With the formation of the National Hockey Association ( NHA ) in December 1909 , ( replaced 7 years later by the NHL ) , team/league owner Ambrose O'Brien asked Laviolette to put together a team made up of French Canadian players to play as the `` Les Canadiens '' franchise in Montreal .
When the National Hockey Association ( NHA ) formed in December 1909 , ( which was replaced 7 years later by the NHL ) , team/league owner Ambrose O'Brien asked Laviolette to put together a team made up of French Canadian players and play as the `` Les Canadiens '' franchise in Montreal .