1925-26 NHL season
 |
The classic NHL shield logo |
The
1925-26 NHL season was the ninth
regular season of the
National Hockey League. Seven teams each played 36 games. The
Stanley Cup winners were the
Montreal Maroons who defeated the
Victoria Cougars of the newly renamed
Western Hockey League 3 games to 1 in a best of 5 series.
This was the first season for the
Pittsburgh Pirates, who were an expansion franchise, and the
New York Americans, who moved from
Hamilton in the summer of 1925. The Pirates and the Americans became the second and third
United States based teams in the NHL.
The
Hamilton Tigers (formally the
Quebec Bulldogs) spent the first five seasons in the NHL in last place until last season where then went from worst to first. Due to a players' stike, the team was suspended, disbanded and then bought by "Big Bill" Dwyer, an infamous bootlegger from New York City. He moved the team and many of its players to New York City and renamed the team the
New York Americans. The success enjoyed by the Tigers was not carried over to New York, though, as the Americans found themselves going from first overall as the Tigers to fifth overall with a record of 12-20-4. The
Ottawa Senators, on the other hand, had gone from fourth overall to first with an impressive record of 24-8-4.
Final standings
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, PIM = Penalties in minutesScoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = PointsThis is the last season that saw challengers from outside of the NHL compete for the Stanley Cup. At the beginning of the season, the Western Canada Hockey League renamed itself the Western Hockey League because one of its teams, the Regina Capitals, had moved to the States to play in Portland, Oregon. They were renamed the Portland Rosebuds.
Once again, the Victoria Cougars finished third in their league but once again won their league championship and the right to play for the Stanley Cup. The previous season, the Cougars beat the Montreal Canadiens for the Stanley Cup with that being the only time in NHL history in which a non-NHL team won the Cup. After the 1926 playoffs, the Western Hockey League would fold leaving the Stanley Cup entirely to the NHL. The Cup would never again be challenged by a non-NHL team, despite efforts to Free Stanley during the NHL lockout season of 2004-2005.
All dates 1926
Prince of Wales Trophy
The second seed
Montreal Maroons beat the third seed
Pittsburgh Pirates and then went on to beat first place
Ottawa Senators 2 goals to 1 in a two game
total goals series, thus capturing the
Prince of Wales Trophy and the right to play the Victoria Cougars for the Stanley Cup.
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Montreal Maroons Date
Team |
Score |
Team |
Score |
Notes | | March 8 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 1 | Montreal Maroons | 3 | | | March 11 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 3 | Montreal Maroons | 3 | | |
|---|
Montreal wins total goals series 6 goals to 4
Montreal Maroons vs. Ottawa Senators
Date
Team |
Score |
Team |
Score |
Notes | | March 25 | Montreal Maroons | 1 | Ottawa Senators | 1 | | | March 27 | Montreal Maroons | 1 | Ottawa Senators | 0 | | |
|---|
Montreal wins total goals series 2 goals to 1
Stanley Cup Final
Victoria Cougars vs. Montreal Maroons Date
Away |
Score |
Home |
Score |
Notes | | March 30 | Victoria Cougars | 0 | Montreal Maroons | 3 | | | April 1 | Victoria Cougars | 1 | Montreal Maroons | 3 | | | April 3 | Victoria Cougars | 3 | Montreal Maroons | 2 | | | April 6 | Victoria Cougars | 0 | Montreal Maroons | 2 | | |
|---|
Montreal Maroons win best-of-five series 3 games to 1 for the Stanley Cup
NHL Playoff leading scorer
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points*
List of Stanley Cup champions*
Western Hockey League*
List of pre-NHL seasons*
1925 in sports*
1926 in sports*
Hockey Database*[
1]
