Toronto Blueshirts The Toronto Hockey Club , known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blueshirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto , Ontario , Canada . The club won the Stanley Cup in 1914 , before becoming the centre of controversy amongst National Hockey Association owners leading to the NHA suspending operations and the owners forming the National Hockey League . The franchise was taken away from its owner in 1917 and the Toronto players played in the NHL in 1917 – 18 as the Torontos , winning the Stanley Cup again under temporary ownership . The temporary operators then formed an official franchise for the 1918 – 19 season that eventually evolved into today ' s Toronto Maple Leafs . History . Founding to Cup winners . In 1911 National Hockey Association ( NHA ) owner Ambrose O ' Brien , who had operated four franchises including Cobalt , Haileybury , Montreal Canadiens and Renfrew decided not to operate hockey franchises any longer . Three of the four franchises had beened by O ' Brien before the previous season and now Renfrew would fold as well . Quebec and Montreal Canadiens had bought two of the franchises from O ' Brien , and the final two were sold to Toronto interests . The Toronto franchise was bought by Percy Quinn , who was also president of the Dominion Lacrosse Association , a Canadian professional lacrosse league that had patterned itself after the NHA . Although the NHA franchise was bought from O ' Brien who had operated a team with it , no other assets came with the franchise . According to " Coleman " , the franchise for the Blueshirts was that used by the Montreal Canadiens . Other books quote O ' Brien as selling the Canadiens to George Kennedy , leaving the case of which franchise was sold in dispute . In any case , the Toronto team was built from scratch and did not include any players from Les Canadiens . The first manager was former Ottawa Senators player Bruce Ridpath , who had intended to be a playing - coach but was no longer able to play due to an injury suffered when he was struck by an automobile the previous year . Toronto had not previously had an arena with artificial ice that would be large enough for an NHA team , but in 1911 , work began on Arena Gardens , which was planned to be the largest indoor arena in Canada . Two teams were scheduled to use the rink for NHA play . The Tecumseh Club in Toronto also received an NHA franchise in 1911 and the schedule for the 1911 – 12 season was drawn up with two Toronto teams . No games were scheduled to be played in Toronto until the end of January , when the new arena was supposed to be ready . It soon became clear that construction of Arena Gardens would not be finished in time , and in mid - December it was announced that the two Toronto teams had been dropped from the schedule and the league would play with only four teams that season . The Blueshirts played their first game on December 25 1912 before 4 , 000 fans at Arena Gardens . The Toronto Hockey Club was owned by Quinn , managed by Ridpath , and initially coached by Tom Humphrey who was soon replaced by player - coach Jack Marshall . The team Ridpath put on the ice included Cully Wilson and future hall - of - famers Hap Holmes , Harry Cameron , Frank Foyston , and Frank Nighbor . The Blueshirts finished the year in a tie for third place . Before the 1913 – 14 season , the club faced some upheaval . Ridpath resigned as manager in October 1913 , and the club was sold to Frank Robinson . Despite the changes , the Blueshirts won the Stanley Cup in 1914 , defeating the Montreal Canadiens in a playoff to decide the NHA champion . After the season , the team then played a series with the Victoria Cougars of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association . It was intended as a challenge series for the Stanley Cup , but was ruled an unofficial challenge because Victoria had not applied to the Stanley Cup trustees . Nevertheless , the Blueshirts defeated Victoria in a best - of - five series played in Toronto in three straight games . The Livingstone era . The next season , the team fell to fourth place in the six - team NHA with a record of 8 wins and 12 losses ( down from 13 wins and 7 losses ) . Robinson joined the Canadian military in 1915 , leaving the Blueshirts effectively rudderless . Sensing an opportunity , Eddie Livingstone , owner of the Toronto Shamrocks , purchased the Blueshirts from Robinson and owned two NHA teams . At the same time , the Pacific Coast Hockey Association — upset over the NHA ' s efforts to bring Cyclone Taylor back east — broke all ties with the NHA and conducted a player raid . The PCHA created a new team in Seattle and stocked it with the Blueshirts ' two leading scorers in Wilson and Foyston , their goaltender , Hap Holmes , and two other key members of the Toronto team in Jack Walker and Eddie Carpenter . The only regular Blue Shirt player to remain in Toronto was Cameron . To make up for the players lost in the raid , Livingstone transferred Shamrocks players to the Blueshirts and allowed the Shamrock franchise to go dormant . The Blueshirts , comprised mostly of former Shamrock players , skated to a record of 9 wins , 14 losses and 1 tie in the 1915 – 16 NHA season , finishing in last place in the five - team league . Livingstone was frequently at odds with his fellow owners , particularly Sam Lichtenhein of the Montreal Wanderers . Tempers boiled over when the NHA added a second Toronto team in 1916 – 17 , representing the 228th Battalion of the Canadian army . The 228th was forced to withdraw its team in mid - season when the unit was called overseas . That left the NHA with an odd number of teams , and the team owners — at a meeting that did not include Livingstone — decided to even - up the number of teams by suspending operations of the Blueshirts for the rest of the season . All players were given to other NHA teams for the rest of the season . At the time , the plan was to return the players to the Toronto franchise , but the rest of the league wanted Livingstone out . 1917 – 19 : Arena era . Before the start of the 1917 – 18 season , the NHA owners announced that the league would not operate in the 1917 – 18 season . About two weeks later , all of the owners except Livingstone announced that they were creating a new league , the National Hockey League . Livingstone was not invited to participate in the new league . However , the other teams wished to continue a team in Toronto , and also needed a fourth team to balance the schedule due to the Quebec Bulldogs ' decision to sit out the season . Accordingly , Livingstone ' s landlord , the Toronto Arena Company , was given a temporary Toronto franchise in the NHL and took Livingstone ' s Blueshirts players for the inaugural 1917 – 18 NHL season . At the time , Frank Calder , the NHA and NHL president , was demanding that Livingstone sell his franchise , and promised to pay Livingstone the proceeds . The NHA / NHL claimed the $ 5000 franchise fee from the 1919 St . Patricks was to ' buy ' Livingstone ' s hockey club . The proceeds appear to have gone into Mr . Calder ' s pocket . To Toronto fans , it would have looked like little had changed . Although the team had no official name , it was made up mostly of former Blueshirts . As a result , the newspapers still called the team the Blueshirts or the Torontos , as they always had . Led by general manager Charlie Querrie and coach Dick Carroll , the team won the Stanley Cup in 1918 . In fitting fashion , no winner was engraved on the Stanley Cup . However , in 1947 , the NHL added the name of the Toronto Arenas for 1918 . The Arena Company had originally promised to return the Blueshirt players to Livingstone . Instead , before the 1918 – 19 season , it formed a new club , the Toronto Arena Hockey Club . This new franchise was separated from the Arena Company because it was due money to Livingstone from the players and the Stanley Cup revenues ( fixed later by court at $ 20 , 000 ) . The NHL readily admitted this new team as a member in good standing . Charlie Querrie remained as general manager . It had a dismal five - win season , and blamed Livingstone for interference . By 1919 , the NHA owners had established that there would be no revival of the NHA . However , the dispute with Livingstone forced the Arena Company into bankruptcy . The Arenas were sold to a group headed by Querrie , who renamed them the Toronto St . Patricks . This team became the Toronto Maple Leafs midway through the 1926 – 27 season . Despite the ties to the Blueshirts , the Maple Leafs do not claim the Blueshirts ' history as their own , though they claim the history of the " temporary " Toronto franchise of 1917 – 18 . Notable players . The following former Blueshirts have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame :