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The NHL was founded on November 26, 1917 in Montreal, Canada, with the aim of creating a professional hockey league that could rival the existing National Hockey Association (NHA). The NHL was initially made up of four teams: the Montreal Canadiens, the Montreal Wanderers, the Ottawa Senators, and the Toronto Arenas (later renamed the Toronto Maple Leafs). These teams were all based in Canada. The NHL was founded following a dispute between team owners in the NHA over control of the league. The owners of the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Wanderers, and Ottawa Senators wanted more say in how the league was run, so they decided to break away and form their own league. The NHL's first president was Frank Calder, who had previously worked as the secretary-treasurer of the NHA. Calder is often credited with helping to establish the NHL as a viable professional sports league.

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When the National Hockey League formed in late 1917, few could imagine the importance it would have in the fabric of Canadian life. On 22 November, a group of team owners from the struggling National Hockey Association (NHA) gathered for a meeting in the Windsor Hotel in Montréal. Elmer Ferguson was the lone reporter sitting waiting for news. The first man to emerge from behind closed doors of the meeting was Frank Calder, who would become president of the new league. Ferguson hollered after him, "Hey Frank, what happened?" "Nothing much," replied Calder.

George Kennedy, owner of the Montreal Canadiens, was more forthcoming: "It's like our old league except that we haven't invited Eddie Livingstone to be part of it," he told Ferguson. Five of the six owners of the old National Hockey Association had finally gotten tired of the stubborn and confrontational owner of the Toronto Blueshirts, Eddie Livingstone. So they met without him and made a new league (which officially came into existence on 26 November 1917) . Livingstone was "always arguing," Ottawa manager and co-owner Tommy Gorman said, "Without him we can get down to the business of making money."

Professional hockey was barely a few years old but it had already created a familiar landscape: quarrels among owners, soaring salaries, lawsuits and injunctions, salary caps, bankrupt franchises - all the slings and arrows the market is heir to.

The first openly professional hockey team was the Portage Lakes hockey club, founded in 1900 by dentist J.L. Gibson, a Canadian who had relocated to Houghton, Michigan. In 1903, "Doc" Gibson decided to pay for talent, and so team management hired the best players from Canada. The Portage Lakes club was so good that other teams in Canada and the United States had to follow its lead and pay players to compete, regardless of concerns about professionalism in sports. The success of the club also led to formation of the International Hockey League in 1904, with three teams in Michigan, another in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and one in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. (The league disbanded in 1907.) It also contributed to the 1906 decision by the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association to officially allow professional players in the league. Teams began openly competing for players. In fall 1907, Tom Phillips, star of the Kenora Thistles, signed with Ottawa for $1,800.

Professional teams popped up in the most unlikely places, such as Cobalt and Haileybury, Ontario, where wealthy mine owners purchased the best players that money could buy. The George Steinbrenner of his day, mine owner John Ambrose O'Brien assembled a team of superstars to play for him in the town of Renfrew, Ontario, including Fred "Cyclone" Taylor and the Patrick brothers, Frank and Lester. Taylor became the highest-paid player, receiving $5,250, more than twice the prime minister's salary! Renfrew paid Lester and Frank Patrick the lofty sums of $3,000 and $2,000, respectively. In 1909, O'Brien became co-founder of the National Hockey Association, forerunner of the National Hockey League.

However, bidding wars and the escalation of player salaries forced several teams to fold, including Haileybury and Cobalt. For the 1910-11 season, NHA club owners, who had induced players to sign for high salaries (and then all lost money in the 1909-10 season), established the first salary cap, at $5,000 for each team. Players who had been earning up to $1,800 would have to settle for about $500; there was talk of a player union but, in the end, most players accepted the decrease in salary. In practice, though, competition for players within the NHA (and with the Pacific Coast Hockey Association) led club owners to bypass the regulations and negotiate higher salaries and bonuses with top players.

By 1917, some were predicting the end of professional hockey. "'PRO.' HOCKEY ON LAST LEGS," announced on 6 November. The NHA situation was described as "critical" as the "Public Tires of Money-Chasers and Turns to Fast Young Amateur Teams." Interest was waning as the Association had too many older, slower veteran players - many young men were off to war.

There was no guarantee in 1917 that professional hockey would survive, and no one at the time would have predicted that the NHA's successor, the National Hockey League, would become the premier professional league in the world.

For better and for worse, the professional leagues changed the game of hockey. Once played primarily for fun, love of the game, and local pride, it became part of the culture of business. It was the business class who had the organizational skills and the money to organize the sport, pay the players and get new stadiums built. In return, they wanted ownership of the game. It would not be long before the professional NHL had control of the Stanley Cup, which Lord Stanley had intended to celebrate the values of amateur sport.

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The Birth of the National Hockey League (NHL)

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When the National Hockey League formed in late 1917, few could imagine the importance it would have in the fabric of Canadian life. On 22 November, a group of team owners from the struggling National Hockey Association (NHA) gathered for a meeting in the Windsor Hotel in Montréal.

