1931–32 NHL season

League business

At the September 26, 1931, NHL meeting, the Philadelphia Quakers and Ottawa Senators were granted permission to suspend their franchises for the season. The remaining eight teams divided the players from Ottawa and Philadelphia, whose contracts were leased from the original clubs; the Quakers would not return. Ottawa received a $300,000 offer to move to Chicago and play in the new Chicago Stadium, but the Chicago Black Hawks owners blocked the move.

The Detroit Falcons went bankrupt and entered receivership. The American Hockey Association, having become the American Hockey League and declared itself a major league, was condemned by NHL president Frank Calder as an outlaw league. The AHL proposed a Stanley Cup challenge, and the trustees ordered the NHL to play off, but the Buffalo team collapsed. Calder then negotiated to merge the Chicago Shamrocks, owned by James Norris, with the bankrupt Detroit Falcons. The AHL eventually signed an agreement to become the NHL's minor league affiliate.

Regular season

Howie Morenz remained a dominant force for the Montreal Canadiens, earning another Hart Trophy as his team finished first overall. The New York Rangers topped the American Division. Toronto’s Harvey “Busher” Jackson led the league in scoring. The Chicago Black Hawks spoiled the opening of Toronto’s new Maple Leafs Gardens, winning 2–1, with Mush March netting the arena’s first goal. The Montreal Maroons tried to land Boston’s Eddie Shore, with president James Strachan offering up to $40,000, but the Bruins kept their star defenseman.

Playoffs

This was the only time since 1926–27 that three of the final four playoff teams were based in Canada. The top three teams from each division qualified. The division winners met in a best-of-five semifinal; second- and third-place teams played two-game total-goals series to determine the other semifinalists. The Toronto Maple Leafs swept the New York Rangers three games to none in the best-of-five Stanley Cup Finals. Because the circus occupied the New York arena, the second game was played in Boston; the third was in Toronto. The series was called the "Tennis Series" because the Leafs scored six goals in each game.

Debuts

Notable players who made their NHL debut in 1931–32 include Art Coulter (Chicago Black Hawks), Earl Seibert (New York Rangers), and Ott Heller (New York Rangers). Another debut in 1931 was Canadian national radio coverage of Toronto Maple Leafs games on the Canadian National Railway radio network. That program, originally called the General Motors Hockey Broadcast, later evolved into the modern CBC TV broadcast of Hockey Night in Canada.