# 1907 ECAHA season

The 1907 ECAHA season was the second season of the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA). Teams played a ten-game schedule. The Montreal Wanderers lost the Stanley Cup to the Kenora Thistles of the Manitoba Hockey Association mid-season, but went undefeated in the regular season to win the league championship. They proceeded to defeat Kenora in a two-game total goals series to win back the Cup.

## League business
### Executive

* Fred McRobie (President)
* Thomas D'Arcy McGee, Ottawa (1st Vice-President)
* Gordon Blair, Quebec (2nd Vice-President)
* Emmett Quinn, Shamrocks (Secretary-Treasurer)
Nationals and Grand Trunk applied for franchises but did not get three-fourths approval.

### Rule changes

* Teams could have professionals as well as amateurs
* After a puck strikes a goalie, the rebound could now be played by the defending team without it being called offside
* A player injured in the first half can sit for ten minutes and the other team has to take off a player.

## Regular season

Frank McGee of Ottawa retired to pursue his government career. The Wanderers added two professionals, Riley Hern from the Portage Lake-Houghton pros and Hod Stuart from the Pittsburgh pros.
Prior to the season, Ottawa travelled to Winnipeg for a series of exhibition games against Manitoba league teams including the Kenora Thistles, who then came east to play a challenge in Montreal. The Montreal Victorias hosted the St. Nicholas Hockey Club from New York in an exhibition on December 22, 1906, defeating them 16–3.

### Highlights

A major battle took place for the game between the Senators and Wanderers on January 12. Stick work was the order of the day as Charles Spittal of Ottawa knocked Cecil Blachford in the head, Alf Smith hit Hod Stuart in the head and Harry Smith broke Ernie Johnson's nose. The Wanderers would still win, 4–2.
After the game, a special league meeting was called to hand out discipline, with Victorias and Wanderers wanting Spittal and Alf Smith suspended for the season. The players were not suspended, leading the league president Mr. McRobie to resign, leaving Darcy McGee to take over as president.
On the next visit of the Ottawa team to Montreal, to play the Victorias, the three Ottawa players were arrested by Montreal police. Eventually Alf Smith and Spittal were fined $20 for their actions and Harry Smith was found not guilty.
The scoring championship was close, with Ernie Russell of the Wanderers placing first with 42 goals in 9 games, and Russell Bowie scoring 38 in 10 games.

### Final standings

| Team | Games Played | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals For | Goals Against |
| Montreal Wanderers | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 105 | 39 |
| Ottawa Hockey Club | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 76 | 54 |
| Montreal Victorias | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 101 | 70 |
| Montreal Hockey Club | 10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 58 | 83 |
| Quebec Hockey Club | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 62 | 88 |
| Montreal Shamrocks | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 52 | 120 |

## Stanley Cup challenges

The 1907 season had two Stanley Cup champions, Montreal Wanderers and Kenora Thistles.

### Wanderers vs. New Glasgow at Montreal

The Wanderers played one Stanley Cup challenge before the season, defeating the New Glasgow Cubs in a two-game series 10–3, 7–2, December 27–29, 1906. This was the first series in which professional players played for the Stanley Cup, as the Wanderers and other teams in the ECAHA were starting to mix amateurs with pros in their squads.
| Date | Winning Team | Score | Losing Team | Location |
| December 27, 1906 | Montreal Wanderers | 10–3 | New Glasgow Cubs | Montreal Arena |
| December 29, 1906 | Montreal Wanderers | 7–2 | New Glasgow Cubs | Montreal Arena |
| Montreal wins total goals series 17 goals to 5. |||||
December 27, 1906 :
| New Glasgow Cubs | 3 | at | Montreal Wanderers | 10 |
| Frank Morrison | | G | William "Riley" Hern | |
| James Musick | | P | Billy Strachan | |
| Evan MacMillan | | CP | Rod Kennedy | |
| Jack Marks | 2 | RO | Lester Patrick | 2 |
| Jack McDonald | 1 | C | Frank "Pud" Glass | 4 |
| Jimmy Williams | | LW | Ernie "Moose' Johnson | |
| Bill Lannon | | RW | Ernie Russell | 3 |
| Percy MacDonald | | Spare | Cecil Blachford, Capt |
| James Murphy | | Spare | Hod Stuart |
| Referees Howard, Russell Bowie |||||
December 29, 1906 :
| New Glasgow Cubs | 2 | at | Montreal Wanderers | 7 |
| Frank Morrison | | G | William "Riley" Hern | |
| Jack McDonald | 1 | P | Billy Strachan | |
| Percy McDonald | | CP | Rod Kennedy | 1 |
| Bill Lannon | | RO | Lester Patrick | 3 |
| Jimmy Williams | | C | Frank "Pud" Glass | 1 |
| James Murphy | 1 | LW | Ernie "Moose" Johnson | 2 |
| James Musick | | RW | Cecil Blachford, Capt | |
| Evan MacMillan | | Spare | Hod Stuart |
| Jack Marks | | Spare | Ernie Russell |
| Referees Howard, Russell Bowie |||||