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In 1919, the Grey Cup championship was held in Toronto, pitting the Toronto Argonauts against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues. The Argonauts won 14-2, becoming the first professional team to claim a Grey Cup title. This was a significant moment as it marked the inclusion of pro sports in a Canadian championship game for the first time.

The game took place at Varsity Stadium in Toronto, which was the seventh Grey Cup final. Both teams gave it their all, but the Argonauts emerged as the victors. What made this event more memorable was that it was the first time the Grey Cup championship was broadcast on the radio via CNR radio station in Toronto. However, the field conditions were not ideal as it was muddy and wet that day, earning it the nickname "Mud Bowl". This game also marked the end of the first decade of Grey Cup history.

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1920- Canada’s Best Olympic Boxing medal earned

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1920- Canada’s Best Olympic Boxing medal earned

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Canada's best Olympic boxing medal was earned in the 1920 Antwerp Olympics by a Canadian boxer named Bert Schneider. He won gold in the welterweight division, and it was a huge accomplishment for Canadian boxing. He was known for his speed and agility in the ring, and he used his gifted skills to his advantage throughout the tournament. He won all four of his bouts by decision, showing how he's not a sully skilled boxer, but one of the most intelligent. It was especially impressive considering that boxing was still a relatively new sport in Canada at the time, and there were not many training facilities or opportunities available for athletes. His win helped put Canadian boxing on the map and inspired future generations of fighters. After the Olympics, Schneider turned pro and had a successful career as a boxer, one day becoming the Canadian welterweight champion. His legacy lives on as one of the greatest Canadian boxers of all time, and his 1920 Olympic win remains a moment in the history of Canadian sports that will never be forgotten.

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1923- Edmonton Grads begin World’s basketball reign

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1923- Edmonton Grads begin World’s basketball reign

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In 1923, the Edmonton Grads women's basketball team began a reign of dominance that would last over a decade and started a reputation as one of the best basketball teams in the world. Over the span of their remarkable run, the Grads achieved a record of 502 wins and 20 losses. They won 24 Canadian championships and numerous international tournaments, including the World Championship title in 1924, 1925, 1926, 1930, and 1936. The Grads success not only made Canadian basketball more globally known but also challenged gender roles and stereotypes. They proved that women could perform well in sports if given the opportunity.

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1924- First Olympics that Canada Participated

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1924- First Olympics that Canada Participated

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The 1924 Summer Olympics held in Paris, France saw Canada participating in the Olympic Games for the first time ever. The country fielded merely a squad of 10 members. Remarkably, Bert Hargreaves, one of the members, won the silver medal in the 3000m Steeplechase, earning Canada its first Olympic medal. This momentous achievement was significant because it marked Canada's debut on the world stage and its first-ever Olympic medal win.

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1927- Toronto St. Pats renamed to Toronto Maple Leafs

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1927- Toronto St. Pats renamed to Toronto Maple Leafs

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The Toronto St. Patricks were a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Canada. They were established in 1919 and named after the Irish heritage of the club's founder, Conn Smythe. The team played in green and white jerseys to represent their Irish identity. In 1927, the St. Patricks faced financial difficulties, and Smythe, along with a group of investors, purchased the team. Smythe wanted to give the team a new identity that would resonate more with Toronto's hockey fans and better reflect the city's Canadian heritage. The new team name, Toronto Maple Leafs, was chosen to pay tribute to the Maple Leaf Regiment, a Canadian military unit that served during World War I. The name change aimed to strengthen the team's connection to Canadian nationalism and pride, appealing to a wider fan base. The Toronto St. Patricks officially became the Toronto Maple Leafs on February 14, 1927. The team introduced new uniforms, featuring the iconic Maple Leaf logo on a blue and white color scheme, which remains largely unchanged to this day. The rebranding was successful, and the Toronto Maple Leafs became one of the most storied franchises in the National Hockey League (NHL) with a rich history and a passionate fan base.

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The 1928 Stanley Cup Final was between the Montreal Maroons and the New York Rangers. The Maroons won the series in four games and became the first Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup. This event was significant because it was the first time that a Canadian team had won the Stanley Cup and it marked the beginning of a long tradition of excellence in hockey in Canada.

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In 1928, Canadian women got the chance to participate in the Olympics for the first time. It was super exciting because before that, only men were allowed to compete. Now, girls could show off their athletic skills on the international stage too. One of the coolest things was that women's figure skating was introduced as an official event in the Winter Olympics that year. Canadian figure skaters like Melville Rogers and Constance Wilson-Samuel got the chance to perform their fancy jumps, spins, and twirls for the world to see. It was like watching a graceful dance on ice. Another awesome thing was that women's speed skating was included in the Winter Olympics. Women like Alexa Stirling and Catherine MacKinnon laced up their skates and zoomed around the track, competing against skaters from different countries. It was a thrilling race to see who would be the fastest girl on ice. The introduction of Canadian women to the Olympics was a big step forward in breaking gender stereotypes. It showed that girls could be just as strong, talented, and competitive as boys in sports. It inspired many girls across the country to pursue their athletic dreams and proved that there were no limits to what they could achieve.