Ottawa Senators (original)
Original Ottawa Senators: 11-time Stanley Cup champions.
The Ottawa Hockey Club (Ottawa HC), an ice hockey team based in Ottawa, operated from 1883 to 1954. It was Ontario’s first hockey club, a founding member of the National Hockey League (NHL), and competed in the NHL from 1917 until 1934. Officially named the Ottawa Hockey Club, the team went by several nicknames: the Generals in the 1890s, the Silver Seven from 1903 to 1907, and the Senators from 1908 onward. Hockey historians widely regard it as one of the sport’s greatest early teams. The club won many championships, starting with Ontario titles in 1891, 1892, and 1893. It participated in the first season the Stanley Cup was challenged, in 1893, and first won the Cup in 1903, holding it until 1906 during the Silver Seven era. The team repeated this success in the 1920s, winning the Stanley Cup in 1920, 1921, 1923, and 1927—known as the Super Six years. In total, the club won the Stanley Cup 11 times, including challenge victories during two seasons it did not win the league championship. In 1950, Canadian sports editors named the Ottawa HC/Senators Canada’s greatest team of the first half of the 20th century.
The club was among the first organized ice hockey teams, playing in the Montreal Winter Carnival tournaments in the early 1880s and helping found the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada and the Ontario Hockey Association. As professionalism rose in the early 1900s, the team turned professional and became a founding member of the National Hockey Association (NHA) and its successor, the NHL. The club remained in the NHL until the 1933–34 season, when financial troubles forced the franchise to relocate to St. Louis, Missouri, becoming the St. Louis Eagles. The organization continued the Senators as an amateur, later semi-professional, team in Quebec senior men’s leagues until 1954. This “Senior Senators” squad won two Allan Cup titles, in 1943 and 1949. When the current Ottawa Senators debuted in 1992, they adopted the original team’s black, red, and white color scheme and its nickname.
**History**
**Early amateur era (1883–1902)**
The Ottawa Hockey Club was founded by a small group of hockey enthusiasts. After watching games at the 1883 Montreal Winter Carnival, Halder Kirby, Jack Kerr, and Frank Jenkins met and formed the club. As the first organized ice hockey club in Ottawa and in Ontario, it had no opponents to play that season.
- Existed
- 1883–1954
- First hockey club in
- Ontario
- Nhl founding member
- True
- Nhl seasons
- 1917–1934
- Stanley cup wins
- 11
- Notable nicknames
- Generals (1890s), Silver Seven (1903–1907), Senators (from 1908)
- Relocated to
- St. Louis, Missouri (as St. Louis Eagles)
Lore & Background
The Ottawa Hockey Club was founded by Halder Kirby, Jack Kerr, and Frank Jenkins after witnessing games at the 1883 Montreal Winter Carnival. The club first participated competitively at the 1884 Montreal Winter Carnival ice hockey tournament, wearing red and black uniforms. Future Ottawa mayor Nelson Porter scored the club's first-ever goal at that tournament. The club adopted gold and blue colours for the 1885 season and earned its first tournament victory over the Montreal Victorias. The club was a founding member of the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1886 and the Ontario Hockey Association in 1890–91. During its affiliation with the Ottawa Amateur Athletic Club, the team became known by the nickname 'Generals', attributed to the club's insignia. The club won the OHA championship for the league's first three years (1891–1893). At a dinner honouring the 1892 OHA champions, Lord Stanley announced the Stanley Cup; former player and club president P. D. Ross was selected as a trustee of the Cup.
Reader's Guide
The Ottawa Senators are significant as one of the earliest organized ice hockey clubs and a dominant force in the sport's formative years. The club won the Stanley Cup 11 times, including during the Silver Seven years (1903–1906) and the Super Six years (1920, 1921, 1923, 1927). In 1950, Canadian sports editors selected the Ottawa HC/Senators as Canada's greatest team in the first half of the 20th century. The club was a founding member of both the National Hockey Association and its successor, the National Hockey League. After financial difficulties forced the NHL franchise to relocate to St. Louis in 1934, the organization continued as an amateur and later semi-professional team in Quebec senior men's leagues until 1954, winning two Allan Cup titles (1943 and 1949). The current Ottawa Senators, debuting in 1992, adopted the original team's black, red and white color scheme and nickname.
Did You Know?
- The club was the first hockey club in Ontario.
- The club won the Stanley Cup 11 times, including challenges during two years it did not win the Cup for the season.
- The club was known as the Silver Seven from 1903 to 1907.
- The NHL franchise relocated to St. Louis, Missouri, to become the St. Louis Eagles.
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