
Majors pregame warm-up.
The
Toronto St. Michael's Majors, were a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League, based in
Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
.
The hockey
program was founded and operated by St. Michael's
College School
in 1906, and adopted the name "Majors" in 1934, and
was commonly referred to as St. Mike's
Majors. The most recent franchise was revived on
August 15, 1996.
In 2007, the team relocated to Mississauga,
Ontario
to become the Mississauga St. Michael's
Majors.
History
The
St. Michael's College Hockey Team was first
established in 1906 when the team joined the junior division of the
Ontario Hockey Association. The team was not known as the
St. Michael's Majors until 1934, and also had the
informal nickname of the "Irish". The school team played for 55
years until 1961 before suspending operations.
St. Michael's revived the Majors (Junior A Tier I) hockey team for
the 1997-98 season in the Ontario Hockey League.
In total, over one
hundred St. Michael's Majors alumni have gone on to play in the
National Hockey League,
including 13 members of the Hockey Hall of Fame
.
Early years, Allan Cup 1910

Allan Cup Champions, 1910
The hockey
team was founded and operated by St. Michael's
College School
, an Irish Catholic
secondary school in uptown Toronto. The college's hockey
team soon blossomed, as demand for a Catholic program was high. The
school competed with their crosstown rivals, the
Protestant organized
Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club for
Toronto's hockey supremacy. Players in the St. Michael's Majors
program, were also enrolled in the school.
St. Michael's were successful in recruiting players and providing a
complete education at the same time. The college built a strong
reputation in moulding outstanding and well-rounded young citizens.
Four years after the hockey program started, St. Michael's were
Canadian Amateur Champions, winning the
Allan
Cup in 1910.
- Birth of the Majors
In 1933, the Ontario Hockey Association's Junior division, split
into 'A' and 'B' levels. St. Michael's also divided its hockey
program into two teams accordingly. The Junior 'A' team became the
Majors, the Junior 'B' team was known as
St. Michael's Buzzers.
Memorial Cup 1934
The Majors dominated the Junior A hockey scene during the 1933-34
season. The team was undefeated in the regular season, and kept
rolling through the playoffs, the Ontario Championship, Eastern
Canadian Championship and the
Memorial
Cup. Also of note, in 1933-34 the Buzzers won the
Sutherland Cup as Ontario Junior 'B'
champions.
St. Michael's featured the likes of
Bobby
Bauer, Reg Hamilton, Art Jackson, Regis (Pep) Kelly, Nick Metz,
Don Wilson, Mickey Drouillard, goaltenders Harvey Teno and Jack
Hamilton. The Toronto team was coached by Dr. W. J. (Jerry)
Laflamme, a dentist who had quite a hockey history. He refereed in
the
NHL in the 1920s. That was after he had
played defence on the Allan Cup winners from St. Michael's in
1909-1910 and captained the Allan Cup-winning Dentals of Toronto in
1916-17.
In the 1934 playoffs St. Michael's skated to 8-2, and 9-3 victories
versus the Ottawa Shamrocks to win the two game series for the
Ontario title. In the following series, Toronto faced the
Charlottetown Abegweits in the
eastern final, played in Toronto. The Majors prevailed again in two
games, by scores of 12-2 and 7-2.The Memorial Cup final was played
at
Shea's Amphitheatre in
Winnipeg, where St. Michael's faced the
Edmonton Athletic Club in a
best-of-three series for the title. The Majors picked up
Turk Broda from the
Winnipeg Monarchs to backup if goaltender
Harvey Teno was injured. St. Mike's opened with a 5-0 victory over
the Athletics on April 3. More than 4,500 fans showed up for game 2
on April 5. St. Michael's won its first Memorial Cup championship,
with a 6-4 victory in overtime.
- 1937 OHA Champions
St. Michael's made their second trip to the OHA finals in 1937, and
again faced the same opponent from in 1934, the Stratford Midgets.
