1910-11 NHA
The league shrank in size for the 1910-11 season as one of the Montreal teams- the Shamrocks- along with two of the teams O'Brien was associated with in the Haileybury and Cobalt entries all dropped out. One new team was added as the Quebec Athletics joined the league. An important note that would play a key role in the birth of the NHL was that the Montreal Wanderers would incorporate with Sam Lichtenhein taking a majority position. Lichtenhein, born in Chicago but grew up in Montreal, was also the owner of baseball's Montreal Royals but more importantly to the history of hockey, he would have numerous clashes with a future club owner over the next few years and that would play a key role in the NHA's demise and the birth of the NHL.
The first seeds of discontent were sown as the league imposed a $5,000 salary cap, which quickly led to widespread dissatisfaction amongst the players, even to the point where there were rumours of a players' union. Players also talked over forming a league of their own, but arenas were under NHA control.
On the ice O'Brien's Renfrew Creamery Kings were again forced to settle for second place on a tie-breaker. The Kings and the newcomers from Quebec each finished with 21 points at 10-5-1 but once more the Kings were denied a title as the Athletics had the better goal differential. The Montreal Canadiens finished an impressive third thanks to a rising star in 22-year-old forward Newsy Lalonde. Lalonde scored 5 times while playing in just six games a year ago and this time around tallied 13 goals and 7 assists in 16 games to lead the NHA in both points and goals.
Lalonde was named the league's Most Valuable Player, nosing out last year's winner Lester Patrick of Renfrew and another young scoring star in Quebec's Joe Malone. The 21-year-old Athletics star finished with 11 goals and 16 points. Renfrew's High Lehman, who had a sparking 2.18 goals against average, was tabbed as the loop's top netminder.
1911-12 NHAO'Brien dropped out of the hockey business with a decision to fold his Renfrew club. The league also dropped the rover position, setting the foundation for the current game we see today. That dropped the league to four teams as while there were plans for a Toronto club to join, its arena was not completed in time to start the season.
The NHA also faced a major challenge from the west as a number of players -most notably the Patrick brothers- bolted to join a new league based in British Columbia called the Pacific Coast Hockey Association. The PCHA would feature just three teams in its debut season: the New Westminster Royals, Vancouver Millionaires and Victoria Senators.
Despite the fact that PCHA clubs raided the NHA for players, the NHA allowed a player-organized team of all-stars to play an exhibition series out west against the PCHA after the season. That moved proved poor for the NHA, as several eastern stars including Cyclone Taylor would be enticed to join the PCHA the following season.
The Montreal Canadiens, with 23 points on an 11-6-1 record, breezed to their first National Hockey Association title as Newsy Lalonde once more dominated the league. The 23-year-old scored 25 goals and accumulated 43 points in just 18 games to win the scoring title once again and was rewarded with his second consecutive league MVP award.
The New Westminster Royals were the class of the PCHA, posting a perfect 16-0-0 record led by 24 goals and 31 points from Harry Smith, who had moved over from the now-defunct Renfrew club. They Royals also boasted a 25-year-old goalie by the name of Georges Vezina, who saw some action with Renfrew two years ago but had spent the past season playing amateur hockey. Vezina posted a sparkling 2.03 GAA and was named the top netminder in the PCHA.
The Stanley Cup was around in this era but it was a challenge trophy at this point and not yet available in FHM so there would be no championship series between the Canadiens and Royals to determine who was the best team in the country. That would change but not for a few years.