Talk:Montreal Junior Canadiens

Junior Canadiens
Flibirigit, I thought that you might want to know something else I learned from The Globe and Mail - exactly what happened between the Montreal Jr. Canadiens and Kingston and Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. Apparently in the spring of 1972, when Hap Emms was moving the Niagara Falls Flyers north to be the Sudbury Wolves, the league was taking expansion bids from Soo, Thunder Bay and Kingston. The league rejected all three, and supposedly Tom Smythe of the Toronto Marlboros was the one who was the main person against, because it would mean more home games and Maple Leaf Gardens was already booked so solid he was having trouble getting dates.

After an uproar, the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds were admitted as a rival to Sudbury, while T-Bay and Kingston were rejected. Meanwhile, the Junior Canadiens were under threat of a lawsuit from the QMJHL, who wanted them back in their league (and obviously wanted a presence in the biggest city in Quebec).

The team owner applied for, and received, a year's suspension from the OHL, although the Globe reported "The team will likely not be back in the OHA". The next season, the QMJHL officially admitted a team under the same ownership and with a lot of the same players called the Montreal Bleu Blanc Rouge, and the QMJHL considered this team the same as the Junior Habs although they were not allowed to use the name.

Meanwhile, the OHA officially resurrected the "suspended operations" Junior Habs the following season and "moved" them to Kingston, even though there was new ownership and players.

So in answer to the question of who the legitimate successor to the Montreal Junior Canadiens is, the answer is "both, and neither". The Q team got the arena, ownership and players, while the O team got the name and place in the OHA. Or, to rephrase, if you ask the OHL office, Kingston is the Junior Habs, while if you ask the Q office, Rouyn-Noranda is. Weird, eh? BoojiBoy 16:02, 18 July 2006 (UTC)


 * BoojiBoy, I remember reading a similar story about the Jr. Canadiens, but I could never figure out where I read it or find the source. What I recall reading is approximately the followng:
 * the owners of the Junior Canadiens were in financial trouble and took a year off to sort out their business.
 * the "oha franchise spot" was revived by the same owners in Kingston after a year off.
 * As you can see this is different than what you have mentioned. I am more inclined to believe that the Junior Habs franchise became the Montreal Bleu Blanc Rouge, along the lines of common ownership, players etc. See also the discussion archived at WikiProject Ice Hockey.
 * SEE HERE! Flibirigit 16:56, 18 July 2006 (UTC)


 * I think that it should be mentioned in OHL history. I agree that the Junior Habs are the Huskies while the Kingston Canadians have only a tangential claim. Maybe the whole thing could be mentioned on the Kingston page too. BoojiBoy 18:21, 18 July 2006 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:Junior Canadiens.jpg
Non-fee rationale completed. Flibirigit (talk) 04:18, 12 February 2008 (UTC)

Fair use rationale for Image:1949 1950 montreal jr canadiens.jpg
Non-fee rationale completed. Image would likely qualify as PD-Canada in one year's time. Flibirigit (talk) 04:18, 12 February 2008 (UTC)