Nova Scotia

The location of the province in Canada.

Nova Scotia is one of three Maritime provinces in Canada. It has a population of about 950,000 and its capital is Halifax.

History of hockey in Nova Scotia

The "Halifax Rules" were published in 1943 by a Nova Scotia newspaper reporter named James Power, who was known colloquially as 'The Dean of Canadian Sports Reporters.' Power recorded the rules as related to him by Byron Weston who had become the president of the Dartmouth Amateur Athletic Association and who had played in the Halifax-Dartmouth area as early as the 1860s with teams from the area including native Mi'kmaq players. The rules are purported to have been used in the Halifax-Darmouth area prior to hockey being played in Montreal (starting in 1875), however no contemporary sources confirm this.

Shortly after the opening of the Exhibition Rink, situated on Tower Road in Halifax, on January 5, 1880, hockey was played indoors in Nova Scotia for the first time. The Dartmouth Chebuctos were regarded as champions of Nova Scotia every year from 1885-1894. The team was undefeated throughout the Maritimes from 1887-1894 and played exhibition games in Montreal in 1889. The Windsor Juniors won the first league to be arranged in the province, the Windsor Town League, in 1888-89. By 1900 the town competition had four teams vying for the Citizens Trophy.

The inaugural season of the Halifax County Hockey League took place in 1894, with the first game being played on February 10. Six teams played in the league - Dartmouth Chebuctos, Dartmouth Mutuals, Dalhousie University, Halifax Crescents, Halifax North West Arm, and Halifax Wanderers. Numerous other competitions sprung up in Halifax and its surrounding area (including bankers, college, intermediate, and junior leagues). The most interesting league to emerge was the Coloured Hockey League, an all-black competition founded in Nova Scotia in 1895, which featured teams from across the Maritimes. The league remained active until 1930. With as many as a dozen teams, over 400 African Canadian players from across Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island participated in competition.

The first Maritime Championship for the Starr Trophy was held in 1897. The Halifax Crescents became the first team from Nova Scotia to challenge for the Stanley Cup in 1900. The Cape Breton Hockey League, which initially featured teams from Sydney and North Sydney, was underway by 1901-02. It expanded to Glace Bay by 1905. There was also an Antigonish-Pictou County League. The province-wide Nova Scotia Hockey League was established for the 1903-04 season. The Amherst Ramblers, New Glasgow HC, Windsor HC, Truro Colts, and two teams from Halifax (Crescents and Wanderers) made up the league. The New Glasgow Cubs challenged for the Stanley Cup in 1906. The Western Nova Scotia Senior Hockey League was played from 1905-1912. The South Shore Hockey League featuring teams from Lunenberg, Bridgewater, and Liverpool was contested in 1912-13.

Teams from Nova Scotia stocked the Interprovincial Professional Hockey League (1910-11), Maritime Professional Hockey League from (1911-1914), and the Eastern Professional Hockey League (1914-15). The Sydney Millionaires made Nova Scotia's third Stanley Cup challenge in 1913.

The first intercollegiate hockey competition in the Maritimes was the Hewson Cup, which was first played in 1906 and featured teams from New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. It was succeeded by the Intercollegiate Hockey League in 1909 and the Maritime Intercollegiate Athletic Association (now Atlantic University Sport) in 1920. Nova Scotia competed for the first Maritime Senior Championship in 1921, and the Junior Championship in 1932.

Overview

Teams Minor Pro (AHL) Cape Breton Oilers (1988-1996) Nova Scotia Voyageurs (1971-1984) Nova Scotia Oilers (1984-1988) Halifax Citadels (1988-1993) Major Junior (QMJHL) Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (1997-) Halifax Mooseheads (1994-) Stanley Cup Challenge Era Halifax Crescents New Glasgow Cubs Sydney Millionaires University (AUS) Acadia Axemen (1919-) St. Francis Xavier X-Men (1919-) Dalhousie Tigers (1920-) Saint Mary's Huskies (1930-) Cape Breton Capers (1988-1995)

Leagues Junior A Maritime Junior A Hockey League (1976-) Maritime Junior Hockey League (1968-1971) Maritime Junior Championship (1932-1970) Junior B Nova Scotia Junior Hockey League (1967-) Metro Valley Junior Hockey League (1967-1977) Junior C Nova Scotia Junior C Hockey League (2002-) Senior Maritimes Senior Championship (1921-1967) Maritimes Intermediate Championship (1932-1968) Nova Scotia Senior Hockey League (1982-1997) Early Professional Interprovincial Professional Hockey League (1910-1911) Maritime Professional Hockey League (1911-1914) Eastern Professional Hockey League (1914-1915)

League, regional and national championships

Championship	Times won	Description
Calder Cup	4	American Hockey League champion
President's Cup	1	Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champion
Memorial Cup	1	Canadian Major-Junior national champion
Allan Cup	3	Canadian senior national champion
Fred Page Cup	2	Eastern Canada Junior "A" regional championship
Royal Bank Cup	1	Canadian Junior "A" national champion
Don Johnson Cup	12	Atlantic Canada Jr B champion
Maritime-Hockey North Championship	2	Regional Junior "C" Champion
University Cup	4	CIS national men's university champion

Canadian Provinces

Alberta - British Columbia - Manitoba - Newfoundland and Labrador - New Brunswick

Nova Scotia - Ontario - Prince Edward Island - Quebec - Saskatchewan

Territories: Northwest Territories - Nunavut - Yukon