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OPHL

Ontario Professional Hockey League
Sport Ice hockey
Founded 1907
Inaugural season 1908
Ceased 1911
Country  Canada
Last
champion(s)
Galt, Ontario
Most titles Galt, Ontario(2)

The Ontario Professional Hockey League (OPHL), sometimes referred to as the Trolley League, and also known as the Canadian Hockey League in its time, was a professional ice hockey league in Canada. It was a fully professional league and consisted of teams from Toronto and surrounding communities. The league's annual champion would challenge for the Stanley Cup, but none were successful.

The Ontario Professional Hockey League was organized in November 1907. The Toronto Professionals had been playing exhibition games against teams of the International Professional Hockey League and other teams with attendances of over 1,000 per game. In early November 1907, the International League had folded, reducing the number of opponents for Toronto, who could not play any amateur teams in Ontario. At the annual meeting of the Toronto team on November 7, the first discussions of a possible league were held. A founding meeting was held in Berlin, Ontario (now Kitchener) on November 12 where a league was formed with Berlin, Brantford, Guelph, and Toronto. The league's initial name was the "Canadian Hockey League" and the officers were:

The league was organized at a meeting on November 22 in Guelph where the schedule was set. The rules would be based on the Ontario Hockey Association and the International League. Representatives of Galt had shown interest in being a part of the league but withdrew their application.

The Toronto team became league champions in the OPHL's first season and challenged for the Stanley Cup in 1908, losing to the champion Montreal Wanderers from the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA). In the 1908 off-season, Brantford left the league and was replaced by Galt and St. Catharines. Galt would win the OPHL championship and Galt challenged for the Stanley Cup in January 1909, losing to Ottawa team of the ECAHA. After the 1909 season, Guelph, St. Catharines and Toronto left the league.


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