Quebec Bulldogs The Quebec Bulldogs were a men ' s senior - level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Athletics . Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada ( AHAC ) in 1889 , although a Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played in tournaments prior to that date . The club continued as an amateur team through various leagues , eventually becoming professional in 1908 , and eventually playing in the National Hockey League . The " Bulldog " name was given by the media and was so popular with the fans a Bulldog mascot was created but was never officially changed until the team moved to Hamilton , Ontario in 1920 and became the Tigers . Franchise history . Amateur Roots , 1888 - 1908 . The Bulldogs arrived on the hockey scene in 1888 as part of the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada ( AHAC ) . They also played in the CAHL and ECAHA . Over that time , Quebec was not very successful . Quebec won one championship , that of the CAHL in 1904 . National Hockey Association . In late 1909 , Quebec became a founding member of the Canadian Hockey Association ( CHA ) in 1909 . The CHA , however , would only last one month before being absorbed into the much more powerful National Hockey Association ( NHA ) . Unsure if they wanted to join the NHA , the Bulldogs sat out the inaugural 1910 season . The following season , 1910 - 11 , the Bulldogs took over the defunct Cobalt Silver Kings franchise , but had a rough initiation , finishing dead last with 4 wins and 12 losses in a 16 game season . On a positive note , and a sign of things to come , Jack McDonald scored 14 goals and Tommy Dunderdale scored 13 . For 1911 - 12 , the Bulldogs went from worst to first , with Joe Malone having a spectacular season , to win the Stanley Cup as champions of the NHA . The Dogs ' record improved to 10 wins and 8 losses while Malone scored 21 goals and Jack McDonald scored 18 . In a Stanley Cup challenge , they crushed the Moncton Victorias in 2 games , 9 - 3 and 8 - 0 , in the best of three playoff . In their third season ( 1912 - 13 ) , Quebec would again finish first overall with a record of 16 wins and 4 losses to retain the Cup . Joe Malone won the scoring race with an unprecedented 43 goals . His teammate , Tommy Smith , was a close second with 39 . In a Stanley Cup challenge after the season the team easily beat the Sydney Millionaires in two games by a combined score of 20 to 5 . The Victoria Aristocrats of the PCHA next challenged the Bulldogs . The powerhouse Bulldogs expected to bowl over the Aristocrats , but were shocked after splitting the first two games and then losing 6 - 1 in the decisive third game . Fortunately for Quebec , and unfortunately for Victoria , the Stanley Cup Board of trustees did not recognise the challenge by the Aristocrats as being official and the Bulldogs were able to keep the Cup . The following seasons would see the Bulldogs drop from the top of the league . They would finish third overall in each of the next three seasons and in the last NHA season ( 1916 - 17 ) went second overall . After their two Stanley Cup wins , though , they would never again challenge for the Cup . National Hockey League and the move to Hamilton 1917 - 1925 . With the end of the National Hockey Association and the start of the National Hockey League , the Quebec Bulldogs were invited to become a founding member of the NHL . Unfortunately , Quebec was unable to garner the required funds or merge with a top amateur team , and suspended operations for two seasons . While the team was suspended , their star player , Joe Malone , played for the Montreal Canadiens . When the Bulldogs resumed play for the 1919 - 20 season , Malone rejoined them . Malone would win the scoring championship that year with 39 goals . Despite Malone ' s scoring and the presence of players like Harry Mummery , the Bulldogs had a dismal season , finishing last , with four wins and twenty losses . Before the 1920 - 21 season , the NHL took back the franchise , and sold it to Hamilton owners who moved the team to Hamilton where it became the Tigers . This helped to head off a potential competing league from setting up in Hamilton . The team played as the Hamilton Tigers in the NHL from 1920 to 1925 . Due in large part to a players ' strike in the 1925 NHL playoffs , the franchise was revoked a second time , in the summer of 1925 and the players bought out by the expansion New York Americans franchise . The Americans would play in the NHL from 1925 to 1942 . The last active Bulldogs player was Dave Ritchie , who retired in 1926 . The Last Game . On March 10th , the Bulldogs finished off their 1919 - 20 season ( and their career ) with a 10 - 4 win over the Ottawa Senators on home ice . Joe Malone led the Bulldogs with six goals .