Toronto prevailed winning 3 games to 2. In the Ontario
Championship, St. Michael's faced a familiar foe in the Copper
Cliff Redmen. The Redmen previously played in Newmarket in the same
league as Toronto, but switched to NOHA. Toronto lost to the
northern Ontario champions, in 2 straight games.
Memorial Cup 1945
Joe Primeau returned to coached the 1945 Memorial Cup St. Michael's
team, after being runners-up in the OHA finals in 1944. In 1945,
Toronto won the J. Ross Robertson Cup, defeating the
Galt Black Hawks in four games straight.
The Majors advanced further by eliminating the Montreal Royals in
six games in eastern final. They won the sixth game 7-4 behind Joe
Sadler's three goals in front of 10,548 fans at Maple Leaf Gardens
on April 11.
The Memorial Cup final was played in its entirety at Maple Leaf
Gardens. The Majors' opponents were the
Moose Jaw Canucks coached by Roy Bentley.
Toronto won game one 8 to 5 on April 14, then Moose Jaw turned the
tables on April 16, 5 to 3 victory to even the series. The Majors
won each of the next three games by scores of 6 to 3, 4 to 3, and 7
to 2 in the deciding game.
Paid attendance for the five games was 65,437, which exceeded the
Maple Leaf Gardens junior record for five games (59,301) that had
been set in 1943 when the Winnipeg Rangers tangled with the Oshawa
Generals. That 1943 series still held the six-game record of
73,867.
Memorial Cup 1946
St. Michael's returned to the Memorial Cup for a second consecutive
year in 1946. The Majors defeated the Oshawa Generals in a six
game, coming back from two games behind for the OHA championship.
St. Michael's then swept the
Montreal Junior Canadiens in three
games straight in the eastern finals.
The Majors met up with the Winnipeg Monarchs at Maple Leaf Gardens
on April 13 to start the best-of-seven series for the national
championship. Winnipeg won the first game 3 to 2, then Toronto
rallied to win the next two games 5 to 3, and 7 to 3, before the
Monarchs even the series in game four, winning 4 to 3. Toronto
scored a 7 to 4 victory in game five, needing only one more win to
be the second team to repeat as Memorial Cup champions. Winnipeg
spoiled the plans, winning consecutive 4 to 2 victories to take the
cup back west in 1946.
Memorial Cup 1947

Memorial Cup Champions, 1947
The 1947 cup would be a rematch of the 1945 Memorial Cup final
versus the Moose Jaw Canucks. This series however, was not played
at Maple Leaf Gardens, but rather played in Winnipeg, Moose Jaw and
Regina. On the road to their third consecutive Memorial Cup
appearance, St. Michael's repeated their sweep of the Galt Black
Hawks in the OHA finals from two 1945, and the previous year's
sweep on the Montreal Jr. Canadiens in the eastern finals.
The Memorial Cup's best-of-seven final opened in Winnipeg on April
15 with Toronto hammering Moose Jaw 12 to 3. The teams then headed
for Moose Jaw, where game two was to be played on April 17, at the
newly constructed arena. Toronto St. Michael's won that game 6 to
1. Game three was played in Regina, which Toronto kept up its
momentum, winning 8 to 1. Game three ended with seven minutes to
play in the third period, when the ice was littered for a second
time with broken bottles thrown from the stands. Three nights later
in Regina, St. Michael's finished the series with a 3 to 2 victory,
for their third Memorial Cup title.
Memorial Cup 1961

Memorial Cup Champions, 1961
The Majors returned to the Memorial Cup in 1961 after coming close
each of the two previous years. Toronto lost a very close eight
game series in the 1959 OHA finals to the
Peterborough Petes, 3 games to 2, with
three games tied. In 1960 the Majors lost in 6 games to the
St. Catharines Teepees.
