Western Pennsylvania Hockey League The Western Pennsylvania Hockey League ( WPHL ) , was a semi - professional ice hockey league from the early 1900s . Based in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania , the league was the pre - eminent ice hockey league at the time in the United States . It was the first league to openly hire and trade players . History . The Original WPHL . Prior to 1900 the city of Pittsburgh was one of the first cities in North America to have an artificial ice surface , located in the Duquesne Gardens . The city quickly realized that to make money they would have to have more events than just speed skating , family skates and costume parties to make money . They decided that since hockey was a relatively new game , it could catch on Pittsburgh . James Conant , who was manager of Pittsburgh ' s first two indoor ice rinks , the Gardens and the Schenley Park Casino , therefore formed the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League . The league had three teams in 1901 - 02 : Pittsburgh Bankers , Pittsburgh Athletic Club and the Pittsburgh Keystones . To fill these teams many business and organizations imported young Canadians like George Lamb and Bill Hamilton and set up teams . The league lured players from Canada with promises of high - paid employment and small cash incentives . At this time , all hockey leagues in Canada were amateur , and they were able to get many great players such as future Hall of Famers Alf Smith , Hod Stuart and Riley Hern . However in the summer of 1902 Harry Peel , a Keystones player in 1901 - 02 , admitted that he was paid $ 35 a week to play in the so - called amateur league and so no amateur teams would play against these teams again without being suspended by either Canadian , or U . S . officials . Peel was suspended by the Ontario Hockey Association and an appeal was rejected on December 10 , 1903 and again on November 30 , 1904 . According to Peel , " They ( the teams ) make no bones whatever about paying men . If they do not pay them they give them fake ( business ) positions " . However by the start of the 1902 - 03 season the WPHL was now a fully professional league with the Pittsburgh Victorias making a fourth WPHL team . More great stars were enticed to come to Pittsburgh as they could accept pay for play . Bruce and Hod Stuart became major stars in 1902 - 03 . While players like Fred Lake , were already well known to hockey fans . The champion of this league competed against Houghton , Michigan ' s Portage Lakes Hockey Club for the " Pro Championship of the United States " prior to the formation of the International Professional Hockey League for the 1904 - 05 season . Portage Lakes played off with the Pittsburgh Bankers . Portage Lakes won 2 - 1 with a game tied , but they were outscored 11 - 6 . The next season , Portage Lakes continued to play Pro exhibition games , but raided Pittsburgh ’ s teams for top players like Riley Hern and Bruce Stuart . Despite these losses the WPHL started with the same four clubs , but the Keystones withdrew from the league on January 17 , 1904 . The team ' s players were then dispersed to the other three teams . Many other promising young players took their place and three different Pittsburgh teams challenged Portage Lakes for the U . S . Pro title that year . The league champion Victorias put up the best battle , losing two games to one . International Professional Hockey League . In 1904 - 05 the first inter - city professional league was formed called the International Professional Hockey League ( IHL ) . The Pittsburgh Pros joined Portage Lakes , Calumet , Michigan Soo and Canadian Soo as the five teams . Over half of the players in the league had played in Pittsburgh at one time , so those early leagues were key pioneers in the development of professional hockey . However the Pittsburgh team didn ’ t fare too well during the first season . However in 1905 - 06 they were part of a great three team race with Portage Lakes and the Michigan Soo Indians for first place . Professional leagues were now popping up all over Canada and most of the great players went back home for a better pay day , so the IHL folded . It was decided to revive the four team WPHL for the 1907 - 08 hockey season , which started several weeks before the Canadian leagues , since there were no artificial ice rinks in Canada until 1911 . WPHL revived . The WPHL was revived in 1907 . The league consisted of the Pittsburgh Lyceum , Pittsburgh Athletic Club , Pittsburgh Bankers and the newly formed Pittsburgh Pirates ( WPHL ) . The revived league still some great stars like Albert Kerr and Art Throop , but many of the players got better offers from the Canadian leagues in late December and the team lineups were patched together at best to complete the season . In what might have been the first trade involving professional hockey players , the Pirates sent James MacKay , Edgar Dey and Dunc Taylor to the Bankers for Josephy Donnelly , Cliff Bennest and a player named McGuire on January 28 , 1908 . 1908 - 09 brought great promise , with Alf Smith , Art Sixsmith , Lorne Campbell and goalie James MacKay in charge of the four teams , but by late December fully one - third of the leagues players had accepted offers to play in different leagues and it was becoming obvious that many players used the WPHL to get a head start on their season back home . Four of those players ( Tommy Smith , Con Corbeau , Albert Kerr and Harry Smith ) all jumped contracts again during the season , so local moguls must have gotten a chuckle out of that . Pittsburgh Lyceum folded on December 23 and because it was impossible to count on a line - up after December 20 , it was decided to discontinue the WPHL after the season and stick with local hockey . Teams that played in the WPHL include : Prominent Players . The following players are members of the Hockey Hall of Fame :