1. Annex of visual documents and links for LES “Who Controls the Puck”
Please respect individual image and website licensing conditions, which vary depending on each source.

2. Early Professional Hockey
Professional hockey began around the turn of the Twentieth Century.  For a time, players were secretly paid under the table, but soon hockey embraced full professionalism.  The early years of hockey were marked by clubs being formed and then folding, and of players jumping from team to team in search of better pay.  For a short time in 1909 two rival leagues, both centred on Montreal, competed for talent and spectators.  In the end only the National Hockey Association would survive.  With less demand for players, salaries started to fall and the association reduced the number of players to six from seven in order to save on salaries.
Source: 

3. Interview with Fred "Cyclone" Taylor
Q. Why did you leave that success (Stanley Cup with Ottawa 1909) to go to Renfrew the next season?
A. Money, pure and simple.  The Renfrew Creamery Kings gave me a salary of five thousand, two hundred and fifty dollars for a two-month, twelve-game season.  The O’Brien family had made big money in mining and they wanted a team that could win the Stanley Cup/  You must remember how much money five thousand, two hundred and fifty dollars was in 1908.  My father was a salesman for a farm implement company and, if I remember right, he made ninety dollars a month as his top salary…
Q. Didn’t the players have things their way then with the strong bidding for talent?
A. It was a great time for hockey players because the leagues were not very well structured, and we could jump all over the place, going where the money was the best.  It wasn’t like in the 1920s on when a team could tie up your professional rights for life.  We knew we were lucky.  In the season, there were twenty-five pro teams right across Canada, all bidding for players.  It was a little like the mid-1970s with the NHL and WHA having twenty-eight teams and not enough good players.  Back then, the players knew it wouldn’t last.  The costs of a competitive team were much more than the income produced by the small arenas.  The players tried to get all they could before the owners go sick of losing money.  For instance, one year there were five pro teams in Montreal and they all lost money.
Source: Goyens,
Chrys and Frank Orr, Blades on Ice: A Century of Professional Hockey.
np: Team Power Publishing, 2001
Source: Flickr user City of Vancouver Archives at under CC By 2.0

4. Ottawa Journal, December 9, 1909.
In the Montreal Star, Marty Walsh, Ottawa’s crack centre, has some things to say about professional hockey which would make it appear that not all is gold that glitters.  “Over $200 a week for hockey, that seems easy money,” remarked the crack little centre, “but I can tell you when a man draws that amount he pretty nearly earns every cent of it.  Take myself for instance.  I have only played ‘pro’ hockey for a comparatively short time, yet I have taken some bumps that is taking lots of money to equalize.  My first year out I was handed a broken ankle in the Soo which laid me on my back for about six weeks.  Then in New York last year I came out of a game with a face that looked like the results of an encounter with wildcats.  I’ve had all my front teeth knocked out, and it costs money to get new ones, and at that they aren’t as good as the old ones….While it’s coming through, I want to get as much as I can , at the same time looking after my future interests  when my hockey days are over.”

5. Newsey Lalonde
“The money was good and I was able to make some extra cash playing professional lacrosse.  I played in Vancouver and got $6,000 for 12 games.  That was in 1912.  It came out to eight dollars a minute!
“Hockey was a tougher game – much tougher.  You’d think it was the other way around because of the swinging sticks in lacrosse, but nobody ever got hurt.  In hockey it was different.  One night “bad” Joe Hall nearly crushed my windpipe and I came back and almost broke his collarbone.
“But I’ll tell you, son, if I had the chance, I’d sure like to play this new kind of game and get the money they’re getting today.  I was a professional, you know.”
Source: 
Source: Fischler, Stan & Shirley.  Heroes and History. Whitby, Ontario:
McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1994, p. 14.

6. L.N. Bate, Former Vice-President Ottawa Hockey Club
Source: Ottawa Journal, December 13, 1909
Has professionalism benefited hockey? To that question I must make an emphatic reply in the affirmative.  Since the game has become openly professional the conditions have improved both from the standpoint of the play and of the management.
The professional has also improved the game from a spectators point of view.  The management is now able to get the players who will fit the style of play decided upon by those in charge…The result  is that the game has become more dashing and brilliant and is more appreciated by the spectators, as evidenced by the increased attendance...
Now the club is conducted on strictly business principles.  The player knows  what he is to get (salary) and he knows, also, that he has to obey the training rules as laid down by the management.   Any breach of discipline or any untoward departure of training rules is easily punished by a fine and the player, knowing this, guides his actions accordingly.
Oh yes, give me the professional game.  It is better on all counts, for the spectator, for the player and for the management.

