat Stapleton and Vic Hadfield. Maki would play 14 seasons in the NHL and in 1961 his name was engraved on the Stanley Cup as a member of the Chicago Black Hawks. Stapleton played 15 seasons in the NHL and the World Hockey Association and he played for Team Canada in the 1972 summit series with the Soviet Union. Hadfield played 16 seasons in the NHL with the New York Rangers and the Pittsburgh Penguins and he scored 50 goals with the Rangers in the 1971-72 season.
1960 - St. Catharines Teepees - Pete Berge, John Brenneman, Larry Burns, Pete Creco, Roger Crozier, Ray Cullen, Don Grosso, Vic Hadfield, Murray Hall, Duke Harris, Bill Ives, Carlo Longarini, Chico Maki, Terry McGuire, Rich Predovich, Pete Riddle, Doug Robinson, Bill Speer, Rudy Pilous (Manager), Max Kaminsky (Coach).
1961
The Edmonton Oil Kings returned for the second year in a row and their opponents in the 1961 Memorial Cup final series would be the Toronto St. Michael's Majors. The Oil Kings, who also played in the 1954 final, were looking for their first Memorial Cup title, while the Majors would be attempting to win their fourth national title. St. Michael's last appeared in a Memorial Cup final in 1947 when they defeated the Moose Jaw Canucks, a team that they also defeated in 1945. In 1934 the Majors won their first Memorial Cup title defeating another team from Edmonton, the Athletics. The only time St. Michael's had been defeated in the final series of the Memorial Cup was a 1946 loss to the Winnipeg Monarchs.
The Majors, who were coached by Father David Bauer who was a member of the Oshawa Generals' 1944 Memorial Cup winning team, defeated the St. Catharines TeePees to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup before sweeping the Moncton Beavers in the Eastern Canada final. Edmonton, who had won 16 of 19 playoff games in 1961, knocked off the Winnipeg Rangers to win the Abbott Cup.
The best of seven series was played in Edmonton and home ice advantage did not work in favour of the Oil Kings as the Majors won the first three games of the series by scores of 4-0, 4-1 and 4-2. Edmonton made the series interesting by winning game four 5-4 and game five 4-2 to narrow Toronto's series lead to 3-2. However, the Majors would win the sixth game of the series 4-2 to capture the Memorial Cup.
For St. Michael's this would be their fourth and final Memorial Cup win and at the time it the most wins by a team in the forty-three year history of the Cup. The following year St. Michael's discontinued participating in the Ontario Hockey Association's Junior "A" series but it would continue to field teams in the Junior "B" bracket. In 1997-98 St. Michael's returned to the level where it could once again compete for the Memorial Cup as the Majors entered the Ontario Hockey League.
Father Bauer became the fourth individual to have his name engraved on the Memorial Cup as both a player and as a coach. Father Bauer, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame n 1989, joined Charlie Conacher - Toronto Marlboros 1929 and Oshawa Generals 1944 -, Alf Pike - Winnipeg Monarchs 1937 and Guelph Biltmores 1952 -, and Billy Reay - St. Boniface Seals 1938 and Montreal Junior Canadiens 1950 as the individuals to achieve such a feat.
The Majors' line up also featured goaltender Gerry Cheevers. Cheevers would play 15 seasons in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins where he would win Stanley Cups in 1970 and 1972. Cheevers was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1985.
Dave Draper was also a member of St. Michael's winning team. Draper, who is currently the Vice-President of Scouting and Player Personnel for the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes, who have his name engraved on the Memorial Cup in 1976 as the General Manager of the Hamilton Fincups.
1961 - St. Michael's Majors - Arnold Brown, Andre Champagne, Gerry Cheevers, Jack Cole, Paul Conlin, Terry Clancy, Bruce Draper, Dave Draper, Dave Dryden, Roger Galipeau, Paul Jackson, Larry Keenan, Duncan MacDonald, Bill MacMillan, Barry McKenzie, Peter Noakes, Terry O'Malley, Sonny Osborne, Brian Walsh, Father David Bauer (Manager, Coach).
1962
In 1962 the Edmonton Oil Kings returned to the Memorial Cup final for the third time in as many years but they had yet to captured the honoured trophy. Standing in the way of the Oil Kings in 1962 were the Hamilton Red Wings who were coached by Eddie Bush.
The Oil Kings won their third consecutive Abbott Cup by defeating the Brandon Wheat Kings in the Western Canada finals. The Red Wings, who lost just once during the playoffs, won the J. Ross Robertson Cup by defeating the defending Memorial Cup champion Toronto St. Michael's Majors in five games and Hamilton then defeated the Quebec Citadels to move on to the Memorial Cup final.
The 1962 series was played in Hamilton, Guelph and Kitchener and was the first final to be televised as it was carried on a local television network. The Red Wings took a 2-0 series lead with a 5-2 win in Hamilton and a 4-2 win in Guelph. The teams split the next two games, which were both played at Guelph's Memorial Gardens, with Edmonton taking the third game by a 5-3 score and Hamilton winning in game four by a 3-0 margin. The teams then moved to the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium for game five and the Red Wings won the Memorial Cup by scoring three goals in the first 1:20 of the third period as they defeated Edmonton 7-4.
Eleven members of the Red Wings moved on to play in the National Hockey League. The most noted member of the group was Paul Henderson who played 18 years in the NHL and the World Hockey Association. Henderson will always be remembered for scoring the goal with 34 seconds left in the final game to give Canada a 4-3 series win over the Soviet Union in the 1972 "Summit" series.
Red Wings' coach Eddie Bush would coach part of one season in the NHL with the Kansas City Scouts in the 1975-76 season. Bush coached in the Ontario Hockey Association's Junior "A" series for 17 seasons with the Guelph Biltmores, the Red Wings and the Kitchener Rangers. In his 17 years in the OHA Bush won 401 games and coached the 1956 Biltmores and the 1962 Red Wings to OHA titles.
1962 - Hamilton Red Wings - John "Bud" Blom, Joe Bujdoso, Bryan Campbell, Bob Dean, John Gofton, Bob Hamilton, Ron Harris, Larry Harrop, Earl Heiskala, Paul Henderson, Roger LaFreniere, Lowell MacDonald, Hubert "Pit" Martin, Jim Peters, Wayne Rivers, Bob Wall, Jack Wildfong, Larry Ziliotto, Eddie Bush (coach).
1963
After three years of trying to win the Memorial Cup the Edmonton Oil Kings qualified for the Memorial Cup final for the fourth year in a row in 1963 and they would take on the Niagara Falls Flyers in the final.
For the second year in a row the Oil Kings defeated the Brandon Wheat Kings to win the Abbott Cup and the right to represent Western Canada in the Memorial Cup final. For the Oil Kings this would be their fifth trip to the Memorial Cup as they had previously lost in 1954, 1960, 1961 and 1962.
The Flyers had moved to Niagara Falls from Barrie in 1960 and the franchise had won Memorial Cup titles in 1951 and again in 1953 and Owner/General Manager Hap Emms, the coach of the 1951 and 1953 winning teams, would try for a third Memorial Cup title. Niagara Falls defeated the Hamilton Red Wings to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup before eliminating the Espanola Flyers to advance to the 1963 Memorial Cup finals that would be played in Edmonton.
The Oil Kings did not make use of home ice advantage in game one as the Flyers skated to an easy 8-0 win. Edmonton responded to the poor showing in game one as they took a 3-1 lead in the series as they won the next three games by scores of 5-2, 3-2 and 5-2 to put Niagara Falls up against the wall. The Flyers avoided defeat in game five as they won by a 5-2 score to force a sixth game in the best of seven series. Edmonton would not let this one slip away as they won 4-3 to give the City of Edmonton its first ever Memorial Cup title.
Members of the Oil Kings' winning team included Glen Sather and Pat Quinn who would move on to great coaching careers in the National Hockey League following their playing careers. Sather won four Stanley Cups as the General Manager/Head Coach of the Edmonton Oilers and his name would be engraved on the Stanley Cup a fifth time as the Oilers' General Manager. Quinn, the current Head Coach and General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, was the Head Coach of Canada's gold medal winning team at the 2002 Winter Olympics.
1963 - Edmonton Oil Kings - Ron Anderson, Butch Barber, Tom Bend, Roger Bourbonnais, Jim Brown, Rich Bulloch, Jim Chase, Vince Downey, Jim Eagle, Ron Falkenberg, Doug Fox, Harold Fleming, Russ Kirk, S. Knox, Bert Marshall, Max Mestinsek, Butch Paul, Greg Pilling, Pat Quinn, Dave Rochefort, Glen Sather, Reg Tashuk, Leo LeClerc (manager), Buster Brayshaw (coach).
1964
In the 1964 Memorial Cup final series two of junior hockey's greatest franchises met to compete for the honoured trophy. The Toronto Marlboros would be out to keep their record in Memorial Cup finals a perfect one as in their three previous trips to the finals, 1929, 1955 and 1956, the Marlies were victorious. The Edmonton Oil Kings continued their dominance over junior hockey in Western Canada during the 1960's as after winning the Memorial Cup in 1963, this would be their fifth consecutive visit to the national final.
Toronto went undefeated in the playoffs as they defeated the Monteal Junior Canadiens to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup and then the Notre Dame De Grace squad that was coached by Scotty Bowman to advance to the Memorial Cup. The Oil Kings knocked off the Estevan Bruins in the Abbott Cup final to qualify for the Memorial Cup final.
The best of seven series was played at Toronto's Maple Leafs Gardens, the home of the Marlboros. Toronto kept their perfect playoff record intact in the final as they swept the Oil Kings in four games by scores of 5-2, 3-2, 5-2 and 7-2 to win their third Memorial Cup title.
Since the Marlies were part of the Toronto Maple Leafs' junior development system many members of the 1964 Memorial Cup winning team would move onto play for the Leafs in the future. Ron Ellis, Pete Stemkowski and Mike Walton would all graduate to the Maple Leafs and in 1967 they would be part of Toronto's Stanley Cup championship.
The Head Coach of the Marlboros in 1964 was Jim Gregory. Gregory, who is currently the National Hockey League's Senior Vice-president of Hockey, served as the General Manager of the Maple Leafs for ten seasons.
1964 - Toronto Marlboros - Wayne Carleton, Andre Champagne, Jack Chipchase, Gary Dineen, Ray Dupont, Ron Ellis, Nick Harbaruk, Bill Henderson, Paul Laurent, Jim McKenny, Grant Moore, Rod Seiling, Brit Selby, Gary Smith, Peter Stemkowski, Mike Walton, Barry Watson, Ray Winterstein, Buck Houle (manager), Jim Gregory (coach).
1965
The 1965 Memorial Cup final series was a rematch of the final of 1963 as the Niagara Falls Flyers and the Edmonton Oil Kings would once again meet in Edmonton to compete for the Memorial Cup. In 1963 the Oil Kings needed six games to win their first ever Memorial Cup championship.
The Flyers, who were managed by Hap Emms the head coach of the Barrie Flyers 1951 and 1953 Memorial Cup teams, defeated the defending Memorial Cup champion Toronto Marlboros in five games to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup in their run to the 1965 Memorial Cup final. The Oil Kings were making their sixth consecutive appearance in a Memorial Cup final as they continued their dominance over junior hockey in Western Canada.
Niagara Falls jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the series with a 3-2 win in the series opener and a 5-1 win in the second game. Edmonton won 5-1 in a brawl filled game three to narrow the Flyers' series lead to 2-1. That would be Niagara Falls' last defeat in the series as they routed the Oil Kings by scores of 8-2 and 8-1 in game four and five to win their first Memorial Cup title.
The Flyers were part of the Boston Bruins' junior development system and several players would move on to play in the National Hockey League with the Bruins. Three players from the 1965 Niagara Falls' Memorial Cup winning team would be part of Stanley Cup winning teams in Boston. Derek Sanderson and Don Marcotte played on the Bruins' 1970 and 1972 Stanley Cup teams while Jim Lorentz was a member of the 1970 team.
Bernie Parent was solid in goal for the Flyers in their 1965 Memorial Cup title and his years in Niagara Falls would be remembered in 1999 when he was selected as the goaltender on the MasterCard All-time Canadian Hockey League team. Parent backstopped the Philadelphia Flyers to Stanley Cup championships in 1974 and 1975 and he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984.
Bill Long was the Flyers' Head Coach in 1965 and he would have a career of over three decades in the Ontario Hockey League as a coach and manager with the Flyers, Ottawa 67's and London Knights. In 1989 the OHL initiated the Bill Long Award to commemorate Long's efforts and contributions to the league and to the game of hockey. The Bill Long Award for Distinguished Service is present in recognition and appreciation of an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the OHL.
1965 - Niagara Falls Flyers - Guy Allen, John Arbour, Steve Atkinson, Brian Bradley, Bud Debrody, Bill Goldsworthy, Andre Lajeunesse, Rick Ley, Jim Lorentz, Don Marcotte, Gilles Marotte, Rosaire Paiement, Bernard Parent, Jean Pronovost, Bobby Ring, Derek Sanderson, Mike Sherman, Ted Snell, Barry Wilkins, Dave Woodley, Leighton "Hap" Emms (manager) Bill Long (coach).
