The Montreal Junior Canadiens were a Canadian junior ice hockey team from 1933 to 1972, operating as a farm team to the Montreal Canadiens. The junior team played in the Junior Amateur Hockey Association (1933–1949), the Quebec Junior Hockey League (1949–1955), then were an independent team without a league from 1955 to 1958. The team later played in the Eastern Ontario Senior Hockey League (1958–59), the Metropolitan Junior Hockey League (1959–60), the Senior Interprovincial Hockey League (1960–61), then finally in the Ontario Hockey Association from 1961 to 1972. They were mostly based in Montreal and played home games at the Montreal Forum, except for a five-year span in Ottawa, Hull, Quebec, and Brockville, Ontario. The Junior Canadiens were national champions four times, winning the Memorial Cup in 1950, 1958, 1969, and 1970.
Contents
History
The Junior Canadiens played home games at the Montreal Forum, and were a farm team to the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League.
1950 Memorial Cup
The Junior Canadiens defeated the Quebec Citadels in the playoffs, then won a series versus Halifax St. Mary's when they surrendered following losses of 11–3 and 10–1 at Montreal. After that the Junior Canadiens defeated the Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters to represent eastern Canada in the Memorial Cup.
The 1950 Memorial Cup featured two farm teams of the Montreal Canadiens. The Junior Canadiens defeated the Regina Pats in a best-of-seven game series by 4 games to 1, winning on home ice at the Forum.
Moving to Ottawa, Hull, and Brockville
When the Quebec Junior Hockey League disbanded in 1955, the Canadiens played exhibition gamese and competed in the Laurier Cup with the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA). The Canadiens won the Laurier Cup in 1956, and entered the Memorial Cup playoffs as an independent team, but lost in the Eastern Canada finals to the OHA's Toronto Marlboros 4-games-to-3 with 1 tie.
Becoming the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens in 1956, they played exhibition games against the OHA, the Quebec Hockey League, and the OHA Senior A League. In the 1957 season with the minor professional Quebec Hockey League, Ottawa had a record of 7 wins, 12 losses, and a tie, with 57 goals for and 74 goals against.
The Canadiens finished second in the Laurier Cup to the Toronto Marlboros, won the George Richardson Memorial Trophy as Eastern Canadian Junior A champions, but lost the 1957 Memorial Cup in seven games to the Flin Flon Bombers.
In 1958, the team was known as the Hull-Ottawa Junior Canadiens, and defeated the Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters to win the George Richardson Memorial Trophy as Eastern Canadian representatives. The Canadiens won the 1958 Memorial Cup by defeating the Regina Pats in five games, who were also a farm team of the Montreal Canadiens.
Playing in the Eastern Ontario Senior Hockey League for the 1958–59 season, the Canadiens had a mixed roster of junior and senior ice hockey players. The Canadiens finished third in the league, and lost the playoffs semifinal to the Kingston Merchants 4-games-to-3 with 1 tie. The junior portion of the roster moved onto the 1959 Memorial Cup playiffs, losing in the Eastern Canada final to Peterborough Petes.
In 1959, the Eastern Professional Hockey League formed the Hull-Ottawa Canadiens, another Montreal farm team. The Junior Canadiens moved, becoming the Brockville Canadiens in the Metropolitan Junior Hockey League. The Canadiens dominated their new league with a 25-1-0 record. The Canadiens became 1960 Quebec Junior Champions by defeating the Alma Aiglons 11-1 and 10-0, when Alma conceded the third game. In the Richardson Trophy final, they faced the OHA's St. Catharines Teepees. The Teepees won the first three games of the series, but the Canadiens tied the series at 3-games-to-3 with 1 tie. The Teepees won the eighth game 6-3 to clinch the series.
Ontario Hockey Association
In 1961, the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) junior A division was reduced to five teams, when several teams departed to form the Metro Junior A League. OHA president Lloyd Pollock applied to the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) to permit the Canadiens to switch from the Quebec Amateur Hockey Association to play in the OHA as its sixth team. The request was denied by CAHA president Jack Roxburgh, who stated that CAHA rules do not allow en masse transfers between provincial associations. The proposal was later approved in September 1961, when the CAHA branch presidents voted in favour of the Junior Canadiens playing in the 1961–62 OHA season.
The Junior Canadiens defeated the St. Catharines Black Hawks for the OHA Championship, then bettered the Sorel Black Hawks (Éperviers) 3 games to 1 for the Richardson Cup. The Montreal roster that year featured 13 rookies. The Canadiens picked up netminder Jim Rutherford from the Hamilton Red Wings for the national championship.
The Memorial Cup of 1969 was a rematch of 19 years earlier, with the Regina Pats. The first two games were scheduled for the Montreal Forum, with the remainder of the games to be played in Regina's Exhibition Stadium. The Junior Canadiens swept the Regina Pats in a very physical series.
The team included many future NHL stars and all-stars: Gilbert Perreault, Rick Martin, Marc Tardif, Rejean Houle, Ian Turnbull, Andre Dupont, Guy Charron, J.P. Bordeleau, Bobby Lalonde and Jocelyn Guevremont.
The 1970 Junior Canadiens finished 1st in the OHA then defeated the Ottawa 67's and St. Catharines Black Hawks to reach the finals versus the Toronto Marlboros. The Junior Canadiens triumphed for the J. Ross Robertson Cup then played the NOHA champion Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
Montreal won the first game 6–2, but the "Soo" won game two 5–4. It was the first time in history that a team from the NOHA beat an OHA team in the playoffs. Montreal quickly responded winning the next three games 10–1, 9–2 and 20–1.
For the Richardson Cup the Canadiens played the Quebec Junior Hockey League champions Quebec Remparts. The Remparts featured Guy Lafleur. The Canadiens prevailed in a 3-game sweep in front of crowds numbering over 14,000 in Quebec City, and over 18,000 in Montreal.
Move to the QMJHL
In 1972, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) had been in operation for three years, giving the province major junior competition for the first time. The league wanted a team in the province's largest city, and threatened a lawsuit to force the Junior Canadiens back into Quebec. The OHA granted the Junior Canadiensa "one-year suspension" of operations, while team ownership transferred the team and players into the QMJHL, and became the Montreal Bleu Blanc Rouge. The OHA then reactivated the suspended franchise for the 1973–74 season under new ownership as the Kingston Canadians.
Coaches
Sam Pollock and Billy Reay coached the 1950 Memorial Cup champions Jr. Canadiens. Elmer Lach coached the 1954–55 squad. Claude Ruel coached the team its first two years in the OHA, he later won the Stanley Cup with the Montreal Canadiens in 1969. Former goaltender Yves Nadon piloted the team to its first OHA finals in 1964. Roger Bedard led the team to successive Memorial Cup wins in 1969 & 1970.
Players
Hall of Fame alumni
List of Junior Canadiens' alumni inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame:
Notable alumni
Notable Junior Canadiens who played in the National Hockey League or World Hockey Association:
Junior Amateur Hockey Association (1933–1949) and Quebec Junior Hockey League (1949–1955)
Independent (1955–1959), Metropolitan Junior Hockey League (1959–60) and Senior Interprovincial Hockey League (1960–61)
Ontario Hockey Association (1961–1972)
Season-by-season results
Regular season and playoffs results:
Junior Amateur Hockey Association (1933–1937 and 1940–1949)
Quebec Junior Hockey League (1949–1955)
Independent team without a league (1955–1958)
Eastern Ontario Senior Hockey League (1958–59)
Metropolitan Junior Hockey League (1959–60)
Interprovincial Senior Hockey League (1960–61)
Ontario Hockey Association (1961–1972)
Legend: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against