The 1924–25 NHL season was the eighth

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

. The NHL added two teams this season, a second team in Montreal, the

Montreal Maroons The Montreal Maroons (officially the Montreal Professional Hockey Club) were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL). They played in the NHL from 1924 to 1938, winning the Stanley Cup in 1926 and 1935. They were the la ...

and the first U.S. team, the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...

. Six teams each played 30 games. The NHL regular-season champion

Hamilton Tigers The Hamilton Tigers were a professional ice hockey team based in Hamilton, Ontario. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1920 to 1925. The Tigers were formed by the sale of the Quebec Bulldogs NHL franchise to Hamilton intere ...

did not participate in the playoffs, as their players demanded to their owner, Percy Thompson, that they would not participate in the NHL championship series unless they received an additional $200 each for the extra six games played that year. Under their contracts, the Tigers players were to receive the same amount of money no matter how many games they played from December 1, 1924, to March 31, 1925 (even though the season started on November 29, 1924). NHL President

Frank Calder Frank Sellick Calder (November 17, 1877 – February 4, 1943) was a British-born Canadian ice hockey executive, journalist, and athlete. Calder was the first president of the National Hockey League (NHL), from 1917 until his death in 1943. He ...

was not amused, stating that the players would be fined or suspended if they did not play in the final series, but the players stated that they would rather retire than advantage be taken of them. The day of the final game of the Semi-Final, Tiger

Shorty Green Wilfred Thomas "Shorty" Green (July 17, 1896 – April 19, 1960) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played four seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Hamilton Tigers and New York Americans between 1923 and 1927. As ...

met with Calder to try to reach an agreement, but to no avail. The players were all suspended and fined $200 each, therefore eliminating themselves from the playoffs. Because of the suspension, the semi-final playoff series between Montreal and Toronto became the NHL championship series. The

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

won the series and faced off against the

Victoria Cougars The Victoria Cougars were a major league professional ice hockey team that played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) from 1911 to 1924 under various names, and (after the PCHA's merger with the Western Canada Hockey League) in the W ...

of the

Western Canada Hockey League The Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL), founded in 1921, was a major professional ice hockey league originally based in the prairies of Canada. It was renamed the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 1925 and disbanded in 1926. The WCHL's Victoria C ...

(WCHL) for the

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

. Victoria won the series, the last non-NHL team to win the Cup.

League business

Prior to the start of this hockey season, the

Pacific Coast Hockey Association The Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) was a professional 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 (WCHL). The PCHA was cons ...

folded and two of its teams, the

Vancouver Maroons The Vancouver Millionaires (later known as the Vancouver Maroons) were a professional ice hockey team that competed in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and the Western Canada Hockey League between 1911 and 1926. Based in Vancouver, British Col ...

and

, joined the

. This meant that after three seasons of having three leagues compete for the Stanley Cup, there were once again only two. At the November 1924 NHL meeting, the NHL approved two new franchises, including its first franchise in the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

. Charles Adams of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

was granted a franchise. The NHL also granted a second franchise for

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

to James Strachan and Donat Raymond. Applications from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

and

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

were shelved. A new trophy was added for the 1924–25 NHL season. The original

Lady Byng Trophy The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, formerly known as the Lady Byng Trophy, is presented each year to the National Hockey League "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of ...

was donated by Lady Byng, wife of

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Viscount Byng of Vimy A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

, to be handed out to the player who showed the best sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with performance in play. She presented it to

Frank Nighbor Julius Francis Joseph "Pembroke Peach" Nighbor (January 26, 1893 – April 13, 1966) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played primarily for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey Association (NHA) and National Hockey Leagu ...

of the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

Regular season

This was the first season for the

and

, the Bruins becoming the first

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

NHL team. It was also the last season for the

, which would dissolve at season's end. The number of games played per team was increased from 24 to 30. A new arena, the

Montreal Forum Montreal Forum (french: Le Forum de Montréal) is a historic building located facing Cabot Square in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by ''Sporting News'', it was an indoor arena which served as the h ...

, was built to house the Maroons. However, the Montreal Canadiens played in it first. Because the Canadiens' home rink,

Mount Royal Arena The Mount Royal Arena was an indoor arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada at the corner of Mount Royal and St. Urbain Street.Mouton(1987), p. 111 It was home of the National Hockey League (NHL) Montreal Canadiens from 1920 to 1926, before movi ...