7. St. James Street
St. James Street (present day Rue St. Jacques) in Montreal was the financial centre of Canada.  Many banks and other important businesses were located on this bustling street, including the offices of Eddie McCafferty, the secretary of the National Hockey Association.
Source: St. James Street,  MP
© McCord Museum under CC BY-NC-ND 2.5 CA

8. The Depression and WW1 contributed to the loss of players.
"By 1916 the federal government's recruiting efforts had flagged, the flow of new recruits could no longer keep pace with the 'wastage' of war. As part of its effort to boost recruitment rates and attract young men to the Canadian Expeditionary Force, the military arranged to have a glamorous hockey team assembled to play a season in the National Hockey Association, the precursor of the NHL -- the major league of hockey in its day..."
Read more on this photo and story at  
Source at
Text by Alan MacLeod used with his permission.
Photographer unknown. Photo used with permission by Alan MacLeod

9. Renfrew Millionaires
Its founder, Ambrose O'Brien, a millionaire from the then-current silver and mining boom in the Cobalt area of Ontario, sought to join the new Canadian Hockey Association with his existing Renfrew team in the semi-pro Federal Hockey League, and was rejected. With fellow rejecteeMontreal Wanderers, O'Brien founded the NHA, along with franchises in Cobalt, Haileybury and Montreal.
With O'Brien's money backing the Creamery Kings, Renfrew iced a powerful team its first season, with Frank Patrick and Lester Patrick commanding salaries of $3,000 each, and Cyclone Taylor receiving a record-setting $5,250 for a two-month season.
Sources:  and

10. Editorial Cartoon: The Renfrew "Millionaires"
Source: The Montreal Star, January 17, 1910.

11. Ambrose O'Brien
John Ambrose O'Brien May 27, 1885 – April 25, 1968, was an industrialist and sports team owner. He was a founder of the National Hockey Association NHA, owner of the Renfrew Millionaires and the founding owner of the Montreal Canadiens professional ice hockey team.
Text source and more biographical information at
Image compilation source and more information at

12. Unstable Founding Era
The Cobalt Silver Kings were one of the early teams of the National Hockey Association during its inaugural season in However they played only one season in the NHA and in 1911 were taken over by the Quebec Bulldogs. The NHA lasted from On November 26, 1917 the NHA decided to suspend operations and the National Hockey League (NHL) was created.
Image sources: Found at Cobalt Mining Legacy.ca and credited to cobalthistoricalsociety.ca. Permission to use was granted to LEARN by Cobalt Historical Society on Feb
The NHL evolved over four different time periods. The  "Founding Era from " was the early period when the league was first establishing itself. During this time period there was competition for fans and players from the Pacific Coast Hockey League and the Western Canada Hockey League.
During this time period the other problems arose. The two World Wars hampered the leagues development, and the Spanish Influenza Pandemic actually canceled the 1919 Stanley Cup Championship. Teams were created and also absolved in places like Seattle, St. Louis and Philadelphia.
Text paraphrased from original at now offline site at

13. Anglo-Industrialists dominate the economy
"The Redpaths were among the richest families in Canada and well known as philanthropists and industrialists. Clifford’s grandfather, Scottish-born John Redpath, had amassed a fortune by building the Lachine and Rideau Canals, founding the Canada Sugar Refining Company in 1854, and purchasing landholdings in Montreal."
Source: Redpath Mansion Mystery at
Image source: McCord Museum under CC BY-NC-ND 2.5 CA at
"John Redpath's success in building the Lachine Canal led to further major projects including his partnering with Thomas McKay, to construct the locks at Jones Falls, Ontario on the giant Rideau Canal project between 1827 and In addition, Redpath built theNotre-Dame Basilica and some of the first buildings at McGill University.The Redpath Sugar refinery proved to be a major Montreal employer, within a few years annually processing approximately 7,000 tons of raw sugar imported from the West Indies aboard Redpath-owned ships. Originally called the Canada Sugar Refining Co., after his son Peter (1821–1894) joined the business the company's name was changed to John Redpath & Son.”
Source:
Text from

14. Birthplace of the NHL
Image source: Montreal Star
"In November 1917, the NHA team owners secretly met at the Windsor Hotel in Montreal. They decided to join together to form a new League made up solely of themselves, leaving Livingstone [Toronto Shamrocks owner] the only remaining owner of a team in the NHA. The new League was based on the same rules, format and constitution of the NHA but had a new name – the National Hockey League."
Read more at

