The Junior Canadiens played home games at the
Montreal Forum, and were a
farm team to the
Montreal Canadiens of the
National Hockey League. he Juniors originally played in the Quebec Junior Hockey League. In 1961 the franchise switched to the
Ontario Hockey Association to compete at the major junior level. It was granted entry as an expansion club in 1961. At the time, major hockey in Quebec, and the
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, did not exist.
1950 In the Quebec Junior playoffs, the Junior Canadiens defeated the Quebec Citadels and the Halifax St. Marys. The series versus Halifax was surrendered by St. Marys when Montreal won the first two games on the road by scores of 11–3 and 10–1. After that the Junior Canadiens defeated the
Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters to represent eastern Canada in the Memorial Cup. The 1950 Memorial Cup featured two farm teams of the Montreal Canadiens competing against each other for the top junior prize. The Junior Canadiens defeated the
Regina Pats in a best-of-seven game series by 4 games to 1, winning on home ice at the Forum.
Moving to Ottawa, Brockville, and Hull In 1955, the
Quebec Junior Hockey League disbanded. With the Canadiens as the sole-survivor of the league, they elected to play an independent schedule but still compete in the
Laurier Cup seasonal tournament with the teams of the OHA. The Canadiens would win the Laurier Cup that year, outplaying the best of the OHA. The Canadiens entered the Richardson Trophy playdowns as an independent team, but lost in the finals to the OHA's
Toronto Marlboros 4-games-to-3 with 1 tie. In 1956, their parent team moved them to the Capital Region under the name
Ottawa-Hull Canadiens. The Jr. Habs would play a series of games against the OHA, the
Quebec Hockey League, and the
OHA Senior A League to prepare for the playoffs. The Canadiens finished second in the Laurier Cup to the
Toronto Marlboros. The Canadiens would have a great season, win the
George Richardson Memorial Trophy as Eastern Canadian Junior A champions, but lose the
1957 Memorial Cup in seven games to the
Flin Flon Bombers. In 1957, the Canadiens would win the Laurier Cup for the second time of its four-year existence and again win the Richardson Trophy again. This time around, the Canadiens would win the
1958 Memorial Cup by defeating the
Regina Pats in five games. In 1958, the Canadiens dropped their series with the OHA as the Laurier Cup was abolished. They joined the OHA Senior A League as a full member instead. With a mixed Senior/Junior roster, the Canadiens would finish third in the OHA Senior League's Eastern League and lose the Eastern League's semi-final to the
Kingston Merchants 4-games-to-3 with 1 tie. The junior portion of the squad moved on to the Richardson Trophy playdowns, where it lost the final to
Peterborough Petes. In 1959, the
Eastern Professional Hockey League formed the
Hull-Ottawa Canadiens in the region, another Montreal NHL affiliate. To avoid conflict with the new club, the Jr. Habs were moved to become the
Brockville Canadiens and joined the
Metropolitan Montreal Junior Hockey League. Their players still maintained affiliation with the Pro Canadiens and often played for both teams. The Canadiens dominated their new league with a 25-1-0 record and participated in the Quebec Junior championships instead of the league's playoffs. The Canadiens would be named 1960 Quebec Junior Champions by crushing the
Alma Aiglons 11-1 and 10-0 before the Aiglons conceded the third game. The Canadiens would make it all the way to the Richardson Trophy final before finally losing out. In the final, they faced the OHA's
St. Catharines Teepees. The Teepees would win the first three games of the series, but the Canadiens would battle back to tie the series at 3-games-to-3 with 1 tie. The Teepees would win the decisive Game 8 6-3 to clinch the series. In 1960, the franchise relocated to become the
Hull Canadiens. Despite having junior players on their roster, the team joined the more competitive
Interprovincial Senior Hockey League. They would be 1960-61 regular season (losing only twice) and 1961 playoff champions of the ISHL with a sweep of the
Smiths Falls Rideaus and defeating
Ottawa St. Anthonys 3-games-to-1. The Canadiens represented the Ottawa District in
1961 Allan Cup playdowns but were swept by the Quebec champion
Granby Victorias. A prominent player in this independent era was
Jacques Laperrière. After playing his first junior year with the
St-Laurent Jets of the MMJHL in 1957-58, the next season he signed with the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens in the Eastern League of the OHA Senior Loop and played as both a junior and senior member of the split squad. In 1959-60, he continued with the Brockville Canadiens as they found a home in the MMJHL, but split his time called up with the EPHL Canadiens. The next season as a junior player on the Hull Canadiens in Interprovincial Senior he was again up as a call-up in the EPHL with the Semi-Pro Canadiens. In 1961-62, he moved with the Jr. Canadiens back to Montreal as they joined the OHA but still came up for a single EPHL game. In 1962-63, he turned full pro and signed directly with the EPHL Canadiens. By the end of the season he was in the NHL with the Habs and stayed there until he retired in 1974. In the Summer of 1961, the parent club was successful on getting the club into the OHA and brought them back to Montreal permanently.
