Maritime Senior Hockey League

''This refers to the league that operated between 1932 and 1935. For the league of the same name that operated from 1947 to 1950, see Maritime Senior Hockey League (1947-50).''

The Maritime Senior Hockey League ran for three seasons (1932-33, 1933-34, & 1934-35) in the Canadian Maritime provinces (New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, & Nova Scotia). It was a Senior A level amateur league that ran under the authority of the Maritimes Amateur Hockey Association (MAHA) and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA).

History
Senior amateur hockey in the Maritime provinces dates back at least until 1918, but these teams did not compete for the Allan Cup, Canada’s national championship, until the 1927-28 season. That was the year that the Maritimes Amateur Hockey Association joined the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA).

The senior amateur leagues in the Maritimes were local affairs, with teams from a very small area. This was because of the geography of the area, which made travel rather difficult and expensive. The senior champions fared badly in the interprovincial playoffs.

In 1932 a league was formed with teams from the larger cities in the Maritimes. A determined effort was made to recruit good players from other parts of Canada. This resulted in the Maritime Senior Hockey League which has the unique distinction of its champions winning the Allan Cup in each of the years of its existence.

In November 1934 the league decided to become commercial rather than senior. This meant that the teams could recruit players from all over rather than abide by the strict residential rules of the CAHA. These rules stipulated that players had to reside in the city or area of the team they played for as of September. The intention of the league was to set up new eligible teams just before the Allan Cup playoffs in March which could compete in the national championships.

However the population of the region and of the cities was far too small to support a league of this caliber. Also the CAHA strongly disapproved of the recruiting policies, which were almost professional. The league contracted to three teams and then two by January. The Halifax Wolverines still went on to win the Allan Cup. The league still lot a lot of money.

Three teams from Charlottetown, Saint John, and Halifax were set to start the 1935-36 season. However, lack of money forced the Halifax team to fold before the start of the season. The other two teams could not keep on going and the league folded for good in November.