The Vancouver Millionaires (later known as the Vancouver Maroons) were a professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

team that competed in the

Pacific Coast Hockey Association The Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) was a professional ice hockey league in western Canada and the western United States, which operated from 1911 to 1924 when it then merged with the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL). The PCHA was cons ...

and the

Western Canada Hockey League The Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL), founded in 1921, was a major professional ice hockey league originally based in the prairies of Canada. It was renamed the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 1925 and disbanded in 1926. The WCHL's Victoria C ...

between 1911 and 1926. Based in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, they played in

Denman Arena Denman Arena was an indoor arena located in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. The arena was located at 1805 West Georgia Street at the northwest corner with Denman Street. It opened in December 1911 and was destroyed by fire in 1936. Its pri ...

, the first artificial ice surface in Canada and the largest indoor ice rink in the world at the time it opened. The Millionaires/Maroons succeeded as PCHA champions six times (1915, 1918, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1924) and won the Stanley Cup once, in

1915 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January * January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction". * January ...

, against the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

of the NHA. Their jerseys were maroon, featuring a

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

V with "Vancouver" spelled down one side of the V and up the other. Hall of Famers Fred "Cyclone" Taylor, Mickey MacKay and

Didier Pitre Joseph George Didier "Cannonball" Pitre (September 1, 1883 – July 29, 1934) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Nicknamed "Cannonball," he was renown for having one of the hardest shots during his playing career. One of the first playe ...

were among the most significant players to don the Millionaires/Maroons uniform in the team's history. On October 1, 2010, the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

president and management officially announced that the Vancouver Canucks had purchased the rights to logos, jerseys and trademarks of the Vancouver Millionaires. Since that time, the Canucks have worn Millionaires throwback uniforms on a few occasions, most notably on March 2, 2014 in the 2014 Heritage Classic against the

Team history

In 1911, the Patrick brothers,

Frank Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Curr ...

and

Lester Lester is an ancient Anglo-Saxon surname and given name. Notable people and characters with the name include: People Given name * Lester Bangs (1948–1982), American music critic * Lester W. Bentley (1908–1972), American artist from Wisc ...

, inaugurated their own professional ice hockey league on the west coast, the

, giving birth to three teams, one of which was the Vancouver Millionaires. Frank aligned himself with Vancouver, playing for, coaching and managing the team. In order to earn credibility as a league, the PCHA lured players from the NHA, and in 1912, the Millionaires acquired the highly touted Cyclone Taylor, who would play for and star in Vancouver for the following ten seasons — the remainder of his career. During his tenure in Vancouver, Taylor tallied 263 points in 131 games. Vancouver Millionaires 1915

Upon the 1914–1915 season, the NHA and PCHA came to an agreement that each league's respective champion would play for the Stanley Cup; in the first year of this agreement, the Millionaires — led by Patrick and Taylor — emerged as league champion and defeated the

to earn their first and only Stanley Cup championship. In a best-of-five series played at Denman Arena, the Millionaires swept Ottawa by scores of 6–2, 8–3, and 12–3; Taylor led the team with 6 goals. At the time, it was the furthest west the Cup had been awarded and is Vancouver's only Stanley Cup champion. In 1918, Vancouver would once again compete for the Stanley Cup, defeating the

Seattle Metropolitans The Seattle Metropolitans were a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle, Washington, which played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) from 1915 to 1924. During their nine seasons, the Metropolitans were the PCHA's most successful ...

in a two-game final for the PCHA title, but would be defeated by the Toronto Arenas of the NHL (evolved from the NHA) three games to two. Between 1918 and

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China holds ...

, Vancouver would win the PCHA title in five of seven seasons. In 1921 and

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éireann, the day after Éamon de Valera ...

, they were defeated by the Ottawa Senators and Toronto St. Pats in back-to-back Cup Finals, respectively. In

, the team changed its name to the Vancouver Maroons and, although league champion in the PCHA's final two seasons, Vancouver would not compete for the Stanley Cup. As a result of the newly founded

, the PCHA champion would have to defeat the WCHL champion en route to a Cup series against the NHL champion; the Maroons would fall to the Edmonton Eskimos in 1923 and the

Calgary Tigers The Calgary Tigers, often nicknamed the ''Bengals'', were an ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada from 1920 until 1927 as members of the Big-4 League, Western Canada Hockey League and Prairie Hockey League. The Tigers were revived in ...

in 1924. Following the 1923–1924 season, the Maroons were absorbed by the WCHL upon the PCHA's demise, but would not achieve the same success of the previous years. In 1926, the WCHL suffered the same fate of the PCHA, and after 15 years, the team subsequently folded, as well.

Tributes

In 1999, musician and bodybuilder

Jon Mikl Thor Jon Mikl Thor (born 1953), better known as simply Thor, is a Canadian bodybuilding champion, actor, songwriter, screenwriter, historian, vocalist and musician. As a bodybuilder, he was the first Canadian to win both the Mr. Canada and Mr. USA ...

started VM Sports, a company to market a line of Millionaires apparel. Since there were no genuine Millionaires sweaters in existence since a fire destroyed Denman Arena in 1936, Thor trademarked the Vancouver Millionaires name and the "Victory V" logo. On May 1, 2008, the BC Sports Hall Of Fame was donated one such Millionaires sweater from VM Sports, which is now featured in the Hall's Cyclone Taylor display. On October 1, 2010 the Vancouver Canucks parent company, Canucks Sports & Entertainment, acquired the Vancouver Millionaires trademark from Thor. In honour of the Millionaires as the city's only Stanley Cup-winning team, the

Vancouver Giants The Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Inaugurated in 2001–02, the Giants have won one President's Cup (now known as the Ed Chynoweth Cup) in 2006 and one Memorial Cup in 2007 in t ...

, a

major junior Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

(WHL) team, wore Millionaires jerseys during their November 21, 2008 game against the

Kamloops Blazers The Kamloops Blazers are a junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League (WHL). The team plays in the B.C. Division of the Western Conference, is based out of Kamloops, British Columbia, and play home games at Sandman Centre. The Blazers o ...

on the team's "Stanley Cup Legends Night". That same month, the Canucks unveiled their new third jerseys, including a new shoulder logo that pays tribute to the Millionaires by including a "V". In the 2012–13 season the Vancouver Canucks added the Millionaires' "V" to their jersey. They wore a modified version of the Millionaires jersey on March 16, 2013 against the Detroit Red Wings. They again wore the Millionaires jersey for the 2014 Heritage Classic on March 2, 2014, against the

, who wore a version of the original Senators jersey. The Millionaires jersey was worn a third time on March 26, 2015, against the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...

Season-by-season record

''Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against''

Hall of Fame players

* Jack Adams * Rusty Crawford * Si Griffis *

Newsy Lalonde Édouard Cyrille "Newsy" Lalonde (October 31, 1887 – November 21, 1970) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward in the National Hockey League (NHL) and a professional lacrosse player. Lalonde is regarded as one of hockey's and lacrosse's ...

* Hughie Lehman * Mickey MacKay * Frank Nighbor * Frank Patrick *

Tommy Phillips Thomas Neil Phillips (May 22, 1883 – November 30, 1923) was a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger. Like other players of his era, Phillips played for several different teams and leagues. Most notable for his time with the Kenora T ...

* Gordon Roberts * Barney Stanley * Cyclone Taylor

References

External links

{{Vancouver Millionaires seasons Defunct ice hockey teams in Canada Ice hockey teams in British Columbia

Mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Textile mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic unit of the Analytical Engine early ...