Stanley Cup Challenge Games
Encyclopedia
This is a list of Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...

 challenge games
from 1893 to 1914. During this period, the Stanley Cup was a "challenge trophy"; the champions held onto the Cup until they either lost their league title to another club, or a champion from another league issued a formal challenge and subsequently defeated the reigning Cup champion in a special game or series. The playoff format for each challenge varied depending on what the two competing clubs agreed to.

Before 1912, challenges could take place at any time, given the appropriate rink conditions, and it was common for teams to defend the Cup numerous times during the year. In 1912, the Cup's trustees declared that the Cup was only to be defended at the end of the champion team's regular season.

Also during this era, all of the leagues that played for the trophy had no annual formal playoff
Playoff
The playoffs, postseason, or finals of a sports league are a game or series of games played after the regular season by the top competitors, usually but not always with a single-elimination system, to determine the league champion or a similar accolade.In the U.S...

 system to decide their own respective championships; whoever finished in first place after the regular season won the league title. Thus, a few league championship games or series were held just to break first place ties and determine who would keep the Cup. These league title games have historically been listed along with the regular inter-league Cup challenges.

Season record

This table lists all the champions of the Stanley Cup per hockey season during the challenge era. A season did not have official dates as rinks were natural ice, so season roughly corresponds to winter. The leagues typically started close to the beginning of the calendar year and ended in early March.
Season Champion at end of season Other champion during season
1893–94  Montreal HC
Montreal Hockey Club
The Montreal Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was a senior-level men's amateur ice hockey club, organized in 1884. They were affiliated with Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and used the MAAA 'winged wheel' logo. The team is notable for winning the first Stanley Cup in 1893, and in a...

 
1894–95  Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 
Montreal HC
1895–96  Winnipeg Victorias
Winnipeg Victorias
The Winnipeg Victorias were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba, organized in 1889. They played in the Manitoba Hockey Association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...

 
1896–97  Montreal Victorias
1897–98  Montreal Victorias
1898–99  Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

 
Montreal Victorias
1899–1900  Montreal Shamrocks
1900–01  Winnipeg Victorias
1901–02  Montreal HC Winnipeg Victorias
1902–03  Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Montreal HC
1903–04  Ottawa HC
1904–05  Ottawa HC
1905–06  Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
Ottawa HC
1906–07  Montreal Wanderers Kenora Thistles
Kenora Thistles
The Kenora Thistles were an early amateur men's ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario, Canada, formed in 1885 as a senior team by a group of Lake of the Woods lumbermen. The club is notable for winning the Stanley Cup as an amateur team in 1907. The town is the smallest in population to have...

 
1907–08  Montreal Wanderers
1908–09  Ottawa HC Montreal Wanderers
1909–10  Montreal Wanderers Ottawa HC
1910–11  Ottawa HC
1911–12  Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

 
1912–13  Quebec Bulldogs
1913–14  Toronto Blueshirts
Toronto Blueshirts
The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...

 

Yearly record

This table lists all the champions of the Stanley Cup per year during the challenge era. Annual Stanley Cup Final series did not begin until 1915, before which time there often were two different champions in a single year, and as many as five different championships.
Year Times
Cup Awarded
Champions
1893
1893 Stanley Cup championship
The Stanley Cup, then named the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup, was first awarded in 1893 to the Montreal Hockey Club of the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada at the end of the 1893 AHAC season for having placed first in the standings with a 7–1–0 record...

 
1 Montreal HC
Montreal Hockey Club
The Montreal Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was a senior-level men's amateur ice hockey club, organized in 1884. They were affiliated with Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and used the MAAA 'winged wheel' logo. The team is notable for winning the first Stanley Cup in 1893, and in a...

 
1894  1 Montreal HC
Montreal Hockey Club
The Montreal Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was a senior-level men's amateur ice hockey club, organized in 1884. They were affiliated with Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and used the MAAA 'winged wheel' logo. The team is notable for winning the first Stanley Cup in 1893, and in a...

 
1895  2 Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 
Montreal HC
Montreal Hockey Club
The Montreal Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was a senior-level men's amateur ice hockey club, organized in 1884. They were affiliated with Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and used the MAAA 'winged wheel' logo. The team is notable for winning the first Stanley Cup in 1893, and in a...

 
1896  3 Winnipeg Victorias
Winnipeg Victorias
The Winnipeg Victorias were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba, organized in 1889. They played in the Manitoba Hockey Association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...

 
Winnipeg Victorias
Winnipeg Victorias
The Winnipeg Victorias were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba, organized in 1889. They played in the Manitoba Hockey Association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...

 
Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 
1897  2 Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 
Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 
1898  1 Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 
1899  3 Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 
Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

 
Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

 
1900  3 Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

 
Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

 
Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

 
1901  1 Winnipeg Victorias
Winnipeg Victorias
The Winnipeg Victorias were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba, organized in 1889. They played in the Manitoba Hockey Association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...

 
1902  2 Winnipeg Victorias
Winnipeg Victorias
The Winnipeg Victorias were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba, organized in 1889. They played in the Manitoba Hockey Association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...

 
Montreal HC
Montreal Hockey Club
The Montreal Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was a senior-level men's amateur ice hockey club, organized in 1884. They were affiliated with Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and used the MAAA 'winged wheel' logo. The team is notable for winning the first Stanley Cup in 1893, and in a...

 
1903  3 Montreal HC
Montreal Hockey Club
The Montreal Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was a senior-level men's amateur ice hockey club, organized in 1884. They were affiliated with Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and used the MAAA 'winged wheel' logo. The team is notable for winning the first Stanley Cup in 1893, and in a...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
1904  4 Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
1905  3 Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
1906  4 Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
1907  3 Kenora Thistles
Kenora Thistles
The Kenora Thistles were an early amateur men's ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario, Canada, formed in 1885 as a senior team by a group of Lake of the Woods lumbermen. The club is notable for winning the Stanley Cup as an amateur team in 1907. The town is the smallest in population to have...

 
Kenora Thistles
Kenora Thistles
The Kenora Thistles were an early amateur men's ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario, Canada, formed in 1885 as a senior team by a group of Lake of the Woods lumbermen. The club is notable for winning the Stanley Cup as an amateur team in 1907. The town is the smallest in population to have...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
1908  5 Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
1909  1 Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
1910  4 Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 
1911  3 Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 
1912  2 Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

 
Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

 
1913  2 Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

 
Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

 
1914  2 Toronto Blueshirts
Toronto Blueshirts
The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...

 
Toronto Blueshirts
Toronto Blueshirts
The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...

 

1893–94

The first Stanley Cup playoff game occurred on March 17, 1894. At the end of the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada season
1894 AHAC season
The 1894 Amateur Hockey Association of Canada season lasted from January 5 until March 10. Montreal HC would win the league and Canadian championship for the seventh season in a row.-Executive:* President - W. Jack, Victorias...

