Abbott Cup
| Abbott Cup | |
|---|---|
Abbott Cup
|
|
| Status | cancelled |
| Genre | sporting event |
| Date(s) | winter |
| Frequency | annual |
| Country | Canada |
| Inaugurated | 1919 |
| Most recent | 1999 |
The Abbott Memorial Cup, commonly referred to as the Abbott Cup, was awarded annually from 1919 through 1999 to the Junior "A" ice hockey Champion for Western Canada.
The Cup was named after Captain E.L. (Hick) Abbott who was a noted hockey player in Western Canada. He captained the Regina Victorias when it won the (pre-Memorial Cup) Junior Championship of Canada in 1913 and 1914. Captain Abbott died in active service in the First World War and the trophy was presented in his memory in 1919 by the Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association.
The concept of a Western Canada Junior A Championship continued in 2013 with the creation of the Western Canada Cup.
The Abbott Cup was a playoff round, a best of seven game series, between the British Columbia/Alberta Interprovincial Champions and the Saskatchewan/Manitoba Interprovincial Champions. The Abbott Cup winner would then play off against the Eastern Canadian Champions, the winner of the George Richardson Memorial Trophy, for the Memorial Cup signifying the National Championship.
In 1934 Junior "A" hockey was divided into Junior "A" and "B", with the Abbott Cup staying with the Junior "A" level. The winner of the Abbott Cup still earned the right to compete for the national Memorial Cup. (Starting in 1983, a Junior "B" Western Canadian Championship was established with the Keystone Cup.)
In 1971 Junior "A" hockey was divided into Major Junior (Tier I) and Junior "A" (Tier II), with the Abbott Cup again staying with the Tier II Junior "A" level. As the Memorial Cup national championship was now reserved for the Major Junior level, the Abbott Cup winner now represented the West in the 'Tier II' Centennial Cup National Championship. (The Major Junior teams in Western Canada now compete for the Western Hockey League's Ed Chynoweth Cup, earning the right to compete for their national Memorial Cup.)
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