, couldn't produce ice, the November 29th home opener against the Toronto St. Patricks was moved to the Forum. The Canadiens beat the St. Patricks 7–1, before 9,000 fans. A NHL attendance record of 11,000 was set on December 27, when the Maroons hosted the Canadiens. The Maroons actually had no official nickname their first season. However, fans took to the deep crimson uniforms they wore and called them the Maroons, and the team leaned on two former Ottawa Senators,

Punch Broadbent Harold Lawton "Harry" "Punch" Broadbent, MM (July 13, 1892 – March 6, 1971) was a Canadian ice hockey player. Broadbent played for the Ottawa Senators, Montreal Maroons and the New York Americans in the National Hockey Association (NHA) and Nat ...

and

Clint Benedict Clinton Stevenson "Praying Benny" Benedict (September 26, 1892 – November 12, 1976) was a Canadian professional lacrosse goalie, ice hockey goaltender who played for the Ottawa Senators and the Montreal Maroons. He played on four Stanley Cup-win ...

they picked up from Ottawa before the season but still managed only fifth place. Broadbent scored a pair of goals in the Maroons' first ever victory, a 3–1 victory over Ottawa at the Forum in Montreal. Broadbent scored five goals in a game on January 7 as Montreal defeated the Tigers 6–2 in the Abso-Pure rink in Hamilton. On December 17, goaltenders Jake Forbes of Hamilton and

Alex Connell Alexander "The Ottawa Fireman" Connell (February 8, 1902 — May 10, 1958) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Falcons, New York Americans and Montreal Maroons teams in the National Hock ...

of Ottawa engaged in the first ever scoreless tie in a regular season game in NHL history. Just before the end of the season, the Bruins, which finished in last place, had a modest winning streak. First, they beat the Montreal Canadiens 3–2 March 3. Normand Shay scored the winning goal on a two on one break at 16:39 of the third period as

Jimmy Herbert James William "Sailor" Herbert (also known as Herberts) (October 31, 1897 - December 5, 1968) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and referee. Herbert played the centre forward position for six seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) ...

shot and then Shay pounced on the rebound and put it by

Georges Vezina Georges may refer to: Places * Georges River, New South Wales, Australia * Georges Quay (Dublin) *Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania Other uses *Georges (name) * ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas * "Georges" (song), a 19 ...

. The game was rough and referee Jerry Laflamme meted out quite a few penalties, including four minors to

Lionel Hitchman Frederick Lionel Hitchman (November 3, 1901 – January 12, 1969) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played twelve seasons in the National Hockey League for the Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins. Forming one of the greatest def ...

of Boston.

Howie Morenz Howard William Morenz (September 21, 1902 – March 8, 1937) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Beginning in 1923, he played centre for three National Hockey League (NHL) teams: the Montreal Canadiens (in two stints), the Chicago Blac ...

starred in a losing cause with two goals. The Bruins then defeated the league-leading Hamilton Tigers 2–0 in their next game as Doc Stewart played well in goal.

Final standings

Playoffs

With an increase in the number of NHL teams, the NHL changed its playoff format by having the second and third place teams play a two-game ''total goals'' series to see who played the number one seed for the NHL championship. The NHL champion would go on to play the winner of the

for the

. As it happened, the Tigers, the first-place team went on strike, and the winner of the series between the second and third place teams, Montreal, became the NHL champion and played for the Cup. This marked the last time until

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

that the playoffs were played entirely in Canada.

NHL Championship

The third seed Montreal Canadiens played against the second seed Toronto St. Patricks in a total goals series. The winner of that series was to go on and play the first seed team, the

. But it was not to happen that way. During the total goals series, the Hamilton players demanded $200 each for the extra six games played during the regular season and the league threatened to suspend the players and the team. Last-ditch efforts to reach a compromise failed and the Tigers were suspended. It was suggested that the Ottawa Senators be included in the playoffs, but

Charlie Querrie Charles Laurens Querrie (July 25, 1877 – April 5, 1950) was the first General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, at the time called the Toronto Arenas (1917–20) and the Toronto St. Patricks (1920–27). Querrie was born in Markham, Ontario ...

and

Leo Dandurand Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * '' Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts a ...

cited a fourth-place finish didn't qualify Ottawa a playoff berth and it was decided that Montreal and Toronto played for the league title. NHL president

announced that the Canadiens played home games at the Forum, but

said that they would be played at Mount Royal Arena unless it were necessary to move to the Forum, citing home games were home games, and the Canadiens played better in front of their own fans. Calder backed down from his stand. Montreal won the series against Toronto and earned the right to play for the Stanley Cup.