15. Changes in hockey technology!
History of Hockey Equipment
"Over the years there have been all sorts of changes to hockey. Some of the most interesting changes have been to the equipment that players use."  The history of goalie pads, helmets, pucks, nets, sticks and skates are all reviewed at the Backcheck: Hockey for Kids site.  
Sources:
Main site at
Equipment histories at:  
More about skates
"In 1848, E. V. Bushnell of Philadelphia, PA invented the first all steel clamp for skates.  In 1865, Jackson Haines, a famous American skater, developed the two plate all metal blade. The blade was attached directly to Haines' boots. The skater became famous for his new dance moves, jumps and spins. Haines added the first toe pick to skates in the 1870's, making toe pick jumps possible."
Source and more info at:  
Photo by flickr user Kenton Smith under CC BY-ND 2.0 at 

16. Source: Timothy Eaton Co, Fall/Winter Catalogue, 1917-1918, http://www

17. Changes in hockey technology !
Hockey Arenas
Image source: Image source:
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.
Text source:
See also The Revolutionary Indoor Rinks at

18. Nine Thousand Witnessed Successful Opening of Artificial Ice Rink MANY INNOVATION
Good View of Play Obtainable From All Points of Structure -- No Promenade Seats
With the formal opening of the Forum on Saturday night, came a renewed interest in professional hockey in Montreal that far surpassed the expectations of the most enthusiastic promoter or spectator. Never since hockey was first played in Montreal has such a crowd as that of Saturday night witnessed a match, nine thousand passing through the turnstiles of the palatial new quarters for amateur and professional hockey alike. Previous to Saturday night seven thousand spectators was close to a record crowd. The largest attendance that had ever been locally recorded was at a match between Ottawa and Wanderers, played for the Stanley Cup, at the old Westmount arena. That was in the day, when the Stanley Cup, now emblematic of the world's professional hockey championship, was played for by amateurs and has been replaced by the Allan Cup, which is played for under the rules of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association.
In that match just over seven thousand passed through the entrances of the arena. The crowding was so great that doors were broken down and spectators became almost frantic in their efforts to gain admission, and were forced to climb out on the rafters to get a view of the play. On Saturday night more than two thousand more persons passed through the doors of the Forum and no complaints were made of discomfort, while a good view of the play was obtainable from every portion of the enclosure. True there was slight congestion at the left side of the entrance, when the crowds poured into the rink just before the scheduled time for the game to start. This was accounted for by the crowd jamming against the turnstiles, something new in local rinks, which caused a block that was soon overcome when extra attendants were whipped into service and the turnstiles removed so that the tickets were taken in hand. With the congestion at the entrance quickly overcome the crowd was well seated, when the players took the ice to start the encounter that was to mark the opening of the local hockey season and to inaugurate the new Forum artificial ice rink, which ac- cording to many who have attended games in all of the other arenas in Canada, surpasses the best of them.
Continued...

19. Artificial Ice Rink continued...
GREAT CREDIT DUE.
The opening reflected great credit not only on the directors of the Forum Company, but on the management as the work of fitting the rink for Saturday night's game was practically completed within four days. The company had until Wednesday, December 3, to have the Forum completed for hockey and not until last Wednesday morning did the management know that the building would be required for the opening of the season, Saturday night. Extra men were put at work and although there was an appearance of newness and the outer part of the building in an unfinished state, nothing had been overlooked for the comfort of the spectators in the rink.
A more up-to-date building for sporting events could hardly be imagined. The seats are well placed, with sufficient distance between them to afford comfort rather than crowding the occupants, while one of the pleasing features to those who occupied seats in the boxes and the lower reserved sections was that there were no promenade seats disposed of. With the absence of promenade seats the boxes are much more accessible, while their occupants are not subjected to having their view obstructed by those who occupy promenade seats standing when a rush is made down the ice. This arrangement also eliminates discomfort to the players, who have been frequently ragged and aggravated until they would lose their tempers, which results in arguments between spectators and players
Source: ARCHIVED - Backcheck: a Hockey Retrospective

20. Changes in other technologies: Railways!
The First International Ice Hockey Game was in 1886!
The Grand Trunk Railway run between Montreal and Burlington was what allowed the first international game to happen!
Read more at the source::  
Detail of the Chicago and Grand Trunk Railway 1887 
Image source: 
Railway Lines had their own teams too!
"Hockey and the Railways have a strong connection and have played an important part in uniting Canada. From the famous locomotive works in Stratford, Kingston and Montreal, to the Railway Hubs in Manitoba and the Maritimes, as well as the numerous small towns that sprouted up along the railway tracks, many railroaders donned their skates to play hockey for their local teams."
Read more at Hockey Players on the Railway at:  