, four teams tied for the AHAC championship with records of 5–3–0. This created problems for the AHAC governors and the Cup's trustees since there was no tiebreaking system in place. After long negotiation and the withdrawal of Quebec from the championship situation, it was decided that a three-team tournament would take place in Montreal, with the Ottawa Hockey Club
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 getting a bye to the finals (being the sole "road" team). In the first Stanley Cup playoff game ever, the Montreal Hockey Club
Montreal Hockey Club
The Montreal Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was a senior-level men's amateur ice hockey club, organized in 1884. They were affiliated with Montreal Amateur Athletic Association and used the MAAA 'winged wheel' logo. The team is notable for winning the first Stanley Cup in 1893, and in a...

 defeated the Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

, 3–2. Five days later in the first Stanley Cup Final game, the Montreal HC successfully defended their title with a 3–1 win over Ottawa.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 17, 1894 Montreal HC 3–2 Montreal Victorias Victoria Rink
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 22, 1894 Montreal HC 3–1 Ottawa Victoria Rink


Later in the year, the Cup trustees accepted a challenge from the squad from Osgoode Hall
Osgoode Hall Law School
Osgoode Hall Law School is a Canadian law school, located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and affiliated with York University. Named after the first Chief Justice of Ontario, William Osgoode, the law school was established by The Law Society of Upper Canada in 1889 and was the only accredited law...

, the champions of the Ontario Hockey Association
Ontario Hockey Association
The Ontario Hockey Association is the governing body for the majority of Junior and Senior level ice hockey teams in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern Ontario Hockey Association. Other Ontario sanctioning bodies along with the...

 (OHA). However, the series was eventually cancelled because of the lack of ice.

1894–95

On March, 8, 1895,the Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 won the 1895 AHAC title
1895 AHAC Season
The 1895 Amateur Hockey Association of Canada season lasted from January 3 until March 8. Each team played 8 games, and Montreal Victorias were first with a 6–2–0 record. After a required Stanley Cup challenge played between the 1894 winners, Montreal HC and Queen's, champion of the Ontario Hockey...

 and thus the Stanley Cup, after finishing the season with a 6–2 record. However, a challenge game was scheduled earlier for the next day between the previous year's champion Montreal HC and the squad from Queen's University
Queen's Golden Gaels
The Queen's Gaels are the athletic teams that represent Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Team colours are blue, red, and gold. Its main home is Richardson Memorial Stadium on West Campus....

, which was then part of the Ontario Hockey Association. Thus, it was decided that if the Montreal HC won the challenge match, the Victorias would become the Stanley Cup champions. The Montreal HC would eventually win the game, 5–1, and their crosstown rivals were crowned the champions.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 9, 1895 Montreal HC 5–1 Queen's University Victoria Rink
Montreal Victorias wins the Cup based on winning the AHA title, and Montreal HC defeating Queen's University. Montreal HC were never recognized as Stanley Cup Champions in 1895, even though they won first challenge series from another hockey league.


Billy Barlow, the star player of Montreal was not able to play and Clarence McKerrow took his place. McKerrow had not played any games for Montreal, and could be considered a ringer, but there was no protest from Queen's.

The Queen's team, although described as looking fast in their tiger jerseys, were no match for Montreal and the game proved uninteresting.

1895–96

The first successful challenge to the Cup came in February 1896 by the Winnipeg Victorias
Winnipeg Victorias
The Winnipeg Victorias were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba, organized in 1889. They played in the Manitoba Hockey Association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...

, the champions of the Manitoba Hockey Association
Manitoba Hockey Association
The Manitoba Hockey Association was an early men's senior ice hockey league playing around 1900 in Manitoba, Canada. The league started as an elite amateur league in 1892, became professional in 1905, had a professional and an amateur league in 1908–09 and only an amateur league from 1909 until...

 (MHA). On February 14, Winnipeg beat defending champion Montreal, 2–0, becoming the first team outside the AHAC to win the Cup.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
February 14, 1896 Winnipeg Victorias 2–0 Montreal Victorias Victoria Rink

1896–97

The Montreal Victorias won the 1896 AHAC title
1896 AHAC season
The 1896 Amateur Hockey Association of Canada season lasted from January 3 until March 7. Each team played 8 games, and Montreal Victorias were first with a 7–1 record. During the season, on February 14 the Victorias hosted a Stanley Cup challenge match with the Winnipeg Victorias club. Winnipeg...

 by finishing the season with a 7–1 record, and subsequently demanded a rematch for the Cup. However, it was delayed until December 30 due to unsuitable ice conditions in Montreal. In what was said to be the most anticipated hockey game of the time, the Montreal Victorias defeated the Winnipeg Victorias, 6–5, to reclaim the Cup.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
December 30, 1896 Montreal Victorias 6–5 Winnipeg Victorias Granite Rink, Winnipeg

1897–98

Another 7–1 record earned the Montreal Victorias the 1897 AHAC title
1897 AHAC season
The 1897 Amateur Hockey Association of Canada season lasted from January 9 until March 6. Each team played 8 games, and Montreal Victorias were again first with a 7–1 record, retaining the Stanley Cup. The club won the Stanley Cup back from the Winnipeg Victorias prior to the season. This was their...

, and the team subsequently received a challenge from the Ottawa Capitals
Ottawa Capitals
The Ottawa Capitals were an early amateur senior men's ice hockey club playing in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada from the 1890s until 1920. The club would challenge for the Stanley Cup in 1897, but abandon its challenge after one game, after it lost 15–2. It would later precipitate the breakup of the...

, champions of the Central Canada Hockey Association (CCHA). It was originally scheduled as the first best-of-three challenge, but the series ended after the first game because the Victorias clearly was the superior team with a 15–2 victory.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
December 27, 1897 Montreal Victorias 15–2 Ottawa Capitals Victoria Rink


The Montreal Victorias again won the AHAC championship after finishing the 1898 AHAC season
1898 AHAC season
The 1898 Amateur Hockey Association of Canada season lasted from January 8 until March 5. Each team played 8 games, and Montreal Victorias were again first with a 8–0 record, to retain the Stanley Cup. This was their fourth-straight league championship....

 undefeated with an 8–0 record. As a result, no one challenged the Victorias for the Cup.

1898–99

Prior to the start of the 1898–99 season, the AHAC dissolved. The defending Cup champion Montreal Victorias along with several other former AHAC members formed the Canadian Amateur Hockey League
Canadian Amateur Hockey League
The Canadian Amateur Hockey League was an early men's amateur hockey league founded in 1898, replacing the organization that was formerly the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada before the 1898–99 season. The league existed for seven seasons, folding in 1905 and was itself replaced by the Eastern...