Father
David Bauer led the
1961 St. Michael's Majors to the OHA finals in 1961, where they
upset the first place
Guelph Royals 4
games to 2 with a tie, to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup. In the
eastern championship the Majors swept the Moncton Beavers.
The 1961 Memorial Cup finals were played in the old Edmonton
Gardens, with St. Michael's dominating the first two games. Toronto
won the first game 4 to 0 backed by a shutout performance of goalie
Gerry Cheevers. The Majors won the second game 4 to 1, with
Cheevers coming within 6 minutes and 35 seconds of two consecutive
shutouts. Game three was a much closer affair with Toronto holding
on to win 4 to 2. Edmonton would not go down easily winning the
next two games, in two grueling matches by scores of 5 to 4, and 4
to 2. St. Michael's would make history in game six, winning 4 to 2
and capturing their fourth Memorial Cup title, which stood at the
record until broken by the
Toronto
Marlboros.
Majors cease operations
The 1961 Memorial Cup victory was the end of the line for the
Majors in the OHA circuit. Participation was seen in an
increasingly negative light by the school's administration because
of the circuit's relentless grind, escalating travel, physical
play, and the junior league being operated in a manner similar to
the NHL.
Father David Bauer sent to letter to
Conn
Smythe during the 1960-61 season, which stated:
"My opinion is that sooner or later, they (the college)
will see fit to discontinue the Junior A series because of its
growing professionalism, its long schedule and rough play which so
often results in unfavourable publicity difficult for the
educational institution to handle gracefully."
Conn Smythe and the
Toronto Maple
Leafs wanted to keep the St. Michael's team in operation as a
source of players, and then created the
Metro Junior A League to help
alleviate the college's concerns.
The St. Michael's team finished in first place in the Metro Junior
A league, and competed for the
J. Ross Robertson Cup again in 1962.
Coached by Ted Flanagan, the team lost in the Cup finals to the
Hamilton Red Wings.
Despite
being the league champions in he 1961-62 season, St. Michael's
discontinued its program altogether, and the team was relocated to
Neil McNeil Catholic Secondary
School
in Scarborough, Ontario
, becoming the Toronto Neil McNeil
Maroons. Father Bauer chose to pursue building a
university-educated Canadian National team instead.
Modern era
The modern era of the St. Michael's Majors began on August 15,
1996, when the College was admitted to the OHL as an expansion
team.
Players would no longer be required to attend
St. Michael's
College School
in Toronto
, although
some do. The team would also take part each year in the
"Priority Selection" drafting new players, as opposed to relying on
the student body for recruits.
Originally owned by St. Michael's College School, the team is now
owned by
Eugene Melnyk, who is the
current owner of the
Ottawa Senators
and CEO of
Biovail Corporation.
Melnyk has pursued several deals to get a new arena for his team,
but none have come to fruition.
One of Melnyk's foiled plans included
purchasing Maple Leaf
Gardens
.

Justin Peters scores a goal.
The revived Majors struggled on the ice, and missed the playoffs in
each of their first three seasons. During their second season, the
Majors started strong, but traded four of their best players
(
Sheldon Keefe,
Mike Jefferson,
Ryan Barnes and
Shawn Cation) to the
Barrie Colts midway through the season, as a
result of controversy surrounding
David Frost.
The Majors made breakthroughs in their fourth season. Toronto
reached the conference finals four consecutive years from 2001 to
2004. Their closest point to reaching the league finals was in
2003, leading 3 games to 2 versus the
Ottawa
67's and losing game six on home ice in overtime.
The Majors played on the smallest ice surface in the OHL, which
tended to have a higher average of shots on goal per game than
other arenas. Fittingly, the Majors produced several noted
goaltenders in their recent history, including
Peter Budaj and
Andy
Chiodo.
The St. Michael's had strong rivalries with the
Mississauga IceDogs and
Brampton Battalion, both of which are
local
GTA teams who came into the OHL within a
year of Toronto.
On July 12, 2006, Eugene Melnyk bought the Mississauga IceDogs.