21. Special Trains "Chilliwack and the Vancouver Millionaires
In March 1915, the Stanley Cup championship hockey series was played in Vancouver, at Denman Arena, between the Pacific Coast Hockey Association’s Vancouver Millionaires and the National Hockey Association’s Ottawa Senators.
A special British Columbia Electric Railway train, bound for the first game in the series on March 22, 1915, left from Chilliwack at 5:00 PM. The train stopped at all points along the Fraser Valley line and a roundtrip single fare cost 50 cents."
Read more at Stanley Cup Hockey History at history.html
World Championship Hockey Ad, Chilliwack Progress, March 18, 1915, page 3
Image source:
Used with permission of the Chilliwack Museum and Archives.

22. “Support and Substitution”: Women’s Roles during World War I
Canadian women were referred to as "Dependables", because they could be relied upon to take up jobs at home so that men could be freed up to fight overseas.
Women in England typically trained to work in the munitions factories, so they could be ready to help on the production lines there. Canadian women joined them, and also worked on the land, as a kind of "land army" on farmettes to help provide food and free up more men.
No type of work was seen as too hard for women, even mining and quarrying. And if they were unable to work in more difficult and strenuous jobs, they could also "substitute" for other women in the home, to free them to take to the factories.
Source:     
JPEG rights: Copyright, public domain
Larger version at
Note: McMaster University owns the rights to the archival copy of the digital image in TIFF format.

23. Women and War
"This is a propaganda poster that was directed towards the women of Canada during World War I. This poster sends a very strong message to women, urging them to give their husbands and sons permission to join the war effort. For much of the war it was against the law in Canada for a married man to enlist without the written permission of their spouse. Many women did refuse to give their husbands permission to enlist. In response these types of posters tried to make Canadian women feel guilty for not offering their men to the war effort. This type of propaganda was common during World War I because of the almost instant respect and honor that a soldier and his family gained by going off to war. Women were often seen walking through the streets trying to encourage all able bodied men to enlist. Many Canadians still saw war as a glorious and heroic event."
Source: Queen's University Archives: An archival look at World War 1: Women and the War
Text and photo used with permission from Queen's University Archives

24. Women and War
Women examine 40 m.m. anti-aircraft shells
Credit:: National Film Board of Canada & Library and Archives Canada
Reference No.: MIKAN
Source:
by Flickr user BiblioArchives / LibraryArchives under CC BY 2.0
There were various "kinds of contributions made by Canadian women during World War I. Almost everyone in Canada was involved with the war effort in some way. Women made things like pillows, sheets, flannel shirts, socks, cholera belts wristlets, balaclavas, and scarves. Many Canadian women tried to do more but were discouraged by their social status and by rules established by the Canadian government. For example, women in Toronto tried to form the "Women's Home Guard" (a group of women to be trained as soldiers to protect Canada's homefront and free up men in the official "Home Guard" for overseas duty) but it failed because of strong opposition within Canada. Canadian women did form the "Suffragists' War Auxiliary", designed to provide women to do the jobs of men to free them up for overseas duty. Over 30,000 women worked in munitions factories, more than 5,000 were employed in the civil service, thousands more worked in banks, offices, factories, and on farms, while over 1000 women were employed by the Royal Air Force (e.g., motor transport work, mechanical work, and as ambulance drivers)."
Text source: Queen's University Archives: An archival look at World War 1: Women and the War
Text used with permission from Queen's University Archives

25. Women's Hockey and a time to vote !
Women's hockey players predate women voters!   
"You may be surprised to learn that girls and hockey go back over 100 years. Around 1890, Lady Isobel Stanley, daughter of Canada's Governor General at the time, was one of the first females to be photographed playing hockey. She wore a long white dress when she played "shinny" with other ladies on the ice rink beside Government House in Ottawa."  
Source: 
Earliest known photograph of women playing hockey, taken at Rideau Hall, Ottawa, circa Isobel Stanley, Lord Stanley's daughter, is wearing white
Source: Proud past, bright future : one hundred years of Canadian women's hockey
Brian McFarlane -- Toronto : Stoddart, xvii, 206 p. : ill., ports. ; 20 x 27 cm. -- ISBN P. 6 © Public Domain nlc-5953

