The team was owned and operated by Maple Leaf Gardens Limited, and served as a farm team for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

[1][2][3][4] Prior to launching the Tigers, the Leafs were affiliated with the New Brunswick Hawks of the American Hockey League (AHL), which they shared with the Chicago Black Hawks.

[1][3] However, Harold Ballard, owner of the Leafs, decided that they needed a developmental team of their own,[5] with a spokesperson citing the limited number of roster spots as the rationale for the move.

[3][1] The team averaged only 1,500 fans and lost $750,000 in their first season, leading the Leafs to dissolve the Tigers in the spring of 1982.

[6][7][8] Shortly thereafter, with Chicago having pulled out of New Brunswick in favour of affiliating with the Springfield Indians on their own,[7][8] the Leafs relocated the New Brunswick Hawks to St. Catharines, Ontario to establish the St. Catharines Saints as their farm team.