Hockey Manitoba is the governing body of amateur

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

in the province of

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, Canada. Hockey Manitoba was founded in 1914 as the ''Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association'' and is a branch affiliate of

Hockey Canada Hockey Canada (which merged with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association in 1994) is the national governing body of ice hockey and ice sledge hockey in Canada. It is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation and controls the majority ...

. As part of its mandate, Hockey Manitoba oversees junior and senior hockey (excluding

major junior Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

minor hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from cla ...

(through its ten regional branches), provincial championships, officiating programs, and skill development programs for coaches and players, in conjunction with member leagues and minor hockey associations.

History

Formation and early years

Members of the Winnipeg Amateur Hockey League met on June 23, 1914, agreed to form a provisional Manitoba Hockey Commission to oversee hockey in Manitoba, and sought to merge into a national commission when such a body became established. The suggestion to form a governing body for hockey in Canada was made by Claude C. Robinson, the trustee for the

Allan Cup The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the national senior amateur men's ice hockey champions of Canada. It was donated by Sir Montagu Allan of Ravenscrag, Montreal, and has been competed for since 1909. The current champions are the ...

in Western Canada, and was echoed by similar calls from ''

The Winnipeg Tribune ''The Winnipeg Tribune'' was a metropolitan daily newspaper serving Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada from January 28, 1890 to August 27, 1980. The paper was founded by R.L. Richardson and D.L. McIntyre who acquired the press and premises of the old '' ...

'' and the ''

Winnipeg Free Press The ''Winnipeg Free Press'' (or WFP; founded as the ''Manitoba Free Press'') is a daily (excluding Sunday) broadsheet newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It provides coverage of local, provincial, national, and international news, as well as ...

''. During the 1914 Allan Cup playoffs earlier in the year, the Winnipeg Amateur Hockey League and Allan Cup trustees debated the eligibility of players based on whether leagues were

senior ice hockey Senior hockey refers to amateur or semi-professional ice hockey competition. There are no age restrictions for Senior players, who typically consist of those whose Junior eligibility has expired. Senior hockey leagues operate under the jurisdict ...

, or a lower level of intermediate hockey, and struggled without an authoritative national body to classify leagues. On July 7, 1914, the Manitoba Hockey Commission was founded, with Winnipeg Amateur Hockey League executives

W. F. Taylor William Franklin Taylor (May 16, 1877April 12, 1945) was a Canadian ice hockey administrator. He was the founding president of both the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) and the Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association in 1914, and also s ...

and

Fred Marples Frederick Paul Henry Marples (January 27, 1885January 17, 1945) was a Canadian sports executive in ice hockey and athletics. He was president of the Winnipeg Monarchs team which won Winnipeg Amateur Hockey League championships in 1914 and 191 ...

elected as the first president and secretary-treasurer respectively. Marples sent letters to other clubs and leagues in Canada and advocated for establishment of the national commission. In November 1914, the commission laid plans for a national meeting, sought for the Allan Cup to be recognized as the championship trophy for amateur hockey in Canada, and that the national commission be the authority to decide on which leagues and players were eligible. The

Canadian Amateur Hockey Association The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA; french: Association canadienne de hockey amateur) was the national governing body of amateur ice hockey in Canada from 1914 until 1994, when it merged with Hockey Canada. Its jurisdiction include ...

(CAHA) was founded on December 4, 1914, with Taylor elected as its first president, and the Allan Cup was chosen to represent the CAHA championship. Taylor presided over the first annual meeting of the Manitoba Hockey Commission on December 26, 1914, which saw its named changed to become the Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association (MAHA) to align with the CAHA. The MAHA ratified the player registration rules put in place by the CAHA to maintain amateurism and exclude professionals, and sought to expand within Manitoba by recruiting existing leagues to join. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the MAHA joined other athletic organizations in Manitoba to form an Athletic Patriotic Committee to support the war effort in Canada, and arranged sporting events for patriotic fundraising. Taylor was re-elected president of the MAHA in November 1915 and continued hockey in Manitoba to support the patriotic fund. Winnipegfalcons

The

Winnipeg Falcons The Winnipeg Falcons were a senior men's amateur ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Winnipeg Falcons won the 1920 Allan Cup. That team went on to represent Canada in the Ice hockey at the 1920 Summer Olympics, 1920 Olympic games he ...

won the 1920 Allan Cup and were chosen to represent Canada in

ice hockey at the 1920 Summer Olympics Ice hockey was introduced to the Olympic Games at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. The tournament also served as the first World Championships. The matches were played between April 23 and April 29, 1920. Canada, represented by the Winnipeg ...

in Belgium. The Falconsbecame the first gold medalists in ice hockey at the Olympic Games, and were feted with a banquet arranged by the MAHA upon the team's return to Winnipeg. In the early years of the MAHA, schedules for the Manitoba Senior Hockey League were handled by the operators of the rinks. After disagreements on schedules for the 1922–23 season, president

Toby Sexsmith William Raymond "Toby" Sexsmith (August 23, 1885August 23, 1943) was a Canadian politician and ice hockey administrator. He was elected three times as a Progressive Conservative Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba representin ...

reserved the right for the MAHA to decide on which teams would participate in the league after

Winnipeg Amphitheatre Shea's Amphitheatre, also known as the Winnipeg Amphitheatre, was an indoor arena located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It seated 6,000 spectators. Constructed between 1908-1909 for horse shows, the Amphitheatre was also used as an indoor ice ...

ownership was unable to get an agreement on a league schedule.

1927 to 1934

E. A. Gilroy was elected president in 1927. A letter by him was published in the ''Winnipeg Free Press'', in which he reiterated his commitment to expanding senior ice hockey in Manitoba, and restoring it to the prominence it had before rosters were depleted by professional teams. He was open to university teams participating in the Manitoba Senior Hockey League, wanted to work with owners of the Winnipeg Amphitheatre on schedules, and address concerns of attendance figures and travel costs to games outside of Winnipeg. He also sought to keep teams based in the MAHA as opposed to playing in neighbouring districts such as the

Thunder Bay Amateur Hockey Association Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...

The 1927–28 season had the greatest number of hockey teams in Manitoba at the time, with the most growth in rural areas. Gilroy advocated for support of leagues based in rural areas to grow interest in the game, and since those teams could not raise funds to travel long distances to play in larger cities. He wanted to shorten the provincial playoffs system which extended play into poor ice conditions later in the season. As growth increased, he sought to educate teams and players in Manitoba that registration requirements including transfers between clubs would be enforced in the 1928–29 season, and published letters in newspapers advising of changes to consistent with new amateur regulations across Canada. The MAHA implemented upper and lower divisions in the Manitoba Senior Hockey League for the 1929–30 season, and received more applications from teams in Winnipeg than ice availability could support. The MAHA arranged for all of the upper division teams to play in Winnipeg to reduce travel costs, and expanded the lower division with teams from

Brandon Brandon may refer to: Names and people *Brandon (given name), a male given name *Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins Places Australia *Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales *Brandon, Q ...

, Elkhorn, Souris, and Virden. The MAHA faced a revolt from teams in the Manitoba Senior Hockey League before the 1932–33 season, when the

Winnipeg Hockey Club The Winnipeg Hockey Club (also known as the Winnipeg Winnipegs) were a former amateur senior-level men's amateur ice hockey team in Winnipeg, Manitoba founded in 1890. After the Winnipegs won the 1931 Allan Cup, they represented the Canada men's ...

, the

and the Selkirk Hockey Club withdrew and formed a commercial league in protest of the

Brandon Wheat City Hockey Club The Wheat City Hockey Club (also known as Brandon Wheat Cities) was an early amateur ice hockey club in Brandon, Manitoba. The club fielded senior-level, junior and intermediate teams from 1898. The club fielded teams in the Manitoba & Northwestern ...

being admitted. Gilroy announced that any player taking part in the new commercial league would be suspended from the MAHA, and be ineligible for the Allan Cup playoffs. After a week of negotiations, an agreement was reached where the Winnipeg Monarchs and Winnipeg Hockey Club merged, and the Manitoba Senior Hockey League operated with four teams including Brandon. Gilroy retired as president in 1934, after his tenure oversaw continued growth of the association and improvement of finances.

1945 to 1950

Jimmy Dunn served as president from 1945 to 1950. He was immediately faced with an ultimatum from the north division teams of the

Manitoba Junior Hockey League The Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The MJHL consists of thirteen teams all based ...

(MJHL) who threatened to withdraw from the MAHA unless several demands were met. The teams felt that the south division was given preferential treatment, and sought to equally share games at the larger Winnipeg Amphitheatre and the profits from

gate receipts Gate receipts, or simply "gate", is the sum of money taken at a sporting venue for the sale of tickets. Traditionally, gate receipts were largely or entirely taken in cash. Today, many sporting venues will operate a season ticket scheme, which wil ...

. The north division complained about the lack of available ice time for practices and the deplorable dressing room conditions at the

Olympic Rink Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

, and felt that the MAHA had an obligation to make the upgrades if the rink would not. ''The Winnipeg Tribune'' reported that the concerns had developed over years of mismanagement and that Dunn committed the MAHA to discussing issues openly instead of closed-door meetings without the local press invited. After negotiations broke down, three junior teams withdrew and the MJHL operated with five teams in one division. Despite the loss of teams, MAHA registrations grew by more than 600 players and profits increased six fold. The stronger MJHL teams — the Winnipeg Rangers,

Winnipeg Monarchs Winnipeg Monarchs is a name used by several Canadian ice hockey teams in Winnipeg, Manitoba and may refer to: *Winnipeg Monarchs (senior), a defunct ice hockey team, 1935 World Ice Hockey Champions *Winnipeg Monarchs (MJHL) The Winnipeg Monarch ...

Brandon Wheat Kings The Brandon Wheat Kings are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Brandon, Manitoba. They are members of the Western Hockey League (WHL) since joining the league in the 1967–68 season. Previously, they played in the Manitoba Junior Hoc ...

and Portage Terriers — were sponsored by

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 ...

clubs and wanted to form an "A" division and play all games at the Winnipeg Amphitheatre for the 1946–47 season, and relegate all other teams to the "B" division at the Olympic Rink. The four teams were also opposed to any other teams being added to their division. ''The Winnipeg Tribune'' felt that these teams had pursued their own selfish interests with disregard for the general welfare of the league, and that creating the division would perpetuate the previous issues unless Dunn could negotiate a "minor miracle". Dunn and the MAHA executive chose to include the St. James Orioles as a fifth team in the "A" division after being convinced that the team was soundly operated and would be able to compete. The MAHA implemented a 10-minute overtime period for all tied games as of the 1946–47 season. During the same season, the MAHA executive encouraged construction of community rinks and targeted rural

regions of Manitoba This is a list of regions in Manitoba, Canada, including Manitoba's geographic regions, economic regions, and Regional Health Authorities of Manitoba, health regions. These regions do not reflect the organization of local government in Manitoba. T ...

for growth. The MAHA also divided the juvenile, midget and bantam age groups of minor hockey into tiers, to give teams based in rural Manitoba an opportunity to enter the provincial playoffs at a lower calibre than urban teams. The MAHA established a "C" division of the MJHL to play at the

and retain more players who had graduated from minor hockey. Dunn felt that the 1947–48 season had been the most successful yet, praised rural communities for building rinks, and sought more rural leagues to operate for the whole season instead of forming a team solely for the provincial playoffs. By the 1949–50 season, registrations with the MAHA had grown to exceed 4,000 players and included 125 teams outside of Winnipeg for the intermediate and minor hockey playoffs. Grants by the MAHA for the development of

minor ice hockey Minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body contact, vary from cla ...

in Manitoba grew from C$1,525 in 1946, to more than $6,000 by the end of the 1949–50 season. The ''Winnipeg Free Press'' wrote that Dunn's presidency coincided with the MAHA's biggest growth and best financial situation that was driven by profits from the

junior ice hockey Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

playoffs.

1958 to 1963

Earl Dawson Earl Phillip Dawson (December 17, 1925March 28, 1987) was a Canadian ice hockey administrator, politician and civil servant. He rose to prominence in Canadian hockey when he served as president of the Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association from 1 ...

was elected president in 1958. The MAHA had its greatest registration to date and sought to reimburse teams in rural Manitoba for the cost of developing players lost to the MJHL who in turn profited by selling players to professional teams. Dawson planned to promote and raise funds for minor ice hockey with a Minor Hockey Week in January 1959. Five years later, the MAHA had grown to be the country's third largest provincial association by registration and spent more per capita to develop minor ice hockey than other provinces in Canada. Journalist Laurie Artiss stated that the Rural Minor Hockey Council established by Dawson had succeeded in reversing the decline of hockey in rural Manitoba by enforcing geographical limits on where the bigger cities could claim players, which resulted in players staying in smaller towns and gave more children a chance to play locally. Dawson and the MAHA sought a better financial arrangement with the Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association to recuperate the costs of developing minor hockey players and on-ice officials in

Flin Flon Flin Flon (pop. 5,185 in 2016 census; 4,982 in Manitoba and 203 in Saskatchewan) is a mining city, located on a correction line on the border of the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with the majority of the city located within M ...

, after the

Flin Flon Bombers The Flin Flon Bombers are a Canadian junior ice hockey team in Flin Flon, a city located on the Manitoba-Saskatchewan provincial border. The Bombers are members of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL), which is a member of the Canadian ...

affiliated with the

Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. Open to North American-born players 20 years of ...

(SJHL) instead of the MJHL. When the Brandon Wheat Kings also wanted to play in the SJHL, the MAHA renogotiated the financial arrangement to prevent the loss of another team to an out-of-province league. In December 1961, a fire destroyed the home arena of the

Prince Albert Mintos The Prince Albert Mintos are a Canadian ice hockey team that plays in the Saskatchewan Male U18 AAA Hockey League (SMAAAHL). Their home rink is the Art Hauser Centre formerly Comuniplex. The Prince Albert Mintos won the Telus Cup and Western C ...

of the SJHL, and the MAHA allowed the team to move to

Dauphin, Manitoba Dauphin () is a city in Manitoba, Canada, with a population of 8,457 as of the 2016 Canadian Census, with an additional 2,388 living in the surrounding Rural Municipality of Dauphin (RM), for a total of 10,845 in the RM and city combined. The ci ...

, and levied a fee of 10 per cent of ticket sales to cover lost revenue for displacing the existing senior team in Dauphin.

MAHA executives

Notable executives of the MAHA: Presidents: *

(1914–1916) *

(1921–1923) * E. A. Gilroy (1927–1934) * Jimmy Dunn (1945–1950) *

(1958–1963) *

Frank McKinnon Frank Lorne McKinnon, (June 16, 1934 – May 31, 2015) was a Canadian sports administrator. He was a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation Congress, chairman of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA), and vice-president of ...

(1970–1975) Secretary-treasurers: *

(1914–1934)

Leagues

Senior *

Carillon Senior Hockey League Carillon Senior Hockey League is a Canadian senior men's ice hockey league that plays out of southeastern Manitoba. It is affiliated with Hockey Manitoba, the provincial branch of Hockey Canada. History The league was created in 2003 on the prem ...

*North Central Hockey League *

South Eastern Manitoba Hockey League The South Eastern Manitoba Hockey League (SEMHL) is a senior men's ice hockey league in the province of Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1951, it is one of Manitoba's longest-running leagues. The SEMHL is affiliated with Hockey Manitoba, the provinc ...

* Tiger Hills Hockey League Junior *

(Junior 'A') *

Capital Region Junior Hockey League The Capital Region Junior Hockey League (CRJHL) is a junior B ice hockey league in the province of Manitoba, Canada. The league, sanctioned by Hockey Manitoba, began play for 2018–19 season. History The CRJHL was formed in 2018 when five team ...

(Junior 'B') *

Keystone Junior Hockey League The Keystone Junior Hockey League (KJHL) is a Junior 'B' ice hockey league in the province of Manitoba, Canada. The league, sanctioned by Hockey Manitoba, was formerly known as the Manitoba Junior 'B' Hockey League. History The KJHL champion us ...

(Junior 'B') * Hanover Tache Junior Hockey League (Junior 'C') *

Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League The Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League (MMJHL) is a junior ice hockey league in Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1970, the league was operated as an independent league. MMJHL affiliated with Hockey Manitoba and Hockey Canada in the mid-1990s. Teams ...

(Junior 'OA') Minor Hockey *

Manitoba U-18 'AAA' Hockey League The Manitoba U-18 'AAA' Hockey League (MU18HL), formerly the Manitoba Midget 'AAA' Hockey League, is an ice hockey league in the province of Manitoba, Canada. It is the highest level of minor hockey in the province. The league operates under the su ...

Manitoba Female Hockey League The Manitoba Female Hockey League is an under-18 ice hockey league in the province of Manitoba, Canada. It is designated as an 'AAA' league – the highest level of minor hockey in Canada – and operates under the supervision of Hockey ...

Women's *Manitoba Women's Junior Hockey League *Winnipeg Women's Hockey League MHSAA *Westman High School Hockey League *Winnipeg High School Hockey League *Manitoba Women's High School Hockey League *Zone 4 High School Hockey League *Zone 4 Women's High School Hockey League

Defunct

*Central Amateur Senior Hockey League (Senior) * Hanover-Tache Hockey League (Senior) *Kelsey Intermediate Hockey League (Senior) *Manitoba Senior Hockey League (1946–1972) (Senior) *Manitoba Senior Hockey League (2007–2016) (Senior) *

Central Manitoba Junior Hockey League The Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The MJHL consists of thirteen teams all based ...

(Junior A') *

NorMan Junior Hockey League Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

(Junior 'A') * Northwest Junior Hockey League (Junior 'B')

Provincial championships

Turnbull Cup The Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The MJHL consists of thirteen teams all base ...

(Junior 'A') *

Baldy Northcott Trophy The Baldy Northcott Trophy or ''Manitoba Provincial Junior B Hockey Championship'' is a Canadian ice hockey series to determine the Manitoba representative at the Keystone Cup - the Western Canada Junior "B" hockey championship. History First awar ...

(Junior 'B') *Pattison Cup (Senior 'AAA') *Manitoba Senior 'A' Provincial Championship (Senior 'A') * Jack Forsyth League Trophy (Midget 'AAA') *Hockey Manitoba Cup (Adult Recreational)

Regional minor hockey associations

References

External links

Hockey Manitoba website
{{Hockey Canada

Sports governing bodies of Manitoba Sports organizations established in 1914 1914 establishments in Manitoba