### Wanderers vs. Kenora at Montreal

The Wanderers played one Stanley Cup challenge during the season, losing to the Kenora Thistles 2–4, 6–8 on January 17–21. Aided by future Hockey Hall of Famers Joe Hall, Tom Hooper, Tommy Phillips, and Art Ross, the Thistles came away with 4–2 and 8–6 victories for a combined score of 12–8 to win a two-game total goals series. Hall and Ross were borrowed from the Brandon Wheat City team.
For Montreal, these were their first games after their donnybrook with Ottawa on January 12. Centre Cecil Blachford, who had been knocked out in the Ottawa game, did not play. Johnson and Stuart, who had required hospitalization, did play. Ernie Russell substituted for Blachford.
| Date | Winning Team | Score | Losing Team | Location |
| January 17, 1907 | Kenora Thistles | 4–2 | Montreal Wanderers | Montreal Arena |
| January 21, 1907 | Kenora Thistles | 8–6 | Montreal Wanderers | Montreal Arena |
| Kenora wins total goals series 12 goals to 8 |||||
January 17, 1907 :
| Montreal Wanderers | 2 | vs | Kenora Thistles | 4 |
| William "Riley" Hern | | G | Eddie Giroux | |
| Billy Strachan | | P | Art Ross | |
| Hod Stuart | | CP | Si Griffis | |
| Lester Patrick, Capt. | 2 | RO | Tom Hooper | |
| Ernie Russell | | C | Billy McGimsie | |
| Frank "Pud" Glass | | RW | Roxy Beaudro | |
| Ernie "Moose" Johnson | | LW | Tommy Phillips, Capt. | 4 |
| Jack Marshall | 1 | sub | |
| Rod Kennedy | | spare | Joe Hall |
| Bill Chipchase | | spare | Russell Phillips |
| Referees Bob Meldrum, Russell Bowie |||||
Source: Ottawa Citizen
January 21, 1907 :
| Montreal Wanderers | 6 | vs | Kenora Thistles | 8 |
| William "Riley" Hern | | G | Eddie Giroux | |
| Rod Kennedy | | P | Art Ross | |
| Hod Stuart | | CP | Si Griffis | |
| Lester Patrick, Capt | 3 | RO | Tom Hooper | 3 |
| Ernie Russell | 2 | C | Billy McGimsie | 1 |
| Frank "Pud" Glass | | RW | Roxy Beaudro | 1 |
| Ernie "Moose" Johnson | | LW | Tommy Phillips, Capt. | 3 |
| Jack Marshall | 1 | sub | |
| Billy Strachan | | spare | Joe Hall |
| Bill Chipchase | | spare | Russell Phillips |
| Referees Chittick, Shea |||||
Source: Ottawa Citizen
After the series, the Thistles played an exhibition game in Ottawa on January 23. The Thistles lost 8–3 to Ottawa. Harry Smith scored four goals and Harry Westwick scored three for Ottawa. In this game Billy McGimsie suffered a career-ending shoulder injury.

### Brandon Wheat City vs. Kenora Thistles at Winnipeg

After returning home, Kenora had played the balance of the MPHL season. Montreal Wanderers won the ECAHA regular-season champions and challenged to regain the Stanley Cup. Challenge was excepted. However Brandon and Kenora finished tied for first in the Manitoba League. So a best of three game series was upset to see who the Manitoba League Champion and who defended the cup again the Montreal Wanderers. After losing McGimsie, Si Griffis and Tom Hooper also went down to injury. Kenora signed three players to bolster its team: Alf Smith and Rat Westwick of Ottawa, and Fred Whitcroft of Peterborough to finish the season. (All three were future Hall of Fame inductees.) By the time of the MPHL playoff, Stanley Cup trustee William Foran notified Kenora that Smith and Westwick were ineligible for the challenge.