1966
The Edmonton Oil Kings returned to the Memorial Cup final for the seventh year in a row in 1966 as they continued their dominance of junior hockey in Western Canada during the 1960's. The opponents for the Oil Kings would be the power house junior team of the 1940's the Oshawa Generals who were making their first appearance in a Memorial Cup final in 25 years.
The Generals defeated the Kitchener Rangers in five games to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup and they advanced to the Memorial Cup by knocking off the Shawinigan Bruins to win the Richardson Trophy.
The Oil Kings maintained their grasp on the Abbott Cup as they defeated the Estevan Bruins in six games to with their eighth Abbott Cup in 13 years.
The best of seven series would be played at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens and the Oil Kings took the series opener with an impressive 7-2 win. Game two was equally one sided but this time it was in favour of Oshawa as they posted a 7-1 win to even up the series. The Generals took a 2-1 lead in the series with a 6-2 win but that would be their last win in the finals as Edmonton roared back with wins of 5-3, 7-4 and 2-1 in games four, five and six to win their second Memorial Cup championship.
Two members of the Oil Kings would add Stanley Cup wins to their Memorial Cup title and a third would add an Avco Cup title to his hockey resume. Garnet "Ace" Bailey was a member of the Boston Bruins' 1972 Stanley Cup winning team and Ross Lonsberry, who played in the National Hockey League for 15 seasons, won two Stanley Cups with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1974 and 1975. Goaltender Don McLeod would win the Avco Cup in 1974 as a member of the World Hockey Association's Houston Aeros.
What was also unique about the 1966 final was that was Bobby Orr's only appearance in a Memorial Cup final. Orr, who would graduate to the Bruins the following fall, was a key part of Oshawa's success but a groin injury limited his playing time in the final series against Edmonton. Orr, the only defenceman to ever win the NHL scoring title, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979 and in 1999 he was selected to the MasterCard Canadian Hockey League All-time team.
1966 - Edmonton Oil Kings - Ron Anderson, Garnet Bailey, Doug Barrie, Brian Bennett, Ron Caley, Craig Cameron, Bob Falkenberg, Al Hamilton, Jim Harrison, Brian Hague, Galen Head, Ted Hodgson, Kerry Ketter, Ross Lonsberry, Jim Knox, Don McLeod, Jim Mitchell, Harold Myers, Eugene Peacosh, Ross Perkins, Murray Pierce, Dave Rochefort, Ted Rogers, Jim Schraefel, Red Simpson, Ron Walters, Bill Hunter (manager), Ray Kinasewich (coach).
1967
In 1967 the Toronto Marlboros qualified for the Memorial Cup final for the fifth time and they would try to keep their perfect record intact as in their four previous visits the Marlies captured the Memorial Cup. Toronto had won national junior titles in 1929, 1955, 1956 and 1964. The Marlies had advanced to the Memorial Cup final by defeating the Hamilton Red Wings in four games to win the J. Ross Robertson Trophy for the fifth time and they then defeated the Thetford Mine Canadiens to earn the right to represent Eastern Canada in the Memorial Cup final.
1967 was an important year for junior hockey in Western Canada as seven teams, including the defending Memorial Cup champion Edmonton Oil Kings, formed the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League as an attempt to establish one junior "A" league in the west. The establishment of the CMJHL, which was the forerunner of the present Western Hockey League, created several issues including who would be eligible to represent the west in the Memorial Cup finals. It was determined that the CMJHL teams would not have the right to participate in the playdowns for the national junior hockey championship and as a result, for the first time since 1959 a team other than the Oil Kings would represent the west in the national final.
Advancing out of the west was the Port Arthur Marrs who defeated the Flin Flon Bombers and the New Westminster Royals to become the first team from Port Arthur since 1948 to participate in the Memorial Cup final. In 1948 the West End Bruins defeated the Barrie Flyers to win the Memorial Cup.
The best of seven series was played at the Fort William Gardens and the hockey experts made the Marrs the underdogs in the series. Toronto won the first two games by scores of 6-3 and 8-4 but the Marrs earned respect by posting a 6-4 win in game three to narrow the Marlboros series lead to 2-1. Toronto rebounded from the upset in game three to record a 6-0 win in game four and in game six the Marlies won 6-3 to win their fifth Memorial Cup, the most of any team in the 49 year history of the honoured trophy. The 1967 title was also the Marlboros fourth championship in the past 13 years.
