1918–19 NHL season
However, the season ended early with Toronto suspending operations, leaving Montreal and Ottawa to play off for the championship.
The two together tried to lease the ice time at the Toronto Arena Gardens, Ottawa Arena and Montreal Jubilee Rink from under the noses of the NHL owners, launched several lawsuits, attempted to launch a competing league and attempted to relaunch the NHA, but ultimately were unsuccessful.
Since Toronto had won the Cup in 1917–18, a monkey wrench had been thrown into the other owners' scheme to get rid of Livingstone.
On October 2, Quinn signed a lease agreement with Ted Dey of the Ottawa Arena to hold exclusive rights for pro hockey there.
However, Dey double-crossed Quinn, not cashing his deposit cheque, and signing a five-year agreement with the NHL for the use of the facility.
This was at the instigation of the Ottawa club, which would not return to the NHL otherwise, and had the pending option with Percy Quinn to operate in the Canadian league.
[7] While this was going on, the NHA's suit to recover $3,500 from the Toronto 228th hockey team's insurer, the Ocean Accident and Guarantee Limited, was heard and dismissed.
In his judgment, Judge Falconbridge noted that an insurance bond posted by the 228th could never have been enforceable, and that they had been ordered overseas under no fault of their own and that there was no clear legal status of the team, having played under the franchise of the non-operating Ontario Hockey Club.
[9] In a related development, Livingstone entered into an agreement with the managers of the Jubilee Rink to lease it for pro hockey.
Legal action came to a head on December 16 when Lucien Riopel won a court judgment expelling Allard.
Separately, the Montreal and Ottawa NHA owners met and paid the fees owing to the league and Calder fined the Torontos, Ontarios and Quebec a further $200.
The penalty system was refined at the instigation of the Ottawa players: Technical changes were also made to the league rules.
It had been anticipated that the end of World War I would release many veterans to join their old clubs, but very few were demobilized in time to do so.
Left with only two teams, the league had its first ever best-of-seven series to determine who would meet the Pacific Coast Hockey Association champions for the Stanley Cup.
Their only previous meeting came in the 1916–17 NHA season in a two-game total goals series which Montreal won 7–6.
With Ottawa star Frank Nighbor missing most of the series due to a family bereavement,[15] the Senators lost the first three games.
[16] Several players on both sides were sick because of it, and it would eventually claim the life of Canadiens' forward Joe Hall five days later.
It remained under the care of the Canadiens who had won it in 1917, until the death of their owner, George Kennedy in 1921, when the NHL made arrangements to re-use the trophy.
