Looking back on the iconic game in 1915
By Mo Hussain, Sports Reporter
In honour of the Tampa Bay Lightning winning their second Stanley Cup last week, let’s take a look at the last time the city of Vancouver won the Stanley Cup. And no, that wasn’t a slight diss because believe it or not, in 1915, the Vancouver Millionaires defeated the Ottawa Senators to win the city of Vancouver’s only Stanley cup.
The series was decided in a best of five where Vancouver swept Ottawa 3-0 and outscored them 26-8, including a 12-3 win in game three. Cyclone Taylor led the Millionaires with six goals.
An interesting point to note is that the hockey system back then was relatively similar to the today’s NHL system, considering how both finalists were respective champions in the eastern and western region of Canada and part of the US. However, the difference was that instead of winning the eastern and western conferences respectively under one league, both teams came from two entirely separate leagues.
The western team came from the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) which based its league around teams in the western part of both Canada and the United States. And the eastern team came from the National Hockey Association (NHA) which based its league around teams from Ontario and Quebec.
As a result, the rules used in the finals games would alternate every second matchup. In this case, PCHA rules were adopted in games one and three, while NHA rules were used in game two.
The Millionaires also unfortunately couldn’t raise the actual Stanley cup until months later because the Senators did not bother bringing the cup to Vancouver from back east because they really thought they would win. The Senators were heavy favourites but acting on that clearly did not benefit them.
The Millionaires also unfortunately couldn’t raise the actual Stanley cup until months later because the Senators did not bother bringing the cup to Vancouver from back east because they really thought they would win.
In fast forwarding to today, we can hear that some fans feel that the team is underappreciated. One fan dedicated an entire Facebook page to petitioning the city of Vancouver to put together a commemorative statue for the 1915 Stanley Cup Victory.
“Imagine if there was a Statue or Commemorative Plaque at the location where the Vancouver Millionaires won and hoisted the Stanley Cup in 1915. We have all walked, rode our bikes, and drove by this historic location and you probably didn’t even know that you were on hallowed ground,” said one post.
It will be interesting to see whether the city will put together a commemorative piece at some point, but if they do, we hope that alongside it would be, at some point, a Stanley Cup victory from the Vancouver Canucks.
