Federal Amateur Hockey League

Federal Amateur Hockey League
Sport	{{{sport}}}
Founded	1903
Inaugural season	1904
No. of teams	{{{teams}}}
Country(ies)
Ceased	1909
Last champion(s)	Renfrew Creamery Kings
Most championship(s)	several teams won it once

The Federal Amateur Hockey League was a Canadian men's senior-level ice hockey league that played six seasons from 1904 to 1909. The league was a professional league for its last two years and was known as the Federal Hockey League.

History

The league was formed December 5, 1903, at a meeting held at the Savoy hotel in Montreal.

The first executive officers were:

• W. Foran, Ottawa Capitals
• W. Fizgibbon, Cornwall
• A. Meunier, Nationals
• J. Strachan, Wanderers.

The first franchises were granted to the Wanderers, the Capitals, Cornwall and the Nationals. Three of the four teams had been rejected for membership by the Canadian Amateur Hockey League (CAHL), while the fourth—the Montreal Wanderers—was comprised of disillusioned players from two Montreal-based CAHL teams. Only the Cornwall team would still be a member of the league at the end of the 1906–07 season.

The Stanley Cup-champion Ottawa HC, aka Ottawa Silver Seven jumped from the CAHL to the FAHL for the 1904–05 season, while the Montreal Nationals went in the opposite direction and joined the CAHL.

The 1906–07 season ended early following the death of Owen McCourt of Cornwall, after an on-ice brawl in a game March 6, 1907 between Cornwall and the Ottawa Victorias. This led to criminal charges of manslaughter against Charles Masson of the Victorias, however he was acquitted as witnesses stated at the trial that other Ottawa hockey players had hit Mr. McCourt in the head prior to Mr. Masson's blow.

In 1907-08 the Federal League returned with only three teams, all professional. Brockville, unable to field a competitive team hired the Renfrew Creamery Kings club to play as the Brockville entry. This was unacceptable to the Ottawa Victorias, which refused to play the Renfrew players, causing the league to suspend operations.

The final season of 1908-09 saw Renfrew become a member of the league on its own. Ottawa's entry, called the Senators, was organized by former players of the Ottawa Hockey Club, such as Alf Smith, Bouse Hutton, Arthur Moore and Rat Westwick who no longer played for the first team.

The league dissolved in 1909, with Renfrew joining the National Hockey Association.

Seasons

Season	Teams	Champion
1904	Cornwall, Montreal Le National, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa Capitals	Montreal Wanderers (best record)
1904-05	Brockville, Cornwall, Montreal Montagnards, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa HC†	Ottawa HC(best record)
1905-06	Brockville, Cornwall, Montreal Montagnards, Ottawa Victorias, Smiths Falls	Smiths Falls(best record)
1906-07	Cornwall, Montreal Montagnards, Morrisburg, Ottawa Victorias	Ottawa Victorias (awarded championship after Montagnards and Cornwall resigned from league)
1907-08	Brockville Invincibles, Cornwall, Ottawa Victorias	No champion
1909	Cornwall, Ottawa Senators, Renfrew Creamery Kings, Smiths Falls	Renfrew

† Stanley Cup winner

• After the 1904 season, Montreal Le National joined the CAHL.
• After the 1904-05 season, Montreal Wanderers and Ottawa HC joined the ECAHA.

Teams

Team	Location	Arena	Tenure	Notes
Cornwall Hockey Club	Cornwall, Ontario	Victoria Rink (Cornwall)	1903-1907	withdrew from league after player Owen McCourt was killed as a result of a brawl during a March 6, 1907 game
Montreal Le National	Montreal, Quebec	Montagnard Rink	1903-1904	join Canadian Amateur Hockey League
Montreal Wanderers	Montreal, Quebec	Montreal Arena	1903-1905	join Eastern Canadian Amateur Hockey Association
Ottawa Capitals	Ottawa, Ontario	Dey's Arena	1903-1904	withdrew
Brockville Hockey Club	Brockville, Ontario	Cossits Skating Rink	1904-1906	withdrew
Montreal Montagnards	Montreal, Quebec	Montagnard Rink	1904-1907	withdrew during 1906-07 season after eligibility of players questioned; continue as an amateur team
Ottawa HC	Ottawa, Ontario	Aberdeen Pavilion Dey's Arena	1903-05	join Eastern Canadian Amateur Hockey Association
Ottawa Victorias	Ottawa, Ontario	Dey's Arena	1905-1908	withdrew due to questioning status of Renfrew's players
Smiths Falls Seniors	Smiths Falls, Ontario	Daniel Street Arena	1905-1906	withdrew
Morrisburg Hockey Club	Morrisburg, Ontario	Morrisburg Skating Rink	1906-1907	withdrew
Cornwall Hockey Club	Cornwall, Ontario	Victoria Rink (Cornwall)	1907-1908	withdew during season; return for 1908-09 season
Brockville Invincibles	Brockville, Ontario	Cossits Skating Rink	1907-1908	team was actually Renfrew Creamery Kings
Ottawa Senators (FHL)	Ottawa, Ontario	Dey's Arena	1907-1909	join National Hockey Association
Cornwall Hockey Club	Cornwall, Ontario	Victoria Rink (Cornwall)	1908-1909	folded
Renfrew Creamery Kings	Renfrew, Ontario	Renfrew Hockey Arena	1908-1909	join National Hockey Association
Smiths Falls Seniors	Smiths Falls, Ontario	Daniel Street Arena	1908-1909	sit out 1909-10 playing season; join Interprovincial Hockey Union for 1910-11 season

note:1904 and 1909 seasons started in January; two year dating used in above table for consistency.

Intermediate League

The FAHL also ran a lower-level Intermediate League in 1904 and 1905.

Participating teams

• 1903-04: Montreal National, 2nds, Montreal St-Lawrence, Montreal Stirling, Montreal Wanderers #2
• 1904-05: Montreal Montagnards 2nds, Montreal Atheaneum, Montreal Wanderers #2, Montreal Stirling, Montreal Strathconas

Junior League

The FAHL ran a Junior League as well.

Participating teams

• 1903-04: Opals, St-Lawrence II (champion), St-Patrick Cadets
• 1904-05: Gordons (champion), St-Patrick Cadets, Montreal Strathconas II, Montreal Wanderers #3