Montreal Wanderers facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Montreal Wanderers |
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| Founded | December 3, 1903 |
| History | Montreal Wanderers 1903–1918 1903–1905 (FAHL) 1906–1909 (ECAHA) 1910–1917 (NHA) 1917–1918 (NHL) |
| Home arena | Montreal Arena (1903–1910) Jubilee Arena (1910) Montreal Arena (1910–1918) |
| City | Montreal, Quebec |
| Colours | White, red |
| Owner(s) | James Strachan (1903–1908) P. J. Doran (1908–1910) Sam Lichtenhein (1910–1918) |
| Stanley Cups | 4 (1906, 1907, 1908, 1910) |
The Montreal Wanderers were a famous ice hockey team from Montreal. They started as an amateur team and later became professional. The Wanderers played in several leagues, including the Federal Amateur Hockey League (FAHL), the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA), the National Hockey Association (NHA), and briefly the National Hockey League (NHL).
The Wanderers were very successful, winning the Stanley Cup four times! Before the NHL was even created, the "Redbands," as they were sometimes called, were one of the best hockey teams around.
Contents
History of the Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers hockey team was officially started on December 3, 1903. James Strachan announced the new club's formation just two days before. The team chose red and white as their colors.
The first leaders of the club were:
- Honorary president: George Hodge
- Honorary vice-president: Clarence D. McKerrow
- President: James Strachan
- Vice-president: George Guile
- Secretary: Tom J. Hodge
The team was formed because of a disagreement about how the Montreal Hockey Club was being run. The Wanderers joined other teams to create a new league called the Federal Amateur Hockey League (FAHL) on December 5, 1903. Many early Wanderers players had been part of the 1902–03 Montreal Hockey Club team that won the Stanley Cup. That team was known as the "Little Men of Iron" because they were tough and determined, even though they were not very big. This nickname also stuck with the new Wanderers team.
Early Stanley Cup Wins
The Wanderers first tried to win the Stanley Cup on March 2, 1904. They played against the Ottawa Hockey Club. The game ended in a 5–5 tie. The Wanderers refused to play the next game in Ottawa and wanted it in Montreal. Because of this, they lost the series.
This game started a big rivalry between Ottawa and the Wanderers. These two teams shared the Stanley Cup championships from 1903 to 1911.
In 1906, Ottawa and the Wanderers met again. They had tied for first place in their league, the ECAHA. They played a two-game series to decide the league champion and the Stanley Cup winner. The Wanderers won the first game in Montreal with a score of 9–1. In the second game in Ottawa, the "Silver Seven" (Ottawa) played very well. They were leading 9–1 at one point, which would have tied the total score. But the Wanderers scored the last two goals, making the final score 9–3 for Ottawa. This meant the Wanderers won the series by a total score of 12–10 and claimed their first Stanley Cup!
As champions, Montreal defended the Cup in December 1906. They beat the New Glasgow Cubs 17–5 in a two-game series. In 1907, Montreal won their league championship again. They then faced the Kenora Thistles in a Cup challenge in January 1907. Kenora won both games (4–2 and 8–6) and took the Cup.
But the Wanderers got the Cup back just two months later! They defeated the Thistles in Winnipeg, Manitoba, winning one game 7–2 and losing the other 5–6. This meant the Wanderers won the series and the Cup.
The Wanderers won their third league title in a row in 1908. They also defended the Cup against the Ottawa Victorias in January. After winning the ECAHA title three times, the Wanderers got to keep the league's trophy, the Arena Cup, forever. You can see this Cup in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
After the 1908 season, Montreal defended the Stanley Cup twice more in March 1908. They beat the Winnipeg Maple Leafs and the Toronto Professional Hockey Club. The 1908 Wanderers team even carved their names inside the Stanley Cup! This team included five players who later became famous and joined the Hockey Hall of Fame: Moose Johnson, Hod Stuart, Riley Hern, Lester Patrick, and Ernie Russell.
Before the 1909 season, Montreal defended their Cup against the Edmonton Hockey Club, winning 13–10 over two games. However, the Wanderers lost the Cup later that year. They finished second in the ECAHA league, while Ottawa won first place.
Joining the National Hockey Association (NHA)
The Wanderers played a big part in starting the National Hockey Association (NHA). After the 1908 season, the Wanderers team was sold to P. J. Doran. He owned the Jubilee Rink and planned to move the team's games there. The Jubilee Rink was smaller than the Montreal Arena, which meant less money for the other teams in the league (ECHA).
