List of defunct and relocated National Hockey League teams

Shane Doan, captain of the Phoenix Coyotes, is the last player for the franchise that had played for it in its previous incarnation as the Winnipeg Jets.^[1]

The National Hockey League (NHL) is a professional men's ice hockey league, consisting of 30 teams in North America: 23 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It was founded in 1917 following the demise of its predecessor league, the National Hockey Association (NHA).^[2] The league is considered to be one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada.^[3] The Stanley Cup, the oldest professional sports trophy in North America, is awarded annually to the league champion.^[4] The NHL Board of Governors review and approve the relocation of any member club (franchise).^[5] Each team appoints an individual to become their Governor to represent their franchise on the Board of Governors.^[6] A majority vote (more than half) is needed for a relocation of a franchise.^[7] Teams considered permanently relocated moved out of their respective home territories, which includes the city that they were located in, plus 50 miles of the city's corporate limits.^[6] The term franchise refers to a team plus its former and future teams. For example, the Kansas City Scouts, Colorado Rockies, and the New Jersey Devils are one franchise.

There are 19 defunct and relocated NHL teams. The Montreal Wanderers, original Ottawa Senators, and the Quebec Athletic Club had played in the NHA before joining the NHL; Quebec joined the NHL two years later as the Bulldogs.^[8] The Pittsburgh Pirates played in the US Amateur Hockey Association as the Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets before joining the NHL in 1925.^[9] The first NHL team to disband was the Wanderers, citing the lack of available players due to World War I.^[10] The first team to relocate was the Bulldogs, who relocated to Hamilton, Ontario to become the Hamilton Tigers. The NHL president at the time, Frank Calder, stripped the franchise from owner Mike Quinn and sold it to a Hamilton-based company.^[11] Three franchises became defunct due to the Great Depression: the Philadelphia Quakers, the St. Louis Eagles, and the Montreal Maroons. During their time in the NHL, the Senators and Maroons both won the Stanley Cup championship multiple times, with four and two respectively. The Brooklyn Americans was the last team to become defunct in the NHL, thus began what became known as the Original Six era of the NHL. The franchise was struggling financially, and due to the lack of players via World War II, was suspended prior to the 1942–43 season. The franchise formally ceased in 1946.^[12]

The Original Six era ended when the NHL expanded twofold in 1967. Two teams from the expansion—the California Golden Seals and the Minnesota North Stars—relocated to other cities. The Golden Seals moved to Cleveland after nine years in the San Francisco Bay Area to become the Cleveland Barons; this was the first time in four decades the NHL approved a franchise relocation.^[13] Two years later, after failed overtures towards merging with the Washington Capitals and the Vancouver Canucks, the Barons merged with the North Stars.^[14] The Barons are the only NHL franchise to merge operations with another franchise.^[15] The North Stars relocated to Dallas in 1993 to become the Dallas Stars.^[16]

After six additional expansion teams, the merger of the Cleveland Barons with the Minnesota North Stars, and the NHL–WHA merger, the league expanded to 21 teams in 1979. Three of the four teams from the NHL–WHA merger relocated to other cities: the Quebec Nordiques, the original Winnipeg Jets, and the Hartford Whalers.^[17] The Nordiques became the Colorado Avalanche in 1995, while the original Jets became the Phoenix Coyotes in 1996, with the Whalers becoming the Carolina Hurricanes a year later. On June 21, 2011, the Board of Governors approved the sale and relocation of the Atlanta Thrashers, thus creating the current Winnipeg Jets for the 2011–12 season.^[18]