## Playoff

Kenora would play and win the MPHL playoff against Brandon to successfully defend the Cup, winning a best-of-three series 2–0. Hall and Ross played for Brandon in the series, while Smith, Westwick and Whitcroft played for the Thistles. At the time of the series, the acting Stanley Cup trustee William Foran had already declared Smith and Westwick ineligible for the challenge series. After the series was over, the Manitoba League registered their disapproval over Mr. Foran's decision to exclude the players.
| Date | Winning Team | Score | Losing Team | Location |
| March 16, 1907 | Kenora Thistles | 8–6 | Brandon Wheat City | Winnipeg Auditorium |
| March 18, 1907 | Kenora Thistles | 4–1 | Brandon Wheat City | Winnipeg Auditorium |
| Kenora wins series 2–0 |||||
March 16, 1907 :
| Brandon Wheat City | vs | Kenora Thistles |
| Bobby Mercer | G | Eddie Geroux |
| Art Leader | P | Roxy Beaudro |
| Art Ross | CP | Si Griffis |
| George Smith | RO | Harry Westwick |
| Joe Hall Capt. | C | Fred Whitcroft |
| Walter Bellamy | RW | Alf Smith |
| Jack Fraser | LW | Tommy Phillips, Capt. |
| Art Serviss -RW | spare | Tom Hopper -R0/D |
| Roy Amrstrong -D | spare | Russell Phillips -RW/LW |
March 18, 1907 :
| Brandon Wheat City | vs | Kenora Thistles |
| Bobby Mercer | G | Eddie Geroux |
| Art Leader | P | Roxy Beaudro |
| Art Ross | CP | Si Griffis |
| George Smith | RO | Harry Westwick |
| Joe Hall Capt. | C | Fred Whitecorft |
| Walter Bellamy | RW | Alf Smith |
| Jack Fraser | LW | Tommy Phillips, Capt. |
| Art Serviss -RW | spare | Tom Hopper -R0/D |
| Roy Armstrong -D | spare | Russell Phillips -RW/LW |
- Goal scorers in both games are unknown.

### Montreal Wanderers vs. Kenora Thistles at Winnipeg

Kenora dressed Smith and Westwick for the challenge anyway and Montreal filed a protest with Foran. Foran ruled that both players were ineligible. The series was supposed to start on March 20 in Kenora but did not. One report was that the ice in the rink was too poor to play on and the rink was closed. The clubs went ahead and started the series on March 23 in Winnipeg instead, with Smith and Westwick playing. Foran was notified by the press (inaccurately) that Montreal had dropped its protest and that the clubs intended to play anyway. Foran threatened to take the Cup back to Ottawa:
   If the two clubs ignore the instructions of the cup trustees by mutually agreeing to play against Westwick and Smith when both were positively informed these men were ineligible to participate in the present cup matches, the series will be treated as void, and the cup will be taken charge of by the trustees. It will remain in their possession till the various hockey leagues can educate themselves up to a standard where decent sport will be the order of the day.”
The teams went ahead and played the series. However, Foran changed his mind after the Wanderers won the Cup, stating that the Wanderers could keep the Cup, because they had not rescinded their protest.
After the series, the Wanderers returned to Montreal with the Stanley Cup. The Cup was stolen from Montreal photographer Jimmy Rice's home and held for ransom. No ransom was paid, and the Cup was returned to Rice. It was used as a geranium planter until the fall.
| Date | Winning Team | Score | Losing Team | Location |
| March 23, 1907 | Montreal Wanderers | 7–2 | Kenora Thistles | Winnipeg Auditorium |
| March 25, 1907 | Kenora Thistles | 6–5 | Montreal Wanderers | Winnipeg Auditorium |
| Montreal wins total goals series 12 goals to 8 |||||
March 23, 1907 :
| Montreal Wanderers | 7 | at | Kenora Thistles | 2 |
| William "Riley" Hern | | G | Eddie Giroux | |
| Lester Patrick, Capt. | | P | Tom Hooper | |
| Hod Stuart | | CP | Si Griffis | |
| Frank "Pud" Glass | 2 | RO | Harry Westwick | |
| Ernie Russell | 4 | C | Fred Whitecroft | |
| Cecil Blachford | | RW | Alf Smith | 1 |
| Ernie "Moose" Johnson | 1 | LW | Tommy Phillips, Capt. | 1 |
| Bill Chipchase | | spare | Roxy Beaudro |
| Rod Kennedy | | spare | Russell Phillips |
| Referee- W. MacFarlane | | |
| Referee W. Kean | | |
March 25, 1907 :
| Montreal Wanderers | 5 | at | Kenora Thistles | 6 |
| William "Riley" Hern | | G | Eddie Giroux | |
| Lester Patrick, Capt. | 1 | P | Roxy Beaudro | 1 |
| Hod Stuart | | CP | Si Griffis | 1 |
| Frank "Pud" Glass | 1 | RO | Harry Westwick | |
| Ernie Russell | 1 | C | Fred Whitecroft | 2 |
| Cecil Blachford | | RW | Alf Smith | 1 |
| Ernie "Moose' Johnson | 2 | LW | Tommy Phillips, Capt. | 1 |
| Rod Kennedy | | spare | Russell Phillips |
| Bill Chipchase | | spare | Tom Hooper |
| Referee- W. MacFarlane | | |
| Referee W. Kean | | |