26. Women's Hockey and a time to vote !
Women's hockey players predate women voters!   
"Women in Canada did not always have the same electoral rights as men. They won the vote through their tireless insistence upon it, expressed through intense and imaginative campaigns. Their efforts were finally rewarded. In 1916, Manitoba was the first province to pass legislation allowing women to vote in provincial elections. This breakthrough paved the way towards new suffrage laws throughout the country, where similar lobbying was going on. Within nine years of Manitoba's suffrage legislation, the federal and most other provincial governments passed laws granting women the vote ( ), with Quebec following suit in 1940."
Text source: 
Queen's University hockey team, Kingston, Ontario, 1917
Source: Library and Archives Canada/Charlotte Whitton collection/PA
© Public Domain nlc-5712
Women playing hockey [ca. 1912]
City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244, Item 475
Image in Public Domain at

27. Hockey and Media
The first dissemination of game scores via electronic means was done by telegraph, starting in the 1890s. In Montreal's Victoria Rink, telegraph lines were installed to send game descriptions to operators in Winnipeg for the Stanley Cup challenge between Montreal and Winnipeg.
On February 8, 1923 the first radio broadcast of an ice hockey game was made. Toronto Star reporter Norman Albert described the third-period action of a game between Midland and North Toronto at Toronto's Arena Gardens.[1] The radio station was CFCA, owned by the newspaper. The station also carried the first NHL radio broadcast on February 14, 1923, with the broadcast of the third-period of a game between the Toronto St. Patricks and the Ottawa Senators at the same arena.[2]
The first complete hockey game carried over the radio was on February 22, on CJCG out of Winnipeg, Manitoba of a game between the Winnipeg Falcons and the Port Arthur Bearcats.[3] The first complete broadcast of a professional game was made on March 14, 1923 on CKCK out of Regina, Saskatchewan and reported by Pete Parker. The game was not an NHL contest, but rather a Western Canada Hockey League featuring the Regina Capitals. The first hockey game televised in Canada was on October 11, of a game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Detroit Red Wings, played at the Montreal Forum.[4]
Source:  
Photographer: Zacatecnik
Source:
View original broadcast at Throwback Thursday: Canada’s First Televised NHL Game at

28. Hockey and Media
"We read, listen to and watch the media. The media have in some cases inspired our collective imagination and in others sought to present more realistic Images. Journalists and sports commentators brought hockey frenzy into each and every home. With their forceful style, they always found the right word and some of their phrases have even become famous. Through the daily newspaper, television and radio, hockey reached every part of the country. Canada's national sport made a sensational debut on the small screen, immediately transforming media coverage and the organization of the NHL alike.” Source:
Print Media  "Starting in the 1870s, Montreal and Toronto's daily newspapers employed sports writers. Until 1920, journalists were only interested in the games themselves and focused in particular on hockey players' rhythm, tactics and style. The result was a lot of description but little depth. The space allotted for sports in daily newspapers was often very limited and included columns of statistics. So it became increasingly popular for journalists to meet with players in the locker room after a game and record their comments. The number of in-depth articles about players and coaches increased, contributing to the development of the personality cult."
"Before radio, the print media were the only avenue to promote the major teams like the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs. In the 1920s, Conn Smythe, who founded Maple Leaf Gardens in 1931, quickly understood how advertising worked and the advantages of the print media."
Read more in source link at
Conn Smyth
Source:
Rights: Copyright Leslie Jones.
Preferred credit: Courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection
Available from Flickr user Boston Public Library under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

29. Hockey and Media
"We read, listen to and watch the media. The media have in some cases inspired our collective imagination and in others sought to present more realistic Images. Journalists and sports commentators brought hockey frenzy into each and every home. With their forceful style, they always found the right word and some of their phrases have even become famous. Through the daily newspaper, television and radio, hockey reached every part of the country. Canada's national sport made a sensational debut on the small screen, immediately transforming media coverage and the organization of the NHL alike."
Source:  
Radio and the Play by Play! "Many of you will no doubt remember the voice of sports commentator Foster Hewitt who gave hockey a place in our collective imagination. His famous phrase, "He shoots, he scores", had such an immediate impact that people became entranced by their radio transmitters.  
With his makeshift mini-gondola, Hewitt quickly revolutionized the broadcast world on March 22, That night, he covered a match between two senior Ontario teams, Parkdale (Toronto), against Kitchener, on CFCA."Source: virtualmuseum.ca/edu/ViewLoitLo.do?method=preview&lang=EN&id=6726
"An innovation called 'radio' was emerging in the 1920's. Audiences were incredulous that they were hearing events taking place at some distance away, some insisting that there must be some trickery involved."
Source:  One on One with Foster Hewitt at
Foster Hewitt
Source:
Public domain in Canada
Original from Archives of Ontario under the item reference code C