 (CAHL).

Montreal then received another challenge from the MHA
Manitoba Hockey Association
The Manitoba Hockey Association was an early men's senior ice hockey league playing around 1900 in Manitoba, Canada. The league started as an elite amateur league in 1892, became professional in 1905, had a professional and an amateur league in 1908–09 and only an amateur league from 1909 until...

's Winnipeg Victorias. This time, it was decided that they would play a two-game total goals series in February 1899.

The second game ended in controversy. With Montreal leading the game 3–2 with about 12 minutes left in the game, Montreal's Bob Macdougall violently slashed Winnipeg's Tony Gingras. As Gingras was carried off the ice, referee Bill Findlay only called Macdougall for a two minute minor. Angry that he should have been accessed a larger penalty, Winnipeg went into their dressing room in protest. Insulted, Findlay abruptly went home, but returned after officials followed him on a sleigh and persuaded him to return. Once back at the rink, the referee gave Winnipeg 15 minutes to return to the ice themselves. They refused and thus Findlay disqualified the team and declared Montreal the winners.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
February 15, 1899 Montreal Victorias 2–1 Winnipeg Victorias Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

, Montreal
February 18, 1899 Montreal Victorias 3–2 Winnipeg Victorias
Montreal wins total goals series 5 goals to 3


Two weeks after the Montreal Victorias defeated Winnipeg in their two-game total goals series, they lost the 1899 CAHL title
1899 CAHL season
The inaugural 1899 Canadian Amateur Hockey League season lasted from January 7 until March 4. Teams played an eight game schedule The Montreal Shamrocks were the league champion with a record of seven wins and one loss.-Highlights:...

, and thus the Cup, to the Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

. The Shamrocks compiled a 7–1 season record while the Victorias finished one game back at 6–2. The Shamrocks then played a challenge game against Queen's University
Queen's Golden Gaels
The Queen's Gaels are the athletic teams that represent Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Team colours are blue, red, and gold. Its main home is Richardson Memorial Stadium on West Campus....

 on March 14, defeating them 6–2.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 14, 1899 Montreal Shamrocks 6–2 Queen's University Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...


1899–1900

The MHA
Manitoba Hockey Association
The Manitoba Hockey Association was an early men's senior ice hockey league playing around 1900 in Manitoba, Canada. The league started as an elite amateur league in 1892, became professional in 1905, had a professional and an amateur league in 1908–09 and only an amateur league from 1909 until...

's Winnipeg Victorias issued another challenge for the Cup. This time, a best-of-three series was played against the defending champion Montreal Shamrocks. Winnipeg won the first game, 4–3, but Montreal prevailed in the next two games, 3–2 and 5–4.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
February 12, 1900 Winnipeg Victorias 4–3 Montreal Shamrocks Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

February 14, 1900 Montreal Shamrocks 3–2 Winnipeg Victorias
February 16, 1900 Montreal Shamrocks 5–4 Winnipeg Victorias
Montreal wins best-of-three series 2 games to 1


In March, the Shamrocks finished the 1900 CAHL season
1900 CAHL season
The 1900 Canadian Amateur Hockey League season lasted from January 6 until March 10. Teams played an eight game schedule. Again, the Montreal Shamrocks were the league champion with a record of seven wins and one loss.-Executive:...

 in first place, and thus the league championship, with a 7–1 record and then received another challenge for the Cup. However, the Halifax Crescents
Halifax Crescents
The Halifax Crescents were an early amateur and later, professional ice hockey team operating in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The team operated in several leagues, gone defunct and been resurrected. The original club challenged for the Stanley Cup in 1900...

 of the Halifax City Hockey League (Maritime champions) did not pose much of a threat as Montreal crushed them, 10–2 and 11–0.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 5, 1900 Montreal Shamrocks 10–2 Halifax Crescents Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

March 7, 1900 Montreal Shamrocks 11–0 Halifax Crescents
Montreal wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0

1900–01

In January 1901, the Winnipeg Victorias again challenged the Montreal Shamrocks for the Cup. This time, Winnipeg prevailed, sweeping the best-of-three series with scores of 4–3 and 2–1. Game 2 was the first overtime game in Cup history with Dan Bain scoring at the four minute mark of the extra period.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location Notes
January 29, 1901 Winnipeg Victorias 4–3 Montreal Shamrocks Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

January 31, 1901 Winnipeg Victorias 2–1 Montreal Shamrocks 4:00, OT
Winnipeg wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0

1901–02

In January 1902, the OHA's Toronto Wellingtons
Toronto Wellingtons
The Toronto Wellingtons were one of the first amateur men's ice hockey teams in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They were active around 1900, and are notable for challenging for the Stanley Cup as Ontario champions of 1902....

 challenged the Winnipeg Victorias for the Cup in a best-of-three series, but Winnipeg swept Toronto in two games with identical 5–3 scores.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
January 21, 1902 Winnipeg Victorias 5–3 Toronto Wellingtons Winnipeg Auditorium
January 23, 1902 Winnipeg Victorias 5–3 Toronto Wellingtons
Winnipeg wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0


After the Montreal HC won the 1902 CAHL
1902 CAHL season
The 1902 Canadian Amateur Hockey League season lasted from January 5 until March 1. Teams played an eight game schedule. The Montreal HC were the league champion with a record of six wins and two losses.-Executive:...

 title in March, they promptly sent a challenge to the Winnipeg Victorias. In Game 1 of the best-of-three series, Winnipeg shutout Montreal, 1–0. However, Montreal shutout Winnipeg in Game 2, 5–0, and then held on to a 2–1 victory in Game 3. With the victory, the Montreal club won the Cup for the first time since 1894.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 13, 1902 Winnipeg Victorias 1–0 Montreal HC Winnipeg Auditorium
March 15, 1902 Montreal HC 5–0 Winnipeg Victorias
March 17, 1902 Montreal HC 2–1 Winnipeg Victorias
Montreal wins best-of-three series 2 games to 1

1902–03

Another Montreal HC vs. Winnipeg Victorias best-of-three challenge series was held in early 1903. In the first game, defending champion Montreal defeated Winnipeg, 8–1. The second game was the first Stanley Cup challenge match to be replayed. Both teams skated to a 2–2 tie before the game had to be suspended at 27:00 of overtime because of a midnight curfew. It was then decided to discard the result and replay the game two days later. In the rescheduled contest, the Victorias won, 4–2, to even the series. However, Montreal won the decisive third game, 4–1, to retain the Cup.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
January 29, 1903 Montreal HC 8–1 Winnipeg Victorias Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

January 31, 1903 Suspended at 27:00 of overtime due to curfew and the 2–2 tie was discarded
February 2, 1903 Winnipeg Victorias 4–2 Montreal HC
February 4, 1903 Montreal HC 4–1 Winnipeg Victorias
Montreal wins best-of-three series 2 games to 1


In March, the 1903 CAHL season
1903 CAHL season
The 1903 Canadian Amateur Hockey League season lasted from January 3 until February 28. Teams played an eight game schedule. Ottawa and Montreal Victorias tied for the league championship with records of six wins and two losses.-Executive:...

 ended with the Montreal Victorias and the Ottawa Hockey Club
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 tied for first place with identical 6–2 records. To determine the CAHL champion, and thus succeed the Montreal HC as the Cup champion, a two-game total goals series was held between the two teams. The first game was held in Montreal ending in a 1–1 tie. The second game was played in Ottawa, with the Ottawas dominating the Victorias, 8–0. The Ottawas thus won the Cup by winning the CAHL.