A member of Toronto's championship team in 1967 was defenceman Brad Park who would play in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers, the Boston Bruins and the Detroit Red Wings. Park was one of the NHL's top defencemen in the 1970's and in his 17 seasons in the NHL he would record 896 points on 213 goals and 683 assists. Park was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988.
Jim Gregory was the General Manager of the Marlies in 1967 and this would be his second Memorial Cup championship as he was the Head Coach of the team that won in 1964. Gregory is currently the Senior Vice-President of Hockey for the NHL.
1967 - Toronto Marlboros - Doug Acomb, Fred Barrett, Richie Bayes, Jim Blain, Mike Byers, Terry Caffery, Cam Crosby, Gord Davies, Gary Edwards, Chris Evans, Brian Glennie, Frank Hamill, Ken Kelly, Steve King, Tom Martin, Gerry Meehan, Cam Newton, Al Osborne, Brad Park, Mike Pelyk, Bob Whidden, John Wright, Jim Gregory (general manager), Gus Bodnar (coach).
1968
The Niagara Falls Flyers returned to the Memorial Cup final in 1968 for the third time since 1963 and they were looking to add to the Memorial Cup title that they had won in 1965. The Flyers would meet the Estevan Bruins who had lost just once in the five playoff series that they had participated in on their route to the Memorial Cup final. Niagara Falls defeated the Kitchener Rangers to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup and then advanced to the Memorial Cup by knocking off the Verdun Maple Leafs.
The 1968 final was a best of seven series with all games except game two scheduled for Niagara Falls. The second game of the series was to be played at the Montreal Forum.
The two teams had been part of the Boston Bruins junior development system and as a result of this they wore identical uniforms decked out in Boston's black and yellow. The Flyers were forced to make changes during series and wore road uniforms in game one and the sweaters of the Montreal Junior Canadiens in game two. For the remainder of the series Niagara Falls borrowed the uniforms of the St. Catharines Black Hawks, their Ontario Hockey Association neighbors.
The Flyers took the opening game of the series by a 7-4 score but fell in game two 4-2 as the teams headed back to Niagara Falls all tied at 1-1. Game three went to Niagara Falls 7-4 and they also won game four, 4-3 in double overtime, to move to within one game of their second Memorial Cup championship. In game five the Flyers proved to be no match for the Bruins as Niagara Falls won 6-0 to capture the Memorial Cup.
For Rick Ley and Steve Atkinson this would be their second Memorial Cup win as they were members of the Flyers' 1965 winning team. General Manager Hap Emms added a record fourth Memorial Cup title to his resume as he was manager of the 1965 team and Head Coach of the Barrie Flyers' winning teams in 1951 and 1953.
Flyers' Head Coach Paul Emms made history with the 1968 title as he became the fifth individual to win the Memorial Cup as both a player and a coach as he played for Barrie's 1953 winning team. Emms joined Charlie Conacher (Toronto Marlboros 1929/Oshawa Generals 1944), Billy Reay (St. Boniface Seals 1938/Montreal Junior Canadiens 1950), Alf Pike (Winnipeg Monarchs 1937/Guelph Biltmores 1952) and Father David Bauer (Oshawa Generals 1944/Toronto St. Michael's Majors 1961) in this elite category.
Four members of the Flyers' team would add professional championships to their Memorial Cup win. Ley, Brad Selwood and Tom Webster were all members of the New England Whalers in 1972-73 when they won the Avco Cup in the World Hockey Association's inaugural season. Phil Roberto would play eight seasons in the National Hockey League and he would win the Stanley Cup in 1971 with the Montreal Canadiens.
1968 - Niagara Falls Flyers - Steve Atkinson, Doug Brindley, Russ Frieson, Karl Haggarty, Doug Keeler, Mike Keeler, Rick Ley, Dan Makey, Phil Myre, Jim Notman, Phil Roberto, Ron Schwindt, Brad Selwood, Garry Swain, Don Tannahill, Dave Tataryn, Rick Thompson, Ross Webley, Tom Webster, Leighton "Hap" Emms (manager), Paul Emms (coach).
1969
The Montreal Junior Canadiens and the Regina Pats met in the 1969 final as the Pats qualified for the Memorial Cup final for the eleventh time in their storied history. The Pats last appearance in the Memorial Cup final was in 1958 when they fell to the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens. For the Junior Canadiens this would be the first time since 1950 that they would play for the Memorial Cup and the 1969 final was a rematch of some sorts of the 1950 final when Montreal defeated Regina in five games to win their first Memorial Cup.