30. Hockey Unions
"The 1910–1911 season saw the start of labour unrest in the league, as the league imposed a salary cap. The season almost foundered because of widespread dissatisfaction amongst the players at the salaries on offer, and players' unions were rumored to be on the verge of creation at several points. The players at first intended to form their own league, but the arenas were under the NHA control and surrendered for that season."
Source: 
Image source:  
1909–18 "A new league, the Canadian Hockey Association, was formed late in One of the teams, the All-Montreal Hockey Club, hired Ross as a playing-manager, but the league lasted just a few weeks in 1910 before disbanding. Ross, who scored four goals in four games in the CHA, then signed with the Haileybury Comets of the National Hockey Association (NHA), another newly formed league and the successor to the ECAHA as highest level in Canada. He received $2,700 to play in the 1910 season, which lasted from January to March, playing twelve games for the team and finishing with six goals.[7][12] Before the following season, the NHA imposed a salary cap of $5,000 per team. The players, including Ross, were unhappy as this would result in a pay decrease, and began looking to form their own league without a cap. Ross wrote to the Montreal Herald, stating "all the players want is a fair deal ... The players are not trying to bulldoze the NHA, but we want to know where we get off at." The plans were abandoned when they realized all the suitable arenas would be unavailable as they were owned or leased by the NHA."
Source: 
National Hockey League Players' Association
The National Hockey League Players' Association came later, and went further, but owes its inspiration to these earlier attempts by the players to gain better salaries.  "First organizing efforts (1957–1958):   The first NHLPA was formed in 1957 by hockey players Ted Lindsay of the Detroit Red Wings and Doug Harvey of the Montreal Canadiens after the league had refused to release pension plan financial information. The owners broke the union by trading players involved with the organization or sending them to the minor leagues. After an out-of-court settlement over several players' issues, the players disbanded the organization. Lindsay's struggle and the NHL's union-busting efforts are dramatized in the movie, Net Worth.”
Source:  
Movie suggestion:  

31. Catholic Unions
"Confederation of National Trade Unions (CNTU, or Confédération des syndicats nationaux, CSN) was called the Canadian Catholic Confederation of Labour (CCCL) from its beginnings in 1921 until 1960, when the organization abandoned its religious identity. It was founded by members of the clergy who feared the socialist and anticlerical ideas of the international unions. Confined only to Catholic members but open as well to English-speaking Canadians, the Catholic unions arose in many dioceses in Québec before WWI."  [...]  "The Catholic unions were reorganized at the end of WWI, stressing protection of members' rights and interests as workers. Anxious to unite their forces, they jointly formed the Canadian Catholic Confederation of Labour in 1921 with about members. Membership declined during the 1920s but increased again after 1934, especially after WWII ( members in 1946). Support came primarily from the construction, leatherworking, textile and garment industry workers."
Source:  Canadian Encyclopedia at
"The creation of the Canadian and Catholic Confederation of Labour (CCCL) in 1921, for example, had the effect of virtually removing unions composed of French-speaking Quebecers from the largely English-speaking union movement"
Source:  Political choices and electoral consequences: a study of organized labour ... By Keith Archer at 
Women of Rose Dress on strike during a snow storm in Montreal
Source:
by Flickr user Kheel Center under CC BY 2.0

32. Catholic Unions
"In Québec in the early part of the 20th century, most unionized workers joined the national and international unions in Canada. However, unions affiliated with the Catholic Church began to attract a significant minority of Québec workers during World War I. In 1921 a group of these unions formed the Canadian Catholic Confederation of Labour (CCCL). In their early years the Catholic unions reflected the conservatism of Church doctrines that opposed socialism and materialism in unions and argued for greater cooperation between workers and management.”
Source:   onCanada htmlOriginal source:  "Labor Unions in Canada," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2004   © Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.  © Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Image source same as text at 
Copyright unknown

33. Montreal Maroons versus The Canadiens
"An NHL force to be reckoned with for 14 years, The Montreal Maroons joined the league in , made the playoffs in ten of their 14 seasons and captured the Stanley Cup twice, in 1926 and again in Splitting Montreal’s hockey loyalties along linguistic lines, the Maroons shared the Forum with the Canadiens from 1926 on, making the building the site of some of the NHL’s most exciting moments, both on the ice and in the stands. On March 24th, 1936 the team took part in the longest game in NHL history, an overtime affair ended by Detroit’s Modere Bruneteau in the sixth extra frame. More successful in the win column than on the balance sheet, the Montreal Maroons ceased operations after the season. They played host to their eventual stable mates for the first time on December 10th, 1924 with the visiting Canadiens leaving the Forum on the winning end of a 5-0 shutout. The teams met only once in postseason play with the Habs defeating the defending Stanley Cup champions 2-1 in 1927’s two-game total-goal quarterfinal series."
Source: 
Bruins and Maroons, Boston Garden,
Source: Flickr user Boston Public Library at under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