Stanley Cup Finals

In the

, the third place

won its league championship faced the Montreal Canadiens for the Stanley Cup. The series was played in Patrick Arena in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, except for game two, which was played at

Denman Arena Denman Arena was an indoor arena located in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. The arena was located at 1805 West Georgia Street at the northwest corner with Denman Street. It opened in December 1911 and was destroyed by fire in 1936. Its pri ...

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

to gather greater fan support and more income. Victoria beat Montreal three games to one, out-scoring the Canadiens 16 to 8. Victoria was the first (and only to date) non-NHL team to win the Stanley Cup since the NHL's founding.

NHL Playoff scoring leader

''Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points''

Awards

The NHL introduced its second individual award, the Lady Byng Trophy, named after its donor, Lady Byng, wife of Canada's Governor-General. It is awarded to Frank Nighbor for excellence, gentlemanly play and sportsmanship. Note: The Prince of Wales Trophy was not in use during this season. The Canadiens were engraved onto the Trophy in 1925–26.

Player statistics

Scoring leaders

''Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points'' Source: NHL.

Leading goaltenders

''GP = Games Played, GA = Goals Against, SO =

Shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

s, GAA =

Goals Against Average Goals against average (GAA) also known as "average goals against" or "AGA" is a statistic used in field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, and water polo that is the mean of goals allowed per game by a goaltender or goalkeeper (depending on s ...

Coaches

*Boston Bruins:

Art Ross Arthur Howe Ross (January 13, 1885 – August 5, 1964) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player 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 ...

*Hamilton Tigers: Jimmy Gardner *Montreal Canadiens:

*Montreal Maroons:

Cecil Hart Cecil Mordecai Hart (November 28, 1883 – July 16, 1940) was a head coach of the Montreal Canadiens. Biography Cecil Hart was Jewish, a direct descendant of Aaron Hart who was Canada's first Jewish settler, and was born in Bedford, Queb ...

*Ottawa Senators: Pete Green *Toronto St. Patricks: Eddie Powers

Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1924–25 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs): *

, Ottawa Senators *

Carson Cooper Carson Eric "Shovel Shot" Cooper (July 17, 1897 – July 4, 1955) was a Canadian ice hockey player who played 8 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Cougars and Detroit Red Wi ...

, Boston Bruins *

Hap Day Clarence Henry "Happy" Day (June 14, 1901 – February 17, 1990), later known as Hap Day, was a Canadian professional hockey player who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Americans. Day enjoye ...

, Toronto St. Patricks * Charles Dinsmore, Montreal Maroons *

, Boston Bruins *

Bert McCaffrey John Albert McCaffrey (April 12, 1893 — April 15, 1955) was a Canadian ice hockey defenceman who played seven seasons in the National Hockey League for the Toronto St. Pats, Toronto Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Pirates and Montreal Canadiens. McCa ...

, Toronto St. Patricks *

Alex Smith Alexander Douglas Smith (born May 7, 1984) is an American former quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. He played college football at Utah, where he received first-team All-American honors and won the 20 ...

, Ottawa Senators *

Hooley Smith Reginald Joseph "Hooley" Smith (January 7, 1903 – August 24, 1963) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Ottawa Senators, Montreal Maroons, Boston Bruins and New York Americans. He won the Stanley Cup twice, with ...

, Ottawa Senators

Last games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1924–25 (listed with their last team):

Free agency

Transactions

References

* * * * * * ;Notes

External links

Hockey DatabaseNHL.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:1924-25 NHL season

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

League business

Regular season

Final standings

Playoffs

NHL Championship

Stanley Cup Finals

NHL Playoff scoring leader

Awards

Player statistics

Scoring leaders

Leading goaltenders

Coaches

Debuts

Last games

Free agency

Transactions

See also

References

External links