Because of this, the other ECHA teams stopped the league and created a new one called the Canadian Hockey Association (CHA). They did not let the Wanderers join. But the Wanderers' representative, Jimmy Gardner, met Ambrose O'Brien. O'Brien's team, the Renfrew Creamery Kings, had also been rejected by the ECHA. Gardner suggested they start a brand new league together. O'Brien agreed, and on December 4, 1909, the NHA was founded. A month later, the CHA league ended, and Ottawa and Montreal Shamrocks joined the NHA.
The Wanderers won the Stanley Cup again in 1910. They were champions of the new NHA and also won the new O'Brien Cup. The Wanderers successfully defended the Stanley Cup one last time against the Berlin Dutchmen in March 1910.
The next season, Montreal dropped to fourth place and lost the right to defend the Stanley Cup. The Wanderers then missed the playoffs for four seasons in a row. Their last good season was in 1914–15. They tied for first place but lost in a playoff game for the league championship. The Wanderers won only 15 of their next 44 games over two seasons. After this, the NHA was reorganized and became the National Hockey League (NHL).
The NHL and the End of the Team
The Wanderers played only four games in the very first NHL season. They lost three of them. Then, their home rink, the Montreal Arena, burned down on January 2, 1918. At that time, they had also lost important players like Sprague Cleghorn and Odie Cleghorn. They asked other teams for help with players. Before the fire, they had gotten a good goalie, Hap Holmes, and things seemed to be looking up.
After the fire, the Wanderers asked for more players again, but no one sent any. The team then missed their next two games and officially stopped playing. The Montreal Wanderers team was no more.
The last player from the Wanderers to play in the NHL was George Geran, who played his final game in 1926.
After the Montreal Canadiens team was formed, which was popular with French-speaking fans in Montreal, the Wanderers were mostly supported by English-speaking fans. Later, a new team called the Montreal Maroons was created to take the Wanderers' place. The Maroons' owners wanted to use the name "Wanderers" but couldn't get the rights to it. The Maroons team also eventually stopped playing in 1938. This ended the idea of having separate Montreal teams for French-speaking and English-speaking fans.
Nickname History
The name "Wanderers" was used by several earlier Montreal hockey teams. These teams usually only played for one year in the late 1800s.
- The first "Wanderers" played in the Montreal Winter Carnival hockey tournament in 1884.
- Another independent team played challenge games in 1893.
- A third played in the Independent Amateur Hockey League in 1895.
- A fourth played in the Cyclists Interclub Hockey League in 1897.
Wanderers' Stanley Cup Dominance
The Montreal Wanderers were formed in December 1903. They played their first league game the next month and won their first league championship soon after. They challenged the Ottawa "Silver Seven/Senators" Hockey Club for the Stanley Cup on March 2, 1904.
Even though they lost that first challenge, it marked the start of a special time. For eight years, from 1904 to 1912, either the Montreal Wanderers or the Ottawa Hockey Club held the Stanley Cup. The Wanderers held it for 1,390 days, and Ottawa held it for 1,474 days. Only the Kenora Thistles briefly held the Cup for 61 days in 1907.
The Wanderers won or defended the Stanley Cup ten times in their first seven years. They only lost two direct challenges during that time: to Ottawa in March 1904 and to Kenora in January 1907.
Season Summary
The Montreal Wanderers played in different leagues during their history:
- 1904–05 – Federal Amateur Hockey League (FAHL)
- 1906–08 – Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA)
- 1909 – Eastern Canada Hockey Association (ECHA)
- 1910–17 – National Hockey Association (NHA)
- 1917–18 – National Hockey League (NHL)
The Wanderers played a total of 212 games, winning 122 and losing 90. They scored 1188 goals and had 1045 goals scored against them.
Honored Players
Many great players who played for the Wanderers later became members of the Hockey Hall of Fame:
- Dickie Boon
- Harry Cameron
- Sprague Cleghorn
- Jimmy Gardner
- Joe Hall
- Riley Hern
- Tom Hooper
- Harry Hyland
- Jack Marshall
- Ernie "Moose" Johnson
- Lester Patrick
- Art Ross
- Gordon Roberts
- Ernie Russell
- Bruce Stuart
- Hod Stuart
Images for kids
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Montreal Wanderers, 1907
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Wanderers players and team officials in Winnipeg for 1907 challenge
See also
In Spanish: Montreal Wanderers para niños