After the
2006-07 season, Melnyk sold the IceDogs, and move the Majors to the
Hershey
Centre
in Mississauga. The IceDogs, in turn,
moved to Jack
Gatecliff Arena
in St. Catharines, Ontario
.
Championships
Memorial
Cup
- 1934 Champions vs. Edmonton Athletic Club
- 1945 Champions vs. Moose Jaw Canucks
- 1946 Finalists vs. Winnipeg Monarchs
- 1947 Champions vs. Moose Jaw Canucks
- 1961 Champions vs. Edmonton Oil Kings
George
Richardson Memorial Trophy
- 1934 Champions vs. Charlottetown
Abegweits
- 1945 Champions vs. Montreal Royals
- 1946 Champions vs. Montreal Junior
Canadiens
- 1947 Champions vs. Montreal Junior
Canadiens
- 1961 Champions vs. Moncton Beavers
Division titles
|
J. Ross Robertson Cup
- 1934 Champions vs. Stratford Midgets
- 1937 Champions vs. Stratford Midgets
- 1944 Finalists vs. Oshawa Generals
- 1945 Champions vs. Galt Red Wings
- 1946 Champions vs. Oshawa Generals
- 1947 Champions vs. Galt Red Wings
- 1953 Finalists vs. Barrie Flyers
- 1959 Finalists vs. Peterborough Petes
- 1960 Finalists vs. St. Catharines Teepees
- 1961 Champions vs. Guelph Royals
- 1962 Finalists vs. Hamilton Red Wings
|
Coaches
List of modern era coaches with multiple seasons in parentheses.
- 1997-98 Mark Napier (2)
- 1998-99 Mark Napier & Mike Futa
- 1999-00 Mike Futa & Mark Osborne
|
- 2000-04 Dave Cameron (5)
- 2004-07 Bud
Stefanski (3)
- 2007-08 Dave Cameron (5)
|
Players
Award winners
Honoured players
The St. Michael's Majors have not retired any numbers, but have
honoured these people with banners in the rafters.
NHL alumni
Hockey Hall of
Fame
inductees listed in bold type.
- Original era Majors (1906 to 1962)
- Modern era Majors (1997 to present)
Team records
Records from 1997 to present.
Career records for
individuals |
Statistic |
Total |
Player |
Games |
262 |
Darryl Boyce |
Goals |
109 |
Darryl Bootland |
Assists |
142 |
Tim Brent |
Points |
234 |
Darryl Bootland |
Penalty minutes |
519 |
Darryl Bootland |
Wins |
69 |
Justin Peters |
Shutouts |
9 |
Andy Chiodo |
Individual records for a
single season |
Statistic |
Player |
Total |
Season |
Most goals |
Justin Donati |
46 |
2005-06 |
Most assists |
Justin Donati |
63 |
2005-06 |
Most points |
Justin Donati |
109 |
2005-06 |
Most penalty mins |
Ryan Barnes |
215 |
1998-99 |
Best GAA |
Peter Budaj |
2.29 |
2001-2002 |
Best save % |
Peter Budaj |
0.922 |
2001-2002 |
Goalies = minimum 1500
minutes played |
Season-by-season results
Regular season
- For 1962-63, see: Toronto Neil McNeil
Maroons.