As the new CAHL and Cup champions, the Ottawas accepted a challenge from the Rat Portage Thistles
Kenora Thistles
The Kenora Thistles were an early amateur men's ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario, Canada, formed in 1885 as a senior team by a group of Lake of the Woods lumbermen. The club is notable for winning the Stanley Cup as an amateur team in 1907. The town is the smallest in population to have...

 of the Manitoba & Northwestern Hockey Association
Manitoba & Northwestern Hockey Association
The Manitoba & Northwestern Hockey Association was an early senior-level men's amateur ice hockey league, founded in 1903, and played one season, 1903-1904 before joining the Manitoba Hockey Association...

 (MNWHA). Entering the best-of-three challenge series, the Thistles were younger and quicker than Ottawa; only one player on the Thistles was over the age of 20. However, poor soft ice conditions in Ottawa played a major factor as the Ottawas swept the series with scores of 6–2 and 4–2.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 12, 1903 Ottawa HC 6–2 Rat Portage Thistles Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

March 14, 1903 Ottawa HC 4–2 Rat Portage Thistles
Ottawa wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0


For their win, the Ottawa players each received a silver nugget from team director Bob Shillington. This is the origin of the nickname of the Silver Seven.

1903–04

In January 1904, a best-of-three Cup challenge series was held between the defending champion Ottawa Hockey Club (aka Silver Seven) and the MHA
Manitoba Hockey Association
The Manitoba Hockey Association was an early men's senior ice hockey league playing around 1900 in Manitoba, Canada. The league started as an elite amateur league in 1892, became professional in 1905, had a professional and an amateur league in 1908–09 and only an amateur league from 1909 until...

's Winnipeg Rowing Club
Winnipeg Rowing Club
The Winnipeg Rowing Club is a rowing club based in Winnipeg, Manitoba founded in 1881 by cousins John Galt II & George Galt. The club was incorporated on February 2, 1883, with John Norquay as Club Patron, Thomas Renwick as President, and George Galt as Club Captain.From 1902 to 1906, the Winnipeg...

. Ottawa crushed Winnipeg, 9–1, in the first game but the Rowing Club rebounded with a 6–2 victory in the second. The Silver Seven then won the deciding third game, 2–0. This series marked the first time that goal lines were drawn across the ice from post to post.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
December 30, 1903 Ottawa HC 9–1 Winnipeg Rowing Club Aberdeen Pavilion
Aberdeen Pavilion
The Aberdeen Pavilion is an exhibition hall in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Overlooking the Rideau Canal, it is located in Lansdowne Park, Ottawa's historic fairgrounds...

, Ottawa
January 1, 1904 Winnipeg Rowing Club 6–2 Ottawa
January 4, 1904 Ottawa HC 2–0 Winnipeg Rowing Club
Ottawa HC wins best-of-three series 2 games to 1


On January 30, 1904, a CAHL league game between the Ottawas and the Montreal Victorias started late and the game ended at the midnight curfew, with Ottawa leading 4–1. The CAHL ordered the game to be replayed, and the ensuing debate caused the Ottawas to withdraw from the CAHL. The CAHL hoped that without Ottawa, the Cup would remain with the CAHL and be given to its new league champion, the Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

. However, the Cup trustees decided otherwise, and although the Silver Seven were not affiliated with any league for the rest of the season, they could still receive challenges. About a month later, Ottawa swept a best-of-three Cup series against the OHA's Toronto Marlboros
Toronto Marlboros
The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association and Ontario Hockey League from 1904 to 1989...

 with scores of 6–3 and 11–2.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
February 23, 1904 Ottawa HC 6–3 Toronto Marlboros Aberdeen Pavilion
Aberdeen Pavilion
The Aberdeen Pavilion is an exhibition hall in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Overlooking the Rideau Canal, it is located in Lansdowne Park, Ottawa's historic fairgrounds...

, Ottawa
February 25, 1904 Ottawa HC 11–2 Toronto Marlboros
Ottawa HC wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0


In early March, the Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

 of the Federal Amateur Hockey League
Federal Amateur Hockey League
The Federal Amateur Hockey League was a Canadian men's senior-level ice hockey league that played six seasons from 1904 to 1909. The league was formed initially to provide a league for teams not accepted by the rival Canadian Amateur Hockey League . One team, the Montreal Le National, was the first...

 (FAHL) challenged the Senators for the Cup. In the first game, played in Montreal, the teams played to a 5–5 tie at the end of regulation and the Wanderers refused to play overtime with the current referee. The Cup trustees ordered the series to restart with both games played in Ottawa. However, Montreal refused unless the first game was replayed at home. The Wanderers were disqualified and the Silver Seven retained the Cup.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 2, 1904 Ended in a 5–5 tie Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

Ottawa wins series; Montreal is disqualified for refusing to play games in Ottawa


A week later, Ottawa HC was challenged by the MNHA
Manitoba & Northwestern Hockey Association
The Manitoba & Northwestern Hockey Association was an early senior-level men's amateur ice hockey league, founded in 1903, and played one season, 1903-1904 before joining the Manitoba Hockey Association...

's Brandon Wheat Cities
Brandon Wheat Cities
The Brandon Wheat Cities was an early senior-level elite amateur ice hockey team that played from 1903 to 1923. It was based in Brandon, Manitoba and played in the Manitoba & Northwestern Hockey Association, followed by the Manitoba Hockey Association and the early Manitoba Hockey League.The team...

, but prevailed in another two game sweep with scores of 6–3 and 9–3.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 9, 1904 Ottawa HC 6–3 Brandon Wheat Cities Aberdeen Pavilion
Aberdeen Pavilion
The Aberdeen Pavilion is an exhibition hall in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Overlooking the Rideau Canal, it is located in Lansdowne Park, Ottawa's historic fairgrounds...

, Ottawa
March 11, 1904 Ottawa HC 9–3 Brandon Wheat Cities
Ottawa wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0

Ottawa vs. Dawson City

In January 1905, the Ottawas were challenged by the Dawson City Nuggets
Dawson City Nuggets
The Dawson City Nuggets were a hockey team from Dawson City, Yukon Territory, Canada that challenged the reigning champion Ottawa Hockey Club, aka "The Silver Seven," in January 1905, for the Stanley Cup. They suffered the most lopsided single-game defeat in the history of Stanley Cup...

 who travelled 4,000 miles (6,400 km) from the Yukon to Ottawa for a best-of-three Cup challenge series. The Nuggets actually left Dawson City on December 19, 1904 and travelled on a month-long journey by dog sled and walking (Dawson to Whitehorse), ship (Skagway to Vancouver), and train (Whitehorse to Skagway, and Vancouver to Ottawa). Largely because of the long trip, they were no match for the Silver Seven. Ottawa defeated Dawson City in the first game by a score of 9–2. Numerous Stanley Cup records were then set in the second game, including Frank McGee's 14 goals, and a 23–2 rout, the largest margin of victory for any challenge game or Stanley Cup Final game to date as of 2010.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
January 13, 1905 Ottawa HC 9–2 Dawson City Nuggets Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

January 16, 1905 Ottawa HC 23–2 Dawson City Nuggets
Ottawa HC wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0

Ottawa vs. Rat Portage

Ottawa eventually won the 1905 FAHL title by finishing in first place with a 7–1 record. Then in March, the Rat Portage Thistles issued another challenge to the Ottawas. Although the Thistles crushed Ottawa in the first game, 9–3, Ottawa was without Frank McGee who did not play. However, McGee returned to lead the Ottawas to 4–2 and 5–4 victories in the second and third games to win the series.

Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 7, 1905 Rat Portage Thistles 9–3 Ottawa HC Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

March 9, 1905 Ottawa HC 4–2 Rat Portage Thistles
March 11, 1905 Ottawa HC 5–4 Rat Portage Thistles
Ottawa HC wins best-of-three series 2 games to 1


On the same day that the third game of the Thistles - Ottawa series was played, the 1905 CAHL season
1905 CAHL season
The 1905 Canadian Amateur Hockey League season lasted from January 2 until March 11. Teams played a ten game schedule. This year saw the addition of two teams, Montreal Westmount and Montreal Nationals. Montreal Nationals had previously been in the FAHL. Montreal Victorias won the league...

 ended with the Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

 winning the title. The Cup trustees accepted their challenge, however, the Montreal-Ottawa series was eventually cancelled because the trustees and the Victorias could not agree on either the game dates or the playoff series format.

1905–06

For the 1905–06 season, the Ottawa HC (aka Silver Seven) joined the new Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association
Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association
The Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association was a men's amateur, later professional ice hockey league in Canada that played four seasons. It was founded on December 11, 1905 with six clubs: four from the Canadian Amateur Hockey League and two from the Federal Amateur Hockey League, to bring...

 (ECAHA). In February, Ottawa played a best-of-three challenge series against OHA champion Queen's University
Queen's Golden Gaels
The Queen's Gaels are the athletic teams that represent Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Team colours are blue, red, and gold. Its main home is Richardson Memorial Stadium on West Campus....

, but the Senators proved to be the better team as they swept the series with 16–7 and 12–7 victories.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
February 27, 1906 Ottawa HC 16–7 Queen's University Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

February 28, 1906 Ottawa HC 12–7 Queen's University
Ottawa HC wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0


About a week later, Smiths Falls, the FAHL champions, issued a challenge for the Cup, but they suffered the same fate as Queen's University. The Ottawas defeated them with scores of 6–5 and 8–2 to defend the Cup. Interestingly, Ottawa management was so impressed with Smiths Falls goalie Percy LeSueur
Percy LeSueur
Sergeant Percy St. Helier LeSueur was a Canadian senior and professional ice hockey goaltender. He was a member of the Smiths Falls Seniors for three years, with whom his performance in a 1906 Stanley Cup challenge series attracted the attention of his opponents, the Ottawa Silver Seven...

 that they signed him to join the Ottawas a few days after the series ended.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 6, 1906 Ottawa HC 6–5 Smiths Falls Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

March 8, 1906 Ottawa HC 8–2 Smiths Falls
Ottawa HC wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0


The 1906 ECAHA season
1906 ECAHA season
The inaugural 1906 Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association season lasted from January 3 until March 10. Teams played a ten game schedule. Ottawa HC and Montreal Wanderers would tie for the league championship with a record of 9–1, while the Montreal Shamrocks would not win a single game...

 ended a few days later after the Smiths Falls - Ottawa series, with both Ottawa and the Montreal Wanderers tied for first place with identical 9–1 records. It was decided to hold a two-game total goals series to determine the league champion, and thus who would keep the Cup. The first game was played in Montreal where the Wanderers promptly crushed the Ottawas, 9–1. Needing at least an eight-goal victory in the rematch in Ottawa, the newly signed LeSueur was named Ottawa's starting goalie, and the Ottawas jumped to a 9–1 lead to tie the series. But with under 5 minutes to go, Montreal's Lester Patrick scored twice to clinch the series for the Wanderers, winning the total-goals series, 12–10 and taking over the Stanley Cup.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 14, 1906 Montreal Wanderers 9–1 Ottawa HC Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

March 17, 1906 Ottawa HC 9–3 Montreal Wanderers Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

Montreal wins total goals series 12 goals to 10

1906–07

In December 1906, the New Glasgow Cubs, an amateur team from New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
New Glasgow is a town in Pictou County, in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated on the banks of the East River of Pictou, which flows into Pictou Harbour, a sub-basin of the Northumberland Strait....

, issued a challenge to the Montreal Wanderers. In a two-game total goals series, Montreal easily defeated New Glasgow in both matches, 10–3 and 7–2. This was the first series in which professional players played for the Stanley Cup, as the Wanderers and other teams in the ECAHA were starting to mix amateurs with pros in their squads.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
December 27, 1906 Montreal Wanderers 10–3 New Glasgow Cubs Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

December 29, 1906 Montreal Wanderers 7–2 New Glasgow Cubs
Montreal wins total goals series 17 goals to 5


The Kenora Thistles
Kenora Thistles
The Kenora Thistles were an early amateur men's ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario, Canada, formed in 1885 as a senior team by a group of Lake of the Woods lumbermen. The club is notable for winning the Stanley Cup as an amateur team in 1907. The town is the smallest in population to have...

 (formerly the Rat Portage Thistles before the city changed its name to Kenora in 1904) challenged the Montreal Wanderers for the Cup in January 1907. Aided by future Hockey Hall of Fame
Hockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...

rs Tom Hooper, Tommy Phillips, and Art Ross
Art Ross
Arthur Howey "Art" Ross was a Canadian ice hockey defenceman and executive from 1905 until 1954. Regarded as one of the best defenders of his era by his peers, he was one of the first to skate with the puck up the ice rather than pass it to a forward...