Most of the metropolitan areas that have hosted relocated or defunct teams have been given another NHL team. Montreal, Quebec City and Atlanta all have two defunct or relocated teams with the Wanderers and Maroons, the Athletics and Nordiques, and the Flames and Thrashers, respectively. Philadelphia (Philadelphia Flyers), Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh Penguins), and St. Louis (St. Louis Blues) gained teams during the 1967 expansion. After losing the Americans, two more teams have been added into the New York metropolitan area: the New York Islanders in 1972 and the New Jersey Devils in 1982. Other former host-metropolitan areas of NHL teams that have been given another team include: San Francisco Bay Area (San Jose Sharks in 1991), Ottawa (current Ottawa Senators in 1992), Denver (Colorado Avalanche in 1995), Minneapolis – Saint Paul (Minnesota Wild in 2000), and Winnipeg (current Jets in 2011).^[19]

Defunct and relocated teams

First	First year in the NHL
Last	Last year in the NHL
W–L–T–OT	Win–loss–tie–overtime record
Win%	Winning percentage
PA	NHL (1918–1926) / Stanley Cup playoff (1927–) appearances
SC	Stanley Cup wins
*	Denotes active franchise

Team	First	Last	Relocated to	Seasons	W–L–T–OT	Win%	PA	SC	Reason for relocation/disbandment	Reference
Montreal Wanderers	1917	1918[g]	&10000000000000000000000Defunct	1	&100000000000000010000001–5–0	.167	0	0	Lack of available players due to World War I[10]	[20]
Quebec Athletic Club	1919	1920	Hamilton Tigers	1	&100000000000000040000004–20–0	.167	0	0	Sold to a Hamilton-based company[11]	[21]
Hamilton Tigers	1920	1925	&10000000000000000000000Defunct	5	&1000000000000004700000047–78–1	.377	0	0	Ceased due to players' strike; players were bought by the New York Americans.[22]	[23]
Pittsburgh Pirates[a]	1925	1930	Philadelphia Quakers	5	&1000000000000006700000067–122–23	.370	2	0	Financial struggle during the Great Depression[9]	[24]
Philadelphia Quakers	1930	1931	&10000000000000000000000Defunct	1	&100000000000000040000004–36–4	.136	0	0	Financial struggle during the Great Depression[9]	[25]
Ottawa Senators[b]	1917	1934	St. Louis Eagles	16[h]	&10000000000000258000000258–221–63	.534	9	4	Financial struggle during the Great Depression[26]	[27]
St. Louis Eagles	1934	1935	&10000000000000000000000Defunct	1	&1000000000000001100000011–31–6	.292	0	0	Financial struggle during the Great Depression[28]	[29]
Montreal Maroons	1924	1938	&10000000000000000000000Defunct	14	&10000000000000271000000271–260–91	.509	11	2	Financial struggle during the Great Depression[30]	[31]
Brooklyn Americans[c]	1925	1942	&10000000000000000000000Defunct	17	&10000000000000255000000255–402–127	.406	5	0	Financial struggle, plus lack of players due to World War II; formally ceased in 1946.[12]	[32]
California Golden Seals[d]	1967	1976	Cleveland Barons	9	&10000000000000182000000182–401–115	.343	2	0	In search of better financial conditions; Cleveland is the hometown of minority owner George Gund III.[33]	[34]
Kansas City Scouts	1974	1976	Colorado Rockies	2	&1000000000000002700000027–110–23	.241	0	0	Financial struggle; sold to a group of investors with the intention to move.[35]	[36]
Cleveland Barons	1976	1978	Minnesota North Stars (merge)	2	&1000000000000004700000047–87–26	.375	0	0	Both teams with financial struggle[14]	[34]
Atlanta Flames	1972	1980	Calgary Flames*	8	&10000000000000268000000268–260–108	.506	6	0	Financial struggle; sold to Nelson Skalbania with the intention to move to Calgary.[37]	[38]
Colorado Rockies[e]	1976	1982	New Jersey Devils*	6	&10000000000000113000000113–281–86	.325	0	0	Sold to John McMullen; New Jersey is the home state of McMullen.[39]	[36]
Minnesota North Stars	1967	1993	Dallas Stars*	26	&10000000000000758000000758–970–334	.449	17	0	In search of better financial conditions[16][40]	[41]
Quebec Nordiques	1979	1995	Colorado Avalanche*	16	&10000000000000497000000497–599–160	.459	9	0	Financial struggle; sold to a Denver-based group.[42]	[43]
Winnipeg Jets[f]	1979	1996	Phoenix Coyotes*	17	&10000000000000506000000506–660–172	.442	11	0	Sold to a group of investors with the intention to move in search of better financial conditions.[44]	[45]
Hartford Whalers	1979	1997	Carolina Hurricanes*	18	&10000000000000534000000534–709–177	.438	8	0	In search of better financial conditions[46]	[47]
Atlanta Thrashers	1999	2011	Winnipeg Jets*	11	&10000000000000342000000342–437–45–78	.447	1	0	Financial struggle; sold to a Winnipeg-based company.[18]	[48]

