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but everybody thinks it is.
Here is the «official explanation», followed by the history of the creation of «Club de Hockey Canadien», also known in Québec as La Sainte Flanelle or Les Glorieux.
Legend has it that the "H" on the Canadiens logo stands for "Habs" instead of "Hockey" as in Club de Hockey Canadien. In 1924, Madison Square Garden owner Tex Rickard was falsely told by someone that the "H" stood for "habitant", a French word that in those days was used to denote the farmers of Quebec. Rickard was told that the French players on the team came from the farms and that they were therefore "habitants" or "Habs". At the time, the Canadiens were considered Montreal's "French" team, as opposed to the primairly "English" Montreal Maroons.
December 4, 1909
During a meeting of the National Hockey Association (NHA), held in Room 129 of the Windsor Hotel, the Canadiens are founded by J. Ambrose O'Brien, a sportsman from Ottawa, with financial support from another magnate of the time, T.C. Hare. The latter providing the $1,000 required for the formation of a team as well as the $5,000 to guarantee the players' salaries. Mr. O'Brien delegates the task of forming and managing this new, largely francophone team, to Jack Laviolette.
January 5, 1910
The Canadiens play the first game in their history on the neutral ice of the Jubilee rink, located on Sainte-Catherine Street East, before a crowd of 3,000 spectators. They win 7-6, in overtime against the Cobalt Silver Kings.
January 15, 1910
Judging the survival of two professional leagues impossible, the managers of the NHA persuade the Ottawa team and the Shamrocks to leave the Canadian Hockey Association (CHA) and join them. The CHA, left with only three members, is dissolved. A revised schedule is prepared and only those games played starting on January 15th are counted.
January 19, 1910
The Canadiens play their first game of the revised schedule; a 9-4 loss to Renfrew.
November 12, 1910
The NHA grants the Canadiens franchise to George Kendall-Kenndy and the club officially becomes Club Athlétique Canadien, a name it retains until 1917.
November 26, 1917
Founding of the National Hockey League (NHL) at the Windsor Hotel in Montreal. Ottawa, Canadiens, Wanderers and Toronto receive a franchise in the new league, succeeding the NHA. At this time, the Club Athlétique Canadien changes its name to officially become Club de Hockey Canadien and begins displaying the celebrated CH logo.
posted by 207.253.9...
, Sun, 24 Feb 2002 18:37:53, Mon, 25 Feb 2002 00:57:39
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