By: Elizabeth Chokler
The NHL will turn 100 on Nov. 26. It is a professional men’s ice hockey league and is widely considered the best in the world. Here’s how they got there.
The NHL was established in Montreal on Nov. 26, 1917 and consisted of four teams: the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa Senators and Toronto Arenas (later renamed the Toronto Maple Leafs). It was one of the professional leagues that competed for the Stanley Cup.
In 1924, the Boston Bruins joined the league as the first American club to do so. By 1926, five more American teams joined.
In 1942, only six teams were left in the NHL. These were the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings and New York Rangers. The “Original Six” remained the only teams in the league until 1967, when six more teams were added.
Since then, more and more teams were added to the league, with 31 clubs in the NHL today. The most recent acquisition was last year when NHL commissioner Gary Bettman announced that a Las Vegas team, the Golden Knights, would join for the 2017-18 season.
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