A Short History of the Memorial Cup

The Memorial Cup is the oldest trophy in junior hockey. The Ontario Hockey Association donated it in 1919 to honour the players, coaches, and officials who had died in the First World War. Its mandate later expanded to include all Canadians lost in military service. The tournament that decides each year's winner has changed dramatically over the decades.

The East-versus-West era (1919 to 1971)

For more than 50 years, the Memorial Cup was decided in a series between the Eastern Canadian junior champion and the Western Canadian junior champion. The series format changed several times: a two-game total-goals final from 1919 to 1928, then a best-of-three, expanded to best-of-five in 1937, and best-of-seven from 1943 onward. Locations rotated, and the leagues that fed each side changed shape as the modern OHL, WHL, and QMJHL took their final form. Many of the most famous names in Canadian junior hockey history won this format: Marlboros, Flyers, Rangers, Pats, and others.

The three-team round robin (1972 to 1982)

When the QMJHL grew strong enough to be considered the third major junior league, the format shifted in 1972 to a three-team round robin among the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL champions. This was the first version of the tournament that resembled what we have today: short, high-stakes, and decided in a single host city.

The four-team era (1983 onward)

Beginning in 1983, the tournament expanded to four teams: the three league champions plus a host team. The host model concentrated the event in one community for an extended celebration, which dramatically increased fan attendance, ticket revenue, and television rights value. The host has won the Memorial Cup multiple times under this format, in part because the host gets weeks of rest while playoffs continue elsewhere.

Trophies and traditions

• Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy: tournament MVP.
• Ed Chynoweth Trophy: leading scorer.
• Hap Emms Memorial Trophy: top goaltender.
• George Parsons Trophy: most sportsmanlike player.
• All players, coaches, and staff on the winning team have their names engraved on the cup itself.