Season |
Games |
Won |
Lost |
Tied |
Points |
Pct % |
Goals
for
|
Goals
against
|
Standing |
1937–38 |
12 |
7 |
5 |
0 |
14 |
0.583 |
52 |
38 |
3rd OHA |
1938–39 |
14 |
10 |
4 |
0 |
20 |
0.714 |
70 |
43 |
1st Group 1 |
|
1941–42 |
24 |
10 |
14 |
0 |
20 |
0.417 |
66 |
120 |
6th OHA |
1942–43 |
21 |
9 |
11 |
1 |
23 |
0.450 |
92 |
99 |
5th OHA |
1943–44 |
25 |
21 |
4 |
0 |
44 |
0.840 |
169 |
69 |
2nd Group 1 |
1944–45 |
19 |
18 |
1 |
0 |
36 |
0.947 |
174 |
54 |
1st OHA |
1945–46 |
28 |
26 |
2 |
0 |
52 |
0.929 |
199 |
54 |
1st OHA |
1946–47 |
36 |
33 |
3 |
0 |
66 |
0.917 |
234 |
59 |
1st OHA |
1947–48 |
32 |
6 |
26 |
0 |
16 |
0.188 |
76 |
135 |
9th OHA |
1948–49 |
48 |
13 |
31 |
4 |
30 |
0.312 |
96 |
128 |
8th OHA |
1949–50 |
48 |
19 |
26 |
3 |
41 |
0.427 |
164 |
213 |
6th OHA |
1950–51 |
54 |
16 |
31 |
7 |
39 |
0.361 |
189 |
244 |
9th OHA |
1951–52 |
53 |
30 |
20 |
3 |
63 |
0.594 |
227 |
188 |
4th OHA |
1952–53 |
56 |
31 |
18 |
7 |
69 |
0.616 |
238 |
181 |
3rd OHA |
1953–54 |
59 |
30 |
26 |
3 |
63 |
0.534 |
246 |
211 |
4th OHA |
1954–55 |
49 |
26 |
19 |
4 |
56 |
0.571 |
171 |
151 |
4th OHA |
1955–56 |
48 |
22 |
23 |
3 |
47 |
0.490 |
181 |
197 |
5th OHA |
1956–57 |
52 |
23 |
24 |
5 |
51 |
0.490 |
195 |
189 |
4th OHA |
1957–58 |
52 |
23 |
22 |
7 |
53 |
0.510 |
176 |
189 |
3rd OHA |
1958–59 |
48 |
19 |
24 |
5 |
51 |
0.448 |
149 |
159 |
4th OHA |
1959–60 |
48 |
23 |
19 |
6 |
52 |
0.542 |
149 |
150 |
4th OHA |
1960–61 |
48 |
26 |
16 |
6 |
58 |
0.604 |
160 |
160 |
2nd OHA |
1961–62 |
33 |
25 |
7 |
1 |
55 |
0.773 |
170 |
91 |
1st Metro Jr.A |
- 1997-2007 Revived OHL St. Michael's Majors
Legend: OTL = Overtime loss, SL = Shoot Out Loss
Season |
Games |
Won |
Lost |
Tied |
OTL |
SL |
Points |
Pct % |
Goals
for
|
Goals
against
|
Standing |
1997–98 |
66 |
15 |
42 |
9 |
- |
- |
39 |
0.295 |
154 |
265 |
6th Eastern |
1998–99 |
68 |
20 |
42 |
6 |
- |
- |
46 |
0.338 |
214 |
316 |
4th Central |
1999–00 |
68 |
18 |
44 |
2 |
4 |
- |
42 |
0.279 |
203 |
281 |
4th Central |
2000–01 |
68 |
35 |
23 |
8 |
2 |
- |
80 |
0.574 |
213 |
188 |
2nd Central |
2001–02 |
68 |
40 |
19 |
8 |
1 |
- |
89 |
0.647 |
230 |
177 |
1st Central |
2002–03 |
68 |
32 |
24 |
7 |
5 |
- |
76 |
0.522 |
207 |
214 |
2nd Central |
2003–04 |
68 |
38 |
21 |
7 |
2 |
- |
85 |
0.610 |
210 |
187 |
1st Central |
2004–05 |
68 |
29 |
30 |
6 |
3 |
- |
67 |
0.471 |
177 |
202 |
5th Central |
2005–06 |
68 |
32 |
26 |
- |
6 |
4 |
74 |
0.544 |
259 |
285 |
4th Central |
2006–07 |
68 |
20 |
41 |
- |
4 |
3 |
47 |
0.346 |
225 |
325 |
5th Central |
Playoffs
- 1997–98 Out of playoffs.