Montreal had won the J. Ross Robertson Cup by defeating the St. Catharines Black Hawks and they then defeated the Sorel Black Hawks to capture the Richardson Trophy and earn the right to represent Eastern Canada in the Memorial Cup. Regina won the Abbott Cup by defeating the Dauphin Kings in seven games.
The first two games of the best of seven series were played at the Montreal Forum and the Baby Habs took a 2-0 series lead with wins of 5-3 and 7-2. The teams then moved to Regina where Montreal wrapped up the series in four straight games with wins of 5-2 and 8-6. In the fourth game the Junior Canadiens won in a fixed overtime period after trailing 5-1 early in the second period.
Three members of the Junior Canadiens and two Pats would win multiple Stanley Cups during their careers in the National Hockey League. From Montreal Rejean Houle had a 14-year professional career winning five Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens and Marc Tardiff would be a teammate on Stanley Cup winning teams in 1971 and 1973. Tardiff also won an Avco Cup title with the Quebec Nordiques in 1977. Andre Dupont played in the NHL for over ten years winning Stanley Cups with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1974 and 1975.
From the Pats, Butch Goring played on four Stanley Cup winning teams with the New York Islanders and Don Saleski was a member of the Flyers' back to back Stanley Cup championship teams.
1969 - Montréal Junior Canadiens - Jean-Pierre Bordeleau, Guy Charron, Gary Connelly, André Dupont, Jocelyn Guévremont, Robert Guindon, Normand Gratton, Réjean Houle, Serge Lajeunesse, Robert Lalonde, Richard Lemieux, Richard Martin, Claude Moreau, Gilbert Perreault, Arthur Quoquochi, Jim Rutherford, MarcTardif, Ted Tucker, Wayne Wood, Phil Wimmer (manager), Roger Bédard (coach).
1970
After winning their second Memorial Cup title in 1969 the Montreal Junior Canadiens returned to the Memorial Cup final for a second consecutive year where they would meet the Weyburn Red Wings in a best of seven series for junior hockey championship of Canada.
The Junior Canadiens won the Ontario Hockey Association title and the J. Ross Robertson Cup by defeating the Toronto Marlboros in six games and they captured the Richardson Trophy by defeating the Quebec Remparts, who had Guy Lafleur in their line up, in three games. The Red Wings advanced to the final after defeating the Westfort Hurricanes in the Abbott Cup final.
The Junior Canadiens boasted a line up that included ten players who would be seeking their second Memorial Cup ring and Montreal made short work of Weyburn by winning the series in four straight games. The Junior Canadiens became just the third team in the 52-year history of the Memorial Cup to win back to back titles as they joined the 1939 and 1940 Oshawa Generals and the 1955 and 1956 Toronto Marlboros in this elite circle.
The highest profile player in the Junior Canadiens' line up was Gilbert Perrault who would play in the National Hockey League for 17 seasons with the Buffalo Sabres. In his career with the Sabres, Perrault, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990, recorded 1326 points on 512 goals and 814 assists.
The 1970 Memorial Cup win was also the second for Head Coach Roger Bedard who became just the fifth coach to win two Memorial Cups. Bedard would join the group that included Tracy Shaw (Oshawa Generals 1939/1940), Joe Primeau (Toronto St. Michael's Majors 1945/1947), Hap Emms (Barrie Flyers 1951/1953) and Turk Broda (Toronto Marlboros 1955/1956).
1970 - Montréal Junior Canadiens - Paulin Bordeleau, Pierre Brind'amour, Michel Dion, John Garrett, Allan Globensky, Jocelyn Guevremont, Norm Gratton, Bobby Guindon, Serge Lajeunesse, Bobby Lalonde, Richard Lemieux, Richard Martin, Hartland Monahan, Claude Moreau, Gilbert Perreault, Ian Turnbull, Wayne Wood, Paul Wimmer (manager), Roger Bédard (coach).
End Of Memorial Cup Contention
In 1971, Junior 'A' Hockey was divided to form a 'Major Junior' and a 'Tier II' level. The 'Major Junior' continued to play for the Memorial Cup. The 'Tier II', commonly referred to as "Junior A", play for a new National Championship Trophy, The Manitoba Centennial Cup.
DOCUMENTATION/INFORMATION RETRIEVEL
All information on this page was extracted from...
- https://chlmemorialcup.ca
- https://chlmemorialcup.ca/history/
- Internet Archive / WayBackMachine ...
- 1. http://www.archive.org/web/web.php
2. http://www.chl.ca/CHLMemorialCup05/history_1919_1931.html