## Schedule and results

| Month | Day | Visitor | Score | Home | Score |
| Jan. | 2 | Wanderers | 6 | Victorias | 5 (10' overtime) |
| Jan. | 5 | Montreal | 5 | Shamrocks | 3 |
| Jan. | 5 | Quebec | 1 | Ottawa | 6 |
| Jan. | 9 | Wanderers | 6 | Montreal | 3 |
| Jan. | 12 | Ottawa | 2 | Wanderers | 4 |
| Jan. | 12 | Victorias | 10 | Quebec | 1 |
| Jan. | 16 | Victorias | 16 | Shamrocks | 3 |
| Jan. | 19 | Shamrocks | 2 | Ottawa | 6 |
| Jan. | 19 | Quebec | 8 | Montreal | 15 |
| Jan. | 23 | Victorias | 12 | Montreal | 6 |
| Jan. | 26 | Ottawa | 12 | Victorias | 10 |
| Jan. | 26 | Wanderers | 11 | Quebec | 3 |
| Jan. | 30 | Shamrocks | 5 | Montreal | 3 |
| Feb. | 2 | Montreal | 2 | Ottawa | 5 |
| Feb. | 2 | Quebec | 8 | Shamrocks | 11 |
| Feb. | 6 | Wanderers | 5 | Victorias | 2 |
| Feb. | 9 | Ottawa | 5 | Quebec | 4 (2' overtime) |
| Feb. | 9 | Montreal | 3 | Wanderers | 16 |
| Feb. | 13 | Shamrocks | 7 | Victorias | 19 |
| Feb. | 16 | Victorias | 7 | Ottawa | 16 |
| Feb. | 16 | Quebec | 5 | Wanderers | 13 |
| Feb. | 19 | Shamrocks | 5 | Wanderers | 18 |
| Feb. | 23 | Ottawa | 12 | Shamrocks | 6 |
| Feb. | 23 | Montreal | 5 | Quebec | 9 |
| Feb. | 27 | Montreal | 8 | Victorias | 13 |
| Mar. | 2† | Wanderers | 10 | Ottawa | 6 |
| Mar. | 2 | Quebec | 6 | Victorias | 7 |
| Mar. | 6 | Shamrocks | 5 | Wanderers | 16 |
| Mar. | 9 | Ottawa | 6 | Montreal | 8 |
| Mar. | 9 | Shamrocks | 5 | Quebec | 17 |
† Wanderers clinch league championship.

## Player statistics
### Goaltending averages

Note: GP = Games played, GA = goals against, SO = Shutouts, GAA = Goals against average
| Name | Club | GP | GA | GAA |
| Riley Hern | Wanderers | 10 | 39 | 3.9 |
| Percy LeSueur | Ottawa | 10 | 54 | 5.4 |
| Nathan Frye | Victorias | 10 | 70 | 7.0 |
| Charles Doddridge | Quebec | 4 | 30 | 7.5 |
| George White | Montreal | 10 | 83 | 8.3 |
| Paddy Moran | Quebec | 6 | 58 | 9.7 |
| Neil Currie | Shamrocks | 10 | 120 | 12.0 |

### Leading scorers

| Name | Club | GP | G |
| Russell, Ernie | Wanderers | 9 | 42 |
| Bowie, Russell | Victorias | 10 | 38 |
| Russell, Blair | Victorias | 10 | 25 |
| Smith, Harry | Ottawa | 9 | 21 |
| Sargent, Grover | Montreal | 10 | 20 |
| Hale, Chandler | Victorias | 7 | 18 |
| Smith, Alf | Ottawa | 9 | 17 |
| Shore, Hamby | Ottawa | 10 | 17 |
| Johnson, Ernie | Montreal | 10 | 15 |
| Constantine, Charles | Quebec | 7 | 15 |

## Stanley Cup engravings

The 1907 Stanley Cup was presented twice by the trophy's trustee William Foran: first to the Kenora Thistles, and then to the Montreal Wanderers.
While the Wanderers followed the tradition of having the names of all of their players engraved on the outside of the Cup, the Thistles only had their team name engraved on the inside of the bowl.
The following Thistles players and staff were members of the winning team.