- 1998–99 Out of playoffs.
- 1999–00 Out of playoffs.
- 2000–01 Defeated Peterborough Petes 4 games to
3 in conference quarter-finals.
Defeated Sudbury Wolves 4 games to 3 in conference
semi-finals.
Lost to Ottawa 67's 4 games to 0 in conference finals.
- 2001–02 Defeated North Bay Centennials 4 games
to 0 in conference quarter-finals.
Defeated Ottawa 67's 4 games to 3 in conference semi-finals.
Lost to Barrie Colts 4 games to 0 in conference finals.
- 2002–03 Defeated Belleville Bulls 4 games to 3
in conference quarter-finals.
Defeated Brampton Battalion 4 games to 1 in conference
semi-finals.
Lost to Ottawa 67's 4 games to 3 in conference finals.
- 2003–04 Defeated Sudbury Wolves 4 games to 3
in conference quarter-finals.
Defeated Brampton Battalion 4 games to 1 in conference
semi-finals.
Lost to Mississauga IceDogs 4 games to 2 in conference
finals.
- 2004–05 Defeated Mississauga IceDogs 4 games
to 1 in conference quarter-finals.
Lost to Peterborough Petes 4 games to 1 in conference
semi-finals.
- 2005–06 Lost to Barrie Colts 4 games to 0 in
conference quarter-finals.
- 2006–07 Out of playoffs.
Uniforms and logos
The primary logo for the Majors displays "St. Michael's" written in
script, with a Majors underscore written in light blue. The Toronto
St. Michael's Majors colours are light blue, navy blue & white.
The Majors hockey uniforms feature a different logo, a large letter
"M" on the front, with the school crest (inset right) on the upper
left chest, and the St. Michael's cloverleaf patch on the
shoulders.
Home uniforms have a white background, navy blue shoulders and
arms, with light blue trim. Road uniforms have a light blue
background, with navy blue shoulders, and white trim. The Majors
have also used a third jersey with a stylized "M" on the front, and
without the navy blue shoulders.
To celebrate the Majors 10th season back in the league, the team
launched a new 3rd jersey with the shoulder cloverleaf logo on the
front. The jersey is also baby blue in colour.
Arenas

St. Michael's Arena
The St.
Michael's Majors play at the school-owned St.
Michael's College School Arena
. The arena is located in uptown Toronto
near the intersection of Bathurst Street
and St. Clair
Avenue behind St. Michael's College School
. The college arena is by far the smallest in
the Ontario Hockey League in terms of both ice size and seating.
The arena is also home to the
St.
Michael's Buzzers of the
Ontario Provincial
Junior A Hockey League.
- Capacity = 1,617
- Ice Size = 180' x 80'
The St.
Michael's Majors previously played at Maple Leaf
Gardens
for their first three seasons from 1997 to
2000. The original Majors also played at Maple Leaf Gardens
from its construction in 1931 to their folding in the early 1960s.
When the Gardens was finally scheduled to close a year after the
last
Toronto Maple Leafs game,
Maple Leaf Sports
and Entertainment evicted the Majors, who moved to the arena on
the college campus, in spite of the fact that the major junior team
had only played there rarely before.
The
Majors also played selected home games during the 1999-00 season at
the Air Canada
Centre
vs the Mississauga IceDogs and Brampton
Battalion, and also an inter-league game versus the Montreal Rocket.
In
2003-04 and 2006-07 seasons, the Majors played two home games vs
the Ottawa 67's at Scotiabank Place
in Kanata, Ontario
. This arose from the common ownership
between the St. Michael's Majors and the
Ottawa Senators by
Eugene Melnyk.
See also
References
- :::: The Official Ohl Website ::::
- NHL.com - News
- St. Catharines Standard - Ontario, CA
External links