1957 In the 1957 season with the minor pro Quebec Hockey League, Ottawa put together a record of 7 wins, 12 losses, and a tie, with 57 goals for and 74 goals against. The Canadiens, on average, were about 5–8 years younger than their opponents and held up well. Ottawa won the right to play for the Cup by defeating the
Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters to win the
George Richardson Memorial Trophy as Eastern Canadian representatives. The Junior Canadiens were runners-up to the
Memorial Cup in 1957. They were defeated by the
Flin Flon Bombers 4 games to 3 in a best-of-seven series.
1958 In 1958 the team was known from that year on as the Hull-Ottawa Canadiens, not to be confused with the senior team of a similar name. The Junior Canadiens defeated the Toronto Marlboros to win their second consecutive Richardson Trophy. Hull-Ottawa's opponent for the Memorial Cup would be another farm team of
NHL Montreal team, the
Regina Pats.
1961 league change In 1961, the
Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) junior A division was reduced to five teams, when several teams departed to form the
Metro Junior A League. OHA president
Lloyd Pollock applied to the
Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) to permit the Canadiens to switch from the
Quebec Amateur Hockey Association to play in the OHA as its sixth team. The request was denied by CAHA president
Jack Roxburgh, who stated that CAHA rules do not allow en masse transfers between provincial associations. The proposal was later approved in September 1961, when the CAHA branch presidents voted in favour.
1969 This team is considered by many to be the greatest junior hockey team of all time. The Junior Canadiens beat out the
St. Catharines Black Hawks for the OHA Championship, then bettered the
Sorel Black Hawks (Éperviers) 3 games to 1 for the Richardson Cup. The Montreal roster that year featured 13 rookies. The Canadiens would pick up netminder Jim Rutherford from the
Hamilton Red Wings for the national championship. The Memorial Cup of 1969 would be a rematch of 19 years earlier, with the Regina Pats. The first two games were scheduled for the Montreal Forum, with the remainder of the games to be played in Regina's Exhibition Stadium. The Junior Canadiens swept the Regina Pats in a very physical series. The team included many future NHL stars and all-stars:
Gilbert Perreault,
Rick Martin,
Marc Tardif,
Rejean Houle,
Ian Turnbull,
Andre Dupont,
Guy Charron,
J.P. Bordeleau,
Bobby Lalonde and
Jocelyn Guevremont.
1970 The 1970 Junior Canadiens finished 1st in the OHA then defeated the
Ottawa 67's and
St. Catharines Black Hawks to reach the finals versus the
Toronto Marlboros. The Junior Canadiens triumphed for the
J. Ross Robertson Cup then played the NOHA champion
Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. Montreal won the first game 6–2, but the "Soo" won game two 5–4. It was the first time in history that a team from the NOHA beat an OHA team in the playoffs. Montreal quickly responded winning the next three games 10–1, 9–2 and 20–1. For the Richardson Cup the Canadiens would play the
Quebec Junior Hockey League champions
Quebec Remparts. The Remparts featured
Guy Lafleur. The Canadiens prevailed in a 3-game sweep in front of crowds numbering over 14,000 in Quebec City, and over 18,000 in Montreal. Their opponents for the Memorial Cup of 1970 would be the
Weyburn Red Wings of the
Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. Coached by
Stan Dunn the Red Wings were a very tough forechecking squad. The games became closer as the series progressed, but the Junior Canadiens swept the series, winning on home ice at the Forum.
Move to QMJHL In 1972 the
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League had been in operation for three years, giving the province major junior competition for the first time. The Q obviously wanted a team in the province's largest city, and was threatening a lawsuit to force the Junior Canadiens back into the Quebec-based league. Over the summer of 1972 the OHA granted the Junior Habs a "one-year suspension" of operations, while team ownership transferred the team and players into the QMJHL, renaming themselves the
Montreal Bleu Blanc Rouge in the process. The OHA then reactivated the suspended franchise for the 1973–74 season in
Kingston, Ontario, under new ownership and with new players, calling the team the
Kingston Canadians. The new Kingston team had little connection with the old Junior Canadiens, but in some OHA histories (such as the annual Media Guide) the Kingston team is still shown as the legitimate successors of the Junior Canadiens' legacy. ==Championships==