The Toronto Neil McNeil Maroons were a junior ice hockey team in the

Metro Junior A League The Metro Junior A League was a junior ice hockey league created in 1961 by Toronto Maple Leafs owner Stafford Smythe in an attempt to rival the OHA, and act as a farm system for his NHL team. The league operated for two seasons from 1961 to 196 ...

as part of the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) Major Junior Series. The Maroons were operated by

Neil McNeil High School Neil McNeil Catholic High School is an all-boys Roman Catholic secondary school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is named after Neil McNeil, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Vancouver from 1910 to 1912 and Roman Catholic Archbishop of Toronto from ...

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, su ...

, Ontario. The team finished its only season in first place, were coached by Jim Gregory and included prospect players for the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

History

The Toronto Neil McNeil Maroons were formed from the remnants of the Toronto St. Michael's Majors in 1962. The Majors were operated by

St. Michael's College School St. Michael's College School, (also known as St. Michael's, St. Mike's, and SMCS), is an independent, Catholic school for young men in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Administered by the Basilian Fathers, it is the largest school of its kind in Cana ...

, which withdrew the Majors from the top tier of junior ice hockey in Ontario Hockey Association in June 1961 due to the length of the season impacting academic performance of its student athletes. After the Majors played the

1961–62 OHA season This is a list of OHA standings and season-by-season summaries of the Ontario Hockey Association's Junior A division from 1933 to 1972, and its Tier I division from 1972 to 1974. ;Legend * GP = games played * W = wins * L = losses * T = ties * P ...

in the

, the school decided to end the Majors program. The

' prospect players on the Majors were transferred to

, with Jim Gregory remaining as their coach and the director of the Maple Leafs'

farm team In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

system.Oliver, Greg (2017), p. 71 The Maroons finished in first place in the Metro Junior A league during the 1962–63 OHA season, and reached the finals for the

J. Ross Robertson Cup The J. Ross Robertson Cup is a Canadian ice hockey trophy. It is awarded annually in junior ice hockey to the champion of the Ontario Hockey League playoffs. It was donated by John Ross Robertson to the Ontario Hockey Association in 1910, and ...

but lost to the

Niagara Falls Flyers The Niagara Falls Flyers were two junior ice hockey franchises that played in the top tier in the Ontario Hockey Association. The first, a Junior "A" team existed from 1960 until 1972, and the second in Tier I Junior "A" from 1976 until 1982. ...

. The Maroons were amalgamated into the

Toronto Marlboros The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated junior ice hockey and senior ice hockey teams in the Ontario Hockey Association and later the Ontario Hockey League. The Marlboros ...

in 1963, another farm team of the Maple Leafs.

NHL alumni

List of team alumni who played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL): * Andre Champagne * Mike Corbett *

Mike Corrigan Michael Joseph Douglas Corrigan father to “Big S Corrigan” and grandfather to Ryan Corrigan (born January 11, 1946) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played 594 games in the National Hockey League. He played for the ...

Gary Dineen Daniel Gary Patrick Dineen (December 24, 1943 – April 1, 2006) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and coach. Dineen played five seasons with the Canadian national amateur team, including at the 1964 Winter Olympics, 1964 and 1968 Wint ...

* Billy MacMillan * Jim McKenny * Gerry Meehan * Rod Seiling * Gary Smith * Mike Walton

Season results

Statistical results from the 1962–63 OHA season:

Bibliography

References

{{Defunct OHL Defunct Ontario Hockey League teams Ice hockey teams in Toronto Ice hockey clubs established in 1962 1962 establishments in Ontario Sports clubs disestablished in 1963 1963 disestablishments in Ontario