- Ambrose O'Brien
John Ambrose O'Brien (
1885-05-27 –1968-04-25 ), was an industrialist and sports team owner. He was a founder of theNational Hockey Association (NHA), owner of theRenfrew Millionaires and the founding owner of theMontreal Canadiens professionalice hockey team.Born in
Renfrew, Ontario , O'Brien became involved in hockey. He played as a youth and eventually owned two clubs in northern Ontario inCobalt, Ontario andHaileybury, Ontario . In 1909, he founded theNational Hockey Association , theMontreal Canadiens and bought theRenfrew Creamery Kings . In the 1909–10 NHA season, the Creamery Kings received the nickname "Millionaires" as O'Brien signed up several stars of the time to extravagant contracts, including Fred Taylor, Frank andLester Patrick and acquiredNewsy Lalonde in an attempt to win theStanley Cup for Renfrew. The attempt was unsuccessful and he folded the team after two seasons.While in Montreal for business in November 1909, O'Brien was asked by the then owners of the Creamery Kings to apply to join the Canadian Hockey Association. He made the application but was turned down. Outside the hotel room where the CHA meetings were occurring he met
Jimmy Gardner , manager of theMontreal Wanderers . Together, they developed the idea of starting their own league with O'Brien's Cobalt and Haileybury teams, the Wanderers and a new team "Les Canadiens" for Montreal to capture francophone Montrealers interest as a rival for the Wanderers. TheMontreal Canadiens were born. O'Brien only owned the team for one season. After the season, he was sued by George W. Kendall (Kennedy) owner of the Club athlétique Canadien, claiming the legal rights to the Canadiens name. A settlement was reached and on November 12, 1910 Kendall acquired the team for $7,500.cite web|url=http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=7823
title= Canadian Dictionary of Biography online |publisher=Government of Canada Library and Archives|accessdate=2007-04-30|year=2007]Operation of the NHA teams was expensive and the NHA was forced to implement salary caps and maximum salaries. The O'Briens reduced their involvement. Whereas in 1910, four O'Brien-backed teams played in the NHA, only one, the Millionaires, played in 1910–11, O'Brien having sold the other three NHA franchises. Before the 1911–12 season the Millionaires were also no more, its players dispersed to the other NHA teams. O'Brien was never a team owner again. O'Brien was inducted as a builder into the
Hockey Hall of Fame in 1962.In December 2006, as the founder of the Montreal Canadiens, John Ambrose O'Brien was an inaugural inductee in the team's newly created 'Builders Row' in the
Bell Centre . cite web|url=http://canadiens.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=333775&page=NewsPage&service=page|title=The Canadiens launch "Builders Row" |publisher= Club de hockey Canadien, Inc.|accessdate=2008-05-15|year=2007]ee also
*
National Hockey Association
*Renfrew Millionaires Notes
External links
* [http://www.legendsofhockey.net:8080/LegendsOfHockey/jsp/LegendsMember.jsp?mem=B196205&type=Builder&page=bio&list=ByName#photo O'Brien at Legends of Hockey]
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