34. Montreal Shamrocks versus The Canadiens
As the 19th century rolled over into the 20th, the Montreal Shamrocks were the top senior amateur squad in Canada. Founded in 1886 they won the Stanley Cup in both 1899 and 1900, the only two winning campaigns in their final fifteen seasons. Turning pro in , the Shamrocks last year of operation coincided with the National Hockey Association’s inaugural season, and ended with the team sixth in the seven-team loop, one spot ahead of the Canadiens. The Shamrocks played the Canadiens for the first time on February 2nd, 1910, at the Victoria Skating Rink, located a few short blocks from the site of the present-day Bell Centre and ended the evening on the winning end of an 8-3 score The teams never met in postseason play.
Source: 
Source: 

35. Stanley Cup
Originally inscribed the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup, the trophy was donated in 1892 by then Governor General of Canada the Lord Stanley of Preston, as an award for Canada's top-ranking amateur ice hockey club. It was awarded for the first time in 1893 to Montreal HC. In 1915, the two professional ice hockey organizations, the National Hockey Association (NHA) and the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA), reached a gentlemen's agreement in which their respective champions would face each other for the Stanley Cup. After a series of league mergers and folds, the Cup became the de facto championship trophy of the NHL in The Cup later became the de jure NHL championship prize in 1947.
Read more at
"The Stanley Cup is the oldest trophy competed for by professional athletes in North America. Donated by Governor General Lord STANLEY in 1893 for presentation to the amateur hockey champions of Canada, it was first awarded to Montreal AAA ( ). Before professional hockey concentrated the sport in a few large urban centres, the cup was contested under a variety of formats and was captured by such far-flung teams as Winnipeg Victorias ( , ), Ottawa Silver Seven ( , , ), Kenora Thistles ( ), the Vancouver Millionaires ( ), Seattle Metropolitans ( ) and Victoria Cougars ( ).
A professional team (the original OTTAWA SENATORS) first won the cup in 1909 and in 1926 it came under the exclusive control of the NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE. The MONTREAL CANADIENS, with 24 victories as of 1993 (including 5 straight ), have been by far the most successful team in Stanley Cup history, followed by the TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS with 11 wins."
Source and more information at Canadian Encylopedia at
Image source:

36. Stanley Cup cancelled in 1919: Flu epidemic!
"When the NHL launched its second season, bittersweet feelings were sweeping North America. Both Americans and Canadians jubilantly hailed the end of World War I with the Armistice in November 1918; but simultaneously, they grew increasingly apprehensive about an influenza epidemic that already had engulfed Europe and now was spreading from Halifax to Victoria. Little did anyone realize that one of its victims would be the 1919 Stanley Cup playoffs and one of hockey's best players."
Read more and find out what happened at 
"The 1919 Stanley Cup Final ice hockey play-off series to determine the 1919 Stanley Cup champion ended with no champion decided, being suspended after five games had been played due to an outbreak of influenza. It was the only time in the history of the Stanley Cup that it was not awarded due to a no-decision after playoffs were held."
Read more and find out who won the first five games at 
Image source: 

37. Hockey becomes spectator sport:
The Amateur vs. Professional struggle begins
"Slowly, as the sport’s popularity grew, other members of society and regions outside Quebec took up the Montreal version of the game. The sport also developed a strong following of spectators who enjoyed the quick pace of hockey as well as the fans’ proximity to the action. Championships were held to generate greater competition and interest among spectators. In 1892, Lord Stanley of Preston, Governor General of Canada, donated a trophy, which was supposed to reward the top amateur team in Canada. [...]  The immense interest in hockey as a spectator sport forced some changes to the game. Games moved indoors to arenas that could accommodate thousands of spectators. One of the biggest of the rinks was the Victoria Skating Rink located on Drummond Street. Boards were later erected around the ice surface to protect the fans, who paid high sums of money to attend games. Nets were finally introduced to avoid disputed goals at the start of the 1912 season. [...] The large gate receipts that team owners were amassing led players to demand their share."  [...]
"Those who controlled the sport in Canada maintained that hockey should remain purely amateur. The values that amateurism promoted were sportsmanship, fair play, discipline and respect for authority. These were necessary values for young men to learn if they were to become good citizens of the dominion. If hockey were to be professional, it was believed that these values would be lost. However, amateurism was threatened by many factors. Professionalism was on the rise in the United States and was attracting the top Canadian players. In Canada, team owners were often entrepreneurs who used hockey to enhance their company’s prestige. They were often desperate to have winning teams and resorted to paying some players against league rules. With the United States offering large salaries to players, and the under-the-table contracts that already existed in Canada, many of Canada’s best players were lured away from their teams.12 Eventually, professional leagues dominated Canadian hockey, as amateur teams could no longer compete. Since 1909, the Stanley Cup has been the property of professional teams."
Source:  
The 1901 club, CAHL (left trophy) and Ottawa (right shield) champions. The club wore the same 'O' logo as the Ottawa Football Club that season.
Source:  &
Source: 
Group picture of the 1905 Ottawa "Silver Seven", Stanley Cup champions
Source: 