, the Thistles came away with 4–2 and 8–6 victories for a combined score of 12–8 to win a two-game total goals series. A "ringer", Ross was a member of the Brandon Wheat Kings and was borrowed by Kenora just for the challenge games.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
January 17, 1907 Kenora Thistles 4–2 Montreal Wanderers Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

January 21, 1907 Kenora Thistles 8–6 Montreal Wanderers
Kenora wins total goals series 12 goals to 8


In March, Kenora would play and win the Manitoba Professional Hockey League
Manitoba Hockey Association
The Manitoba Hockey Association was an early men's senior ice hockey league playing around 1900 in Manitoba, Canada. The league started as an elite amateur league in 1892, became professional in 1905, had a professional and an amateur league in 1908–09 and only an amateur league from 1909 until...

 (MPHL) playoffs against Brandon to successfully defend the Cup. In a best-of-three, Kenora won 2–0.

In March, the Wanderers won the 1907 ECAHA title
1907 ECAHA season
The 1907 Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association season lasted from January 3 until March 10. Teams played a ten game schedule. The Montreal Wanderers won the league championship going undefeated, with their only loss of the season coming in a Stanley Cup challenge series with...

 by finishing the season undefeated with a 10–0 record. Montreal then requested a rematch with Kenora for the Cup. However, there were disagreements between both teams. The Wanderers did not want the Thistles to use their "ringers", Harry Westwick and Alf Smith
Alf Smith
Alfred Edward Smith was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Ottawa Senators, and Kenora Thistles. He had two brothers who played senior-level hockey Harry Smith and Tommy Smith...

 from the Ottawa Senators. Kenora responded by refusing to play, citing the fact that Montreal used "ringers" in the earlier series. Eventually, the Wanderers withdrew their protest after the Thistles agreed to play the two-game total goals series in Winnipeg; Winnipeg Arena was much larger and thus guaranteed more ticket sales for the clubs to share. In the end, Montreal overcame Westwick and Smith as they compiled a combined score of 12–8 to win the series. Most of the Wanderers' margin-of-victory came in Game 1 as they defeated the Thistles, 7–2. Kenora won Game 2, 6–5, but the one-goal victory was not enough.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 23, 1907 Montreal Wanderers 7–2 Kenora Thistles Winnipeg Arena
March 25, 1907 Kenora Thistles 6–5 Montreal Wanderers
Montreal wins total goals series 12 goals to 8

1907–08

Although the Montreal Wanderers won the 1908 ECAHA title by finishing the season with an 8–2 record, they played in three Cup challenges that season. In January, they defeated the 1907 FAHL champion
1906–07 FAHL season
The 1906–07 Federal Amateur Hockey League season lasted from December 28 until March 6. Teams were to play a twelve game schedule, but this was disrupted by the resignation of the Montreal Montagnards over a dispute, and the resignation of the Cornwall team following the death of Owen 'Bud'...

 Ottawa Victorias, 22–4, in a two-game total goals series. Ernie Russell scored 10 goals as he led the Wanderers to 9–3 and 13–1 victories.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
January 9, 1908 Montreal Wanderers 9–3 Ottawa Victorias Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

January 13, 1908 Montreal Wanderers 13–1 Ottawa Victorias
Montreal wins total goals series 22 goals to 4


The Winnipeg Maple Leafs of the MHL challenged Montreal for the Cup in March, but the Wanderers came away with 11–5 and 9–3 wins to clinch the two-game total goals series, 20–8.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 10, 1908 Montreal Wanderers 11–5 Winnipeg Maple Leafs Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

March 12, 1908 Montreal Wanderers 9–3 Winnipeg Maple Leafs
Montreal wins total goals series 20 goals to 8


Montreal's greatest challenge happened two days later when they played a single-elimination game
Single-elimination tournament
A single-elimination tournament, also called a knockout, cup or sudden death tournament, is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match or bracket is immediately eliminated from winning the championship or first prize in the event...

 against the Toronto Trolley Leaguers. Toronto was the champion of the newly established Ontario Professional Hockey League
Ontario Professional Hockey League
-External links:*...

 (OPHL), and was the first all-professional team to compete for the Cup. However, the Wanderers prevailed, 6–4, with two late goals by Ernie Johnson and Bruce Stuart.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 14, 1908 Montreal Wanderers 6–4 Toronto Trolley Leaguers Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...


1908–09

In December 1908, Montreal played its first Cup challenge of the season, this time against the Edmonton Hockey Club
Edmonton Eskimos (hockey)
The Edmonton Eskimos were a Canadian amateur and later professional men's ice hockey team that existed from 1905 to 1927. The Eskimos challenged three times for the Stanley Cup, losing each time; in 1908 versus the Montreal Wanderers, in 1910 versus the Ottawa Senators, and Ottawa again in 1923...

 of the Alberta Amateur Hockey Association (AAHA). Edmonton entered the series with an all-time high of six "ringers". In Game 1, Harry Smith scored 5 goals as he led the Wanderers to a 7–3 victory. The Edmontons won Game 2, 7–6, but Montreal took the two-game total goals series, 13–10.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
December 28, 1908 Montreal Wanderers 7–3 Edmonton HC Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

December 30, 1908 Edmonton HC 7–6 Montreal Wanderers
Montreal wins total goals series 13 goals to 10


Prior to the start of the new season, the Montreal HC and the Montreal Victorias, the last remaining amateur teams, left the ECAHA, and the league dropped "Amateur" from its name to become an all-pro league. The 1909 ECHA season
1909 ECAHA season
The 1909 Eastern Canadian Hockey Association season lasted from January 2 until March 6. Teams played a twelve game schedule. The Ottawa Senators would win the league championship with a record of ten wins, two losses and take over the Stanley Cup....

 ended with the defending Cup champion Montreal Wanderers finishing in second place with a 9–3 record, behind the first place Ottawa HC who finished at 10–2. Thus Ottawa HC won the league championship and were awarded the Cup.

Ottawa received a challenge only from the Winnipeg Shamrocks, but it was too late in the season to set a date.

1909–10

In an effort to freeze out the Montreal Wanderers, the ECHA disbanded in December 1909 and a new league called the Canadian Hockey Association (CHA) was formed, deliberately designed to exclude the Wanderers. While the Wanderers were forced to join the newly formed National Hockey Association
National Hockey Association
The National Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey organization with teams in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. It is the direct predecessor organization to today's National Hockey League...