Notes

• ^a Not affiliated with the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB)
• ^b Not affiliated with the present-day Ottawa Senators
• ^c The team was formerly known as the New York Americans (1925–1941).
• ^d The team was formerly known as the California Seals (1967) and Oakland Seals (1967–1970).
• ^e Not affiliated with the Colorado Rockies of MLB
• ^f Not affiliated with the present-day Winnipeg Jets
• ^g The Wanderers played six games during the 1917–18 season before becoming defunct.^[49]
• ^h The Senators were on hiatus during the 1931–32 season due to financial struggle.^[50]

Map of defunct and relocated teams

Map of the defunct and relocated NHL teams; the team names are clickable.

See also

• History of the National Hockey League
• History of organizational changes in the NHL
• Potential National Hockey League expansion

References

• "Team Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
• Holzman, Morey; Nieforth, Joseph (2002), Deceptions and Doublecross: How the NHL Conquered Hockey, Dundurn Press, p. 159, ISBN 1550024132, http://books.google.ca/books?id=COb82MiKyGQC&lpg=PP1&dq=National%20Hockey%20League&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=true 
• McFarlane, Brian (1990), 100 Years of Hockey, Summerhill Press, ISBN 0-929091-26-4 
• Pincus, Arthur (2006), "The Official Illustrated NHL History", Reader's Digest, ISBN 0-88850-800-X 