### Players
#### Centres

* Billy McGimsie
* Harry Westwick(rover)†&,
* Fred Whitcroft(rover)†&.

#### Wingers

* Roxy Beaudro (also played point)
* Tom Phillips(Captain)
* Russell Phillips
* Alf Smith(right wing)†&

#### Defencemen

* Tom Hooper(also played Rover)
* Art Ross(Point)††
* Silas Griffis(Cover point)
* Joe Hall(Cover point did not play)††

#### Goaltenders

* Eddie Giroux

### Coaching and administrative staff

* Fred Hudson (Manager), James Link (Coach/Trainer)
* John McGillvary (Secretary/Treasurer), Lowrey Johnson (President)&
* † Not part of the team when Kenora won the Stanley Cup in January 1907. Harry Westwick, Fred Whitcroft, and Alf Smith joined the team in March 1907 to play against the Brandon Wheat City in two playoff games. They also played in Stanley Cup loss to the Montreal Wanderers.
* †† Left the team after winning the Stanley Cup, Art Ross, and Joe Hall and returned to play for Brandon. Kenora defeated Brandon in 2 game playoff for the Manitoba League Title/Stanley Cup. Ross & Hall played for Brandon in that series.
* &-Missing from the team picture.

### Stanley Cup engraving

Kenora engraved their team name inside the bowl lip of the Stanley Cup. 1907 Thistles of Kenora.
The following Wanderers players and staff were eligible to have their names engraved on the Stanley Cup

### Players
#### Centres

* Frank "Pud" Glass (Rover also played wing)
* Ernie Liffiton (also played wing)
* Cecil Blachford (Playing-Coach)
* Jack Marshall

#### Wingers

* Ernie "Moose" Johnson
* Ernie Russell
* Thomas Erskine (Spare)†

#### Defencemen

* Rod Kennedy(Point)
* Billy Strachan(point)
* Lester Patrick (also played Rover-Captain)
* Hod Stuart(Cover point)
* Bill Chipchase (spare)

#### Goaltenders

* William "Riley" Hern
** -Cecil Blachford served as Coach when he missed part of season due to a head injury. Lester Patrick filled in as Captain.

### Coaching and administrative staff

* James Strachan (President), Clarence McKerrow (Hon. President)
* Dickie Boon (Manager), George Guile (Secretary/Treasurer)
* Tom Hodge (Hon. Secretary), William Jennings (Vice President)
* Robert "Bob" Stephanson (Hon. Treasurer), Robert "Bob" Ahern (Hon. Vice President)
* Bert Strachan (Director), Filbert Strachan† (Director). H. Watson (Director)†. Paul Lefebvre (Trainer)†

### Stanley Cup engraving

* Montreal Wanderers engraved Wanderers defeated Kenora 12 to 8 March 25th, 1907. This was followed by 20 members' names inside the bowl of the Stanley Cup. This is first time that winning members were engraved on the Stanley Cup officially. The City of Montreal was included in 1906 engraving.
* Team picture included 9 players in uniform, 15 men in suites. Not all members are known.
* †-On the team picture, but missing from the Stanley Cup.
* After the season, the Stanley Cup was stolen from Montreal photographer Jimmy Rice's home after a team picture. When no one would pay a ransom for it, the Cup was left on Rice's doorstep, and his wife used it as a window-sill geranium planter until the fall.
* †† Who was MR. Chipcase?. He was William "Bill" Chipcase. W was stamped upside down looking like a Mr. Chipcase. He was first player who had his name spelt wrong on the Stanley Cup. Chipcase and Erskine were spares who did not play for Montreal in 1907. William Chipcase's name was included on the Stanley Cup, but not Thomas Erskine. Chipchase did play one game for the Stanley Cup winning Wanderers in 1910.
* Two names, that of S. Van Sickle and H. L. Linall were ratched onto the Cup that season.