 (NHA), the defending Cup champion Ottawa HC still had to accept challenges. In January 1910, they played a two-game total goals series against Galt, champions of the OPHL, but prevailed with 12–3 and 3–1 victories. Marty Walsh led Ottawa with 6 goals.

Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
January 5, 1910 Ottawa HC 12–3 Galt Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

January 7, 1910 Ottawa HC 3–1 Galt
Ottawa HC wins total goals series 15 goals to 4


Soon after the Galt-Ottawa challenge series ended, the CHA folded because of financial difficulties, and Ottawa was admitted into the NHA. The Senators then played a two-game total goals series against the Edmonton Eskimos, but Gordie Roberts' 7 goals helped Ottawa to victories of 8–4 and 13–7.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
January 18, 1910 Ottawa HC 8–4 Edmonton Eskimos Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...

January 20, 1910 Ottawa HC 13–7 Edmonton Eskimos
Ottawa HC wins total goals series 21 goals to 11


When the 1910 NHA season
1910 NHA season
The 1910 NHA season was the first season of the National Hockey Association men's ice hockey league. The season started on January 5, but was suspended immediately and the league then absorbed the Ottawa and Shamrocks teams of the Canadian Hockey Association and the season continued from January 15...

 ended in March, the Ottawas had to give the Cup to the Wanderers. Montreal finished in first place with an 11–1 record while Ottawa finished in second place at 9–3. The Wanderers then accepted challenge from the Berlin Dutchmen
Berlin Dutchmen
The Berlin Dutchmen were an early professional ice hockey team operating out of Berlin, Ontario, from 1907 in the Ontario Professional Hockey League . The Berlin team is notable for challenging for the Stanley Cup in 1910 versus the Montreal Wanderers...

, who succeeded Galt as the OPHL champions. In the single-elimination game, Ernie Russell scored 4 goals as he led Montreal to a 7–3 win.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 12, 1910 Montreal Wanderers 7–3 Berlin Dutchmen Jubilee Rink, Montreal

1910–11

The Ottawa HC captured the NHA championship, and thus the Cup, after finishing the 1910–11 season in first place with a 13–3 record. The Ottawas then played in two Cup challenges during the month of March. In a one game challenge on March 13, Ottawa defeated Galt, 7–4, aided by three goals by future hall of fame forward Marty Walsh
Marty Walsh
Martin J. Walsh was a Canadian amateur, later professional, ice hockey forward who played for the Ottawa Senators, winning three Stanley Cups in 1909, 1910 and 1911 and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame...

.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 13, 1911 Ottawa HC 7–4 Galt Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...



Three days later, the Ottawas played the Port Arthur Bearcats
Port Arthur Bearcats
The Port Arthur Bearcats were an amateur men's senior ice hockey team based in Port Arthur, Ontario . Port Arthur were champions Canadian Amateur Hockey Association four times, and were chosen once to represent Canada as the Canada national men's ice hockey team at international competitions...

 of the Northern Ontario Hockey League (NOHL) in another one-game final. Walsh scored ten goals as Ottawa crushed Port Arthur, 14–4.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 16, 1911 Ottawa HC 14–4 Port Arthur Bearcats Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena
Dey's Arena, also known as Dey Brothers Rink, Dey's Skating Rink and The Arena, were a series of ice rinks and arenas located in Ottawa, Ontario, that hold importance in the early development of the organized sport of ice hockey in Canada...


1911–12

In 1912, Cup trustees declared that the Cup was only to be defended at the end of the champion team's regular season. As a result, anyone who wanted to challenge for the Cup had to wait until the 1911–12 NHA season concluded. When it ended, the Ottawa HC finished in second place, with a 9–9 record, behind the Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

, who posted a 10–8 record to take the league championship and take over the Cup. The Bulldogs then went on to sweep the Moncton Victorias of the Maritime Professional Hockey League
Maritime Professional Hockey League
The Maritime Professional Hockey League was a professional men's ice hockey league operating in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia from around 1910 until 1915. Two of the league's champions challenged for the Stanley Cup...

 (MPHL) in a best-of-three Cup challenge series, with 9–3 and 8–0 victories.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 11, 1912 Quebec Bulldogs 9–3 Moncton Victorias Quebec Skating Rink
Quebec Skating Rink
Quebec Skating Rink was the name of several ice rinks in the Quebec City, Quebec area.The first, opened in 1851 or 1852, was the first covered skating rink in the world. It was located on a dock near the St. Lawrence River. The second rink opened in 1864. It was located on the south side of the...

March 13, 1912 Quebec Bulldogs 8–0 Moncton Victorias
Quebec wins best-of-three series 2 games to 0

1912–13

The 1912–13 NHA season ended with Quebec Bulldogs repeating as league champions. The Bulldogs then played a two-game total goals Cup challenge series versus the Sydney Millionaires of the MPHL, with Quebec winning 20 goals to 5. Joe Malone scored 9 goals as he led the Bulldogs to a 14–3 win in the first game. Quebec then won the second by a score of 6–2, with Joe Hall earning a hat trick
Hat Trick
Hat trick, hat-trick or hattrick may refer to:* hat-trick — in various sports, achieving three goals, wickets, etc. in a single match* Hattrick — online football management game** Hattrick Limited — producers of this game...

.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 8, 1913 Quebec Bulldogs 14–3 Sydney Millionaires Quebec Skating Rink
Quebec Skating Rink
Quebec Skating Rink was the name of several ice rinks in the Quebec City, Quebec area.The first, opened in 1851 or 1852, was the first covered skating rink in the world. It was located on a dock near the St. Lawrence River. The second rink opened in 1864. It was located on the south side of the...

March 10, 1913 Quebec Bulldogs 6–2 Sydney Millionaires
Quebec wins total-goals series 20 goals to 5.


Later in the month, the Victoria Aristocrats
Victoria Cougars
The Victoria Cougars were a major league professional ice hockey team that played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association from 1922 to 1924, and in the Western Hockey League from 1924 to 1926...

 of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association
Pacific Coast Hockey Association
The Pacific Coast Hockey Association was a professional men's ice hockey league in western Canada and the western United States, which operated from 1911 to 1924 when it then merged with the Western Canada Hockey League...

 (PCHA) challenged Quebec. However, the Bulldogs refused to put the Cup on the line, so the two teams played a best-of-three exhibition series instead. In the first series ever between the champions of the two leagues, all of the games were played in Victoria, while the differing rules of the NHA and PCHA alternated between each contest. A major rule difference was the PCHA had seven-man rules while the NHA had six. The first game was played under PCHA rules and the Aristocrats recorded a 7–5 victory. Under NHA rules in the second game, Quebec won 6–3. But in the third game, under seven-man hockey, Victoria won the exhibition series with a 6–1 victory.