38. Montreal Forum... Whose idea was it anyway?
"The idea to build the Forum in 1923 is credited to Sir Edward Beattie, president of the Canadian Pacific railway. At the suggestion of Senator Donat Raymond, William Northey developed a plan for a 12,500 seat capacity rink. Plans were scaled back for financial reasons to a rink of 9,300 seats. Even at the reduced size, the rink could not immediately find financing. The Forum would eventually be financed by H. L. Timmins. The site selected was the site of a roller skating rink named the Forum, and the name was kept. The site had previously been the site of an outdoor ice hockey rink, used by Frank and Lester Patrick, Art Ross and Russell Bowie as youths."
"The Montreal Forum (French: Le Forum de Montreal) was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by Sporting News,it was home of the National Hockey League's Montreal Maroons from 1924 to 1938 and the Montreal Canadiens from 1926 to The Forum was built by the Canadian Arena Company in 159 days."
Source:  
Designed by architect John S. Archibald, in 1924 the Montreal Forum occupied an area measuring 295 feet by 350 feet. Including standing room, its capacity was 10,000 spectators.  © Photos and Archives - CHC.  
Begun in the late spring of 1924, the construction work was completed in record time of 159 days by Atlas Construction.  © Photos and Archives - CHC.
Above texts and more info at 
Image Source:  

39. The Forum is opened 1924 by an industrialist.
"The Forum opened on November 29, 1924 at a total cost of $1,500,000 ($19.3 million in 2011 dollars) with an original seating capacity of 9,300. It underwent two renovations, in 1949 and 1968. When the Forum closed in 1996 it had a capacity of 17,959, which included approximately 1,600 in standing room. [...]
The idea to build the Forum in 1923 is credited to Sir Edward Beattie, president of the Canadian Pacific railway. [...] The Forum would eventually be financed by H. L. Timmins.
Source: 
"The Montreal Forum is probably the world's, most famous hockey arena and certainly one of the most renowned performance venues in North America.     The Original 9,300-seat Forum was designed by architect John S. Archibald and built at a cost of $1.5 million. The doors were opened offically on November 29th,  Initially the home of the Montreal Maroons, the Forum became the permanent home of the Montreal Canadiens in 1926."
Source and chronology at 
Source: 
Founding    
"1912–13:   In November 1909, industrialist Ambrose O'Brien of Renfrew, Ontario, was in Montreal to purchase supplies for a railway contract. At the request of the Renfrew Creamery Kings hockey team, he attended the Eastern Canada Hockey Association (ECHA) meetings, held at the Windsor Hotel, to represent Renfrew in its application to join the league. At the meeting, the ECHA team owners rejected Renfrew's application. Later that day the ECHA's owners chose to disband their league and form the Canadian Hockey Association (CHA) in a bid to exclude the Montreal Wanderers, who had upset the other owners when they moved into a smaller arena that would reduce the visiting team's share of gate receipts. In the lobby of the hotel, O'Brien met Jimmy Gardner, manager of the Wanderers, and discussed forming a new league which would include Renfrew, the Wanderers, and two teams that O'Brien owned in the Ontario mining towns of Cobalt and Haileybury. Gardner suggested that O'Brien start a team of francophone players based in Montreal, forming a rivalry with the Wanderers. As a result, the National Hockey Association (NHA) was founded on December 2, 1909, and Les Canadiens were created two days later, initially financed by O'Brien with the intent of transferring ownership to francophone sportsmen in Montreal as soon as possible. At the time, francophone teams were not considered to be good enough to play with the top anglophone teams: the Montreal Gazette warned potential fans of the new team not to get too excited, as "French-Canadian players of class are not numerous". The Canadiens stocked their team with francophone stars including Newsy Lalonde, Georges Poulin and Didier Pitre. Before being allowed to play, Pitre had to resolve a lawsuit with the Montreal Nationals, to whom he was already under contract."
Source: