5 Things You Didn't Know About the History of Hockey
Hockey, called the fastest game on earth by some, was invented in 1875 in Montreal, Canada by James Creighton. The sport has since evolved and become one of the most popular winter sports in North America, drawing huge crowds to watch the NHL and other leagues each season. Keep reading to learn more about hockey history and how it has changed from its inception more than 150 years ago to the present day.
Table of content:
1) The first hockey game was played in Montreal in 1875.
2) The Stanley Cup was first presented in 1893.
3) Six teams made up the first NHL season in 1917.
4) The first female professional hockey player was Manon Rheaume.
5) The first Winter Olympics hockey tournament was in 1920.
1) The first hockey game was played in Montreal in 1875.
Hockey, or at least some form of hockey, has been around for centuries. The first recorded game was in Montreal in 1875. Teams played with ten players on a side and there were no rules. It was a cross between field hockey and ice hockey. The game used a soccer ball and two goals set about 100 yards apart. Goals were made by putting the ball into an open net that was guarded by two opposing players who had to stand within six feet from either goalpost to guard it. A few years later, in 1886, Dartmouth College students playing an ice-skating game found that they could get more skaters on the rink by using a round puck instead of a soccer ball - this is how ice hockey got its start. The following year in Montreal, the outdoor rinks were flooded and natural ice allowed McGill University's lacrosse team to play their winter sport on ice - this game became known as indoor hockey.
In 1893, representatives from four universities (the Queen's University of Kingston, McGill University in Montreal, The University of Toronto, and McMaster University) met to create formal written rules: each team must have three forwards plus one rover (essentially a fourth forward), while defencemen only counted when standing inside their blue lines; the rover could not come off his position to play defense; the goalkeepers had to remain on their side but one player could enter the other team's territory; there would be a time limit if the score remained tied after 30 minutes;
2) The Stanley Cup was first presented in 1893.
The Stanley Cup is a trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. The Stanley Cup is the oldest professional sports trophy in North America and the third-oldest worldwide. It is also one of only three trophies to have been presented for competition every year since its inception. The first presentation was in 1893, when Lord Stanley, then Governor General of Canada, donated it to be a symbolic (and physical) head cheerleader for our national sport. In 1914, after George V became king he decreed that there would be no more French words on the cup so La Coupe Stanley was changed to The Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup. Then in 1925, Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn announced at Queen’s University that Canadians had adopted a new name for the prize: The Stanley Cup.
3) Six teams made up the first NHL season in 1917.
The National Hockey League (NHL) was officially founded on November 26, 1917. This date coincides with a day after the Montreal Canadiens beat Ottawa to win their second Stanley Cup championship. The NHL was formed from teams that had been playing in two different leagues: The National Hockey Association and the Pacific Coast League. Five teams made up one league (the NHA), while four were in the other league (the PCHA). These six teams made up the first NHL season in 1917.
1) Toronto Arenas
2) Montreal Wanderers
3) Ottawa Senators
4) Quebec Bulldogs
5) Montreal Canadiens
6) Winnipeg Falcons
7) Vancouver Millionaires
8) Seattle Metropolitans
9) Hamilton Tigers
10) Montreal Maroons
4) The first female professional hockey player was Manon Rheaume.
The first female professional hockey player was Manon Rheaume. Born in Quebec in 1969, she played for the Tampa Bay Lightning and Detroit Red Wings from 1992-1993, with a record of 3 wins, 1 loss, and 1 tie. She was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2009.
Manon's father first got her interested in hockey by taking her to his games when she was four years old. In 1988, at age 18, she left home and moved to Montreal so that she could be closer to an NHL team. Two years later, the Canadian Women's Hockey League opened up its doors; Manon became one of its inaugural members. By 1991, at just 21 years old, she had competed for Canada at the World Championships three times. She retired from playing professionally in 1999 due to knee injuries. Her jersey number (#32) has been unofficially retired by both the CWHL and the Fédération québécoise de sports études (FAÉQ) following her retirement.
5) The first Winter Olympics hockey tournament was in 1920.
The first Winter Olympics hockey tournament was held in 1920. It was a round-robin format, with France, Great Britain, Switzerland, and Belgium each playing one game against the other. The Swiss team won gold after defeating both France and Belgium in the final round-robin game.
The first international competition for the sport was in 1908. Canada entered a team (consisting solely of players from Ontario) and went on to win gold at that year's Summer Olympics in London. The Canadians played 3 games, winning 2 and losing 1 to Denmark as well as beating Great Britain. In 1910, Canada also became World Champions after they defeated the USA in 2 out of 3 games. In 1914, an all-Ontario team won silver at the first-ever World Championships, which were co-hosted by Canada and the United States. That same year saw the founding of the National Hockey Association (NHA), which would go on to become what is now known as the NHL. At this time, women’s hockey began to gain popularity among upper-class families in North America - though it wasn’t until 1928 that an all-female ice hockey league was formed in Montreal.
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