1913–14

At the end of the 1913–14 NHA season
1913–14 NHA season
The 1913–14 NHA season was the fifth season of the National Hockey Association . At the end of the regular season, a tie for first place necessitated a playoff to determine the championship. The Toronto Hockey Club defeated the Montreal Canadiens 6–2 in a two-game, total-goals playoff...

, the Toronto Hockey Club and the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...

 were tied for first place with identical 13–7 records. To determine the NHA title and the new Cup champions, both teams played a two-game total goals series. Each team recorded shutouts on its home ice: Montreal won the first game, 2–0, but Toronto came back to win the second game, 6–0. The Blue Shirts won the series, 6 goals to 2. Game two in Toronto was the first Stanley Cup playoff game ever played on artificial ice.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location
March 7, 1914 Montreal Canadiens 2–0 Toronto Blue Shirts Montreal Arena
Montreal Arena
The Montreal Arena, also known as Westmount Arena, was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the corner of St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue. It was likely one of the first arenas designed expressly for hockey, opening in 1898...

March 11, 1914 Toronto Blue Shirts 6–0 Montreal Canadiens Arena Gardens
Toronto wins total goals series 6 goals to 2


Later in the month, Toronto and the PCHA's Victoria Aristocrats played a best-of-five series for the Cup. A controversy occurred when it was revealed that the Victoria club had not filed a formal challenge. A letter arrived from the Stanley Cup trustees on March 17, stating that the trustees would not let the Stanley Cup travel west, as they did not consider Victoria a proper challenger because they had not formally notified the trustees. However, on March 18, Trustee William Foran stated that it was a misunderstanding. PCHA president Lester Patrick had not filed a challenge, because he had expected Emmett Quinn of the NHA to make all of the arrangements in his role as hockey commissioner, whereas the trustees thought they were being deliberately ignored. In any case, all arrangements had been ironed out and the Victoria challenge was accepted. As it turned out, the Blue Shirts swept the series to successfully defend the Cup with scores of 5–2, 6–5 in overtime, and 2–1.
Date Winning Team Score Losing Team Location Notes
March 14, 1914 Toronto Blue Shirts 5–2 Victoria Aristocrats Arena Gardens
March 17, 1914 Toronto Blue Shirts 6–5 Victoria Aristocrats 15:00, OT
March 19, 1914 Toronto Blue Shirts 2–1 Victoria Aristocrats
Toronto wins best-of-five series 3 games to 0

Table of participating teams

Legend: SC = successful Stanley Cup challenge or defense of championship (win); UC = unsuccessful Stanley Cup challenge or defense of championship (loss)
Team SC UC Total Win %
Ottawa HC
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

17 2 19 0.833
Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...

10 2 12 0.800
Winnipeg Victorias
Winnipeg Victorias
The Winnipeg Victorias were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba, organized in 1889. They played in the Manitoba Hockey Association in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...

6 5 11 0.545
Montreal Victorias
Montreal Victorias
The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. The club played at its own rink, the Victoria Skating...

6 2 8 0.750
Montreal Shamrocks
Montreal Shamrocks
The Montreal Shamrocks were an amateur, later professional, men's ice hockey club in existence from 1886, merging with the Montreal Crystals club in 1896. They won the Stanley Cup ice hockey championship in 1899 and 1900...

5 1 6 0.833
Montreal HC 5 0 5 1.000
Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...

4 0 4 1.000
Rat Portage/Kenora Thistles
Kenora Thistles
The Kenora Thistles were an early amateur men's ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario, Canada, formed in 1885 as a senior team by a group of Lake of the Woods lumbermen. The club is notable for winning the Stanley Cup as an amateur team in 1907. The town is the smallest in population to have...

2 3 5 0.400
Toronto Blueshirts
Toronto Blueshirts
The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...

2 0 2 1.000
Queen's University 0 3 3 0.000
Brandon Wheat Cities
Brandon Wheat Cities
The Brandon Wheat Cities was an early senior-level elite amateur ice hockey team that played from 1903 to 1923. It was based in Brandon, Manitoba and played in the Manitoba & Northwestern Hockey Association, followed by the Manitoba Hockey Association and the early Manitoba Hockey League.The team...

0 2 2 0.000
Edmonton HC 0 2 2 0.000
Galt HC 0 2 2 0.000
Winnipeg Maple Leafs 0 2 2 0.000


The following 16 teams unsuccessfully challenged for a Stanley Cup only once: Berlin Dutchmen
Berlin Dutchmen
The Berlin Dutchmen were an early professional ice hockey team operating out of Berlin, Ontario, from 1907 in the Ontario Professional Hockey League . The Berlin team is notable for challenging for the Stanley Cup in 1910 versus the Montreal Wanderers...

, Dawson City Nuggets
Dawson City Nuggets
The Dawson City Nuggets were a hockey team from Dawson City, Yukon Territory, Canada that challenged the reigning champion Ottawa Hockey Club, aka "The Silver Seven," in January 1905, for the Stanley Cup. They suffered the most lopsided single-game defeat in the history of Stanley Cup...

, Halifax Crescents
Halifax Crescents
The Halifax Crescents were an early amateur and later, professional ice hockey team operating in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The team operated in several leagues, gone defunct and been resurrected. The original club challenged for the Stanley Cup in 1900...

, Moncton Victorias, Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...

, New Glasgow Cubs, Ottawa Capitals
Ottawa Capitals
The Ottawa Capitals were an early amateur senior men's ice hockey club playing in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada from the 1890s until 1920. The club would challenge for the Stanley Cup in 1897, but abandon its challenge after one game, after it lost 15–2. It would later precipitate the breakup of the...

, Ottawa Victorias, Port Arthur Bearcats
Port Arthur Bearcats
The Port Arthur Bearcats were an amateur men's senior ice hockey team based in Port Arthur, Ontario . Port Arthur were champions Canadian Amateur Hockey Association four times, and were chosen once to represent Canada as the Canada national men's ice hockey team at international competitions...

, Smiths Falls, Sydney Millionaires, Toronto Marlboros
Toronto Marlboros
The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association and Ontario Hockey League from 1904 to 1989...

, Toronto Trolley Leaguers, Toronto Wellingtons
Toronto Wellingtons
The Toronto Wellingtons were one of the first amateur men's ice hockey teams in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They were active around 1900, and are notable for challenging for the Stanley Cup as Ontario champions of 1902....

, Victoria Aristocrats, Winnipeg Rowing Club
Winnipeg Rowing Club
The Winnipeg Rowing Club is a rowing club based in Winnipeg, Manitoba founded in 1881 by cousins John Galt II & George Galt. The club was incorporated on February 2, 1883, with John Norquay as Club Patron, Thomas Renwick as President, and George Galt as Club Captain.From 1902 to 1906, the Winnipeg...

.
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