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2. ^ Holzman 2002, p. 159
3. ^ Darren Everson (May 7, 2009). "The Four Sports Commissioners Weigh In". The Wall Street Journal: p. D9. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124166336985294745.html. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
4. ^ "Stanley Cup History". Hockey Hall of Fame. http://www.legendsofhockey.net/html/silver_splashstanleycup.htm. Retrieved May 8, 2011. 
5. ^ McGran, Kevin (June 6, 2009). "NHL`s secret constitution revealed". Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/article/646798. Retrieved May 17, 2011. 
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8. ^ Pincus 2006, p. 24
9. ^ ^{a b c} Bouchette, Ed (May 2, 1999). "Ice Age". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. http://www.post-gazette.com/sports_headlines/19990502hockey4.asp. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
10. ^ ^{a b} McFarlane, Brian. "Early Leagues and the Birth of the NHL". National Hockey League. http://capitals.nhl.com/club/page.htm?bcid=his_EarlyLeagues. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
11. ^ ^{a b} Holzman 2002, p. 230
12. ^ ^{a b} McFarlane 1990, p. 43
13. ^ McFarlane 1990, p. 144
14. ^ ^{a b} McFarlane 1990, p. 163
15. ^ "10 Sports Franchises That Have Gone Bankrupt: 1978 Cleveland Barons". CNBC. http://www.cnbc.com/id/39915632/10_Sports_Franchises_That_Have_Gone_Bankrupt?slide=4. Retrieved May 15, 2011. 
16. ^ ^{a b} Montville, Leigh (April 19, 1993). "Spleen for Green". Sports Illustrated. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1138154/3/index.htm. Retrieved May 12, 2011. 
17. ^ Willes, Ed (2004). The Rebel League: The Short and Unruly Life of the World Hockey Association. McClelland & Stewart. ISBN 0-7710-8947-3. 
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20. ^ "Montreal Wanderers Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/MTW/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
21. ^ "Quebec Bulldogs Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/QBC/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
22. ^ Pincus 2006, p. 35
23. ^ "Hamilton Tigers Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/HAM/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
24. ^ "Pittsburgh Pirates Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/PTP/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
25. ^ "Philadelphia Quakers Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/PHQ/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
26. ^ "No NHL Hockey Team for Ottawa Next Winter". The Ottawa Evening Citizen: p. 1. April 7, 1934. 
27. ^ "Ottawa Senators Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/OTS/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
28. ^ "St Louis Out of Title Hunt: League Buys Franchise Splits Players Among Remaining Eight Clubs". Leader-Post. October 16, 1935. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=T3lTAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OTgNAAAAIBAJ&pg=1637,5205364&dq=st-louis-eagles+eighteen&hl=en. Retrieved May 18, 2011. 
29. ^ "St. Louis Eagles Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/STE/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
30. ^ Coleman, Charles L. (1969). The Trail of the Stanley Cup, Vol II. Progressive Publications. 
31. ^ "Montreal Maroons Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/MTM/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
32. ^ "New York Americans Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/NYA/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
33. ^ Bass, Alan (2011). The Great Expansion: The Ultimate Risk That Changed the NHL Forever. p. 83. ISBN 1450286054. 
34. ^ ^{a b} "Cleveland Barons Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/CLE/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
35. ^ "Scout Move Almost Complete". Leader-Post. Associated Press. July 16, 1976. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_DdVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Hz4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=1000,69419. Retrieved May 27, 2011. 
36. ^ ^{a b} "New Jersey Devils Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/NJD/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
37. ^ "Flames Sold, To Move to Calgary". The Palm Beach Post. May 24, 1980. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lwAtAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mM0FAAAAIBAJ&pg=3822,3502982&dq=atlanta+flames+sold+to+calgary&hl=en. Retrieved May 18, 2011. 
38. ^ "Calgary Flames Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/CGY/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
39. ^ McFarlane 1990, p. 206
40. ^ "The 35 Biggest Moments in Modern Dallas History". D Magazine. December 16, 2009. http://www.dmagazine.com/Home/D_Magazine/2010/January/The_35_Biggest_Moments_in_Modern_Dallas_History_11.aspx. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
41. ^ "Dallas Stars Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/DAL/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
42. ^ Deacon, James (June 5, 1995). "Nordiques Move to Colorado". Maclean's. http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=M1ARTM0010425. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
43. ^ "Colorado Avalanche Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/COL/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
44. ^ "Phoenix isn't only city interested in Winnipeg Jets". The Daily Courier. December 3, 1995. p. 2B. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FhsOAAAAIBAJ&sjid=kn0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6918,308177&hl=en. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
45. ^ "Phoenix Coyotes Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/PHX/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
46. ^ Rabinovitz, Jonathan (March 27, 1997). "Another Blow to Hartford: Whalers to Leave, Rejecting Arena Offer". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1997/03/27/nyregion/another-blow-to-hartford-whalers-to-leave-rejecting-arena-offer.html?pagewanted=3&src=pm. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
47. ^ "Carolina Hurricanes Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/CAR/. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
48. ^ "Atlanta Thrashers Franchise Index". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/ATL/. Retrieved June 1, 2011. 
49. ^ "1917-18 NHL Season Summary". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. http://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_1918.html. Retrieved April 30, 2011. 
50. ^ *Wong, John Chi-Kit (2005). Lords of the Rinks: The Emergence of the National Hockey League, 1875–1936. Toronto, Ontario: University of Toronto Press. p. 130. ISBN 0802085202.