| Ontario Hockey League | |
| Current Season: | 2023–24 OHL season |
| Pixels: | 250px |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| Founded: | 1980 |
| Teams: | 20 |
| Countries: | Canada (17 teams) USA (3 teams) |
| Champion: | London Knights (5) |
| Most Champs: | Oshawa Generals (13) |
| Commissioner: | Bryan Crawford[1] |
| Tv: | OHL Live, TSN, YourTV, Rogers TV, TV Rogers |
The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; French: Ligue de hockey de l'Ontario ('''LHO''')) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 16–20. There are currently 20 teams in the OHL: seventeen in Ontario, two in Michigan, and one in Pennsylvania.
The league was founded in 1980 when its predecessor, the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League, formally split away from the Ontario Hockey Association, joining the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League and its direct affiliation with Hockey Canada. The OHL traces its history of Junior A hockey back to 1933 with the partition of Junior A and B. In 1970, the OHA Junior A League was one of five Junior A leagues operating in Ontario. The OHA was promoted to Tier I Junior A for the 1970–71 season and took up the name Ontario Major Junior Hockey League. Since 1980 the league has grown rapidly into a high-profile marketable product, with many games broadcast on television and radio.
See main article: History of the Ontario Hockey League.
Leagues for ice hockey in Ontario were first organized in 1890 by the newly created Ontario Hockey Association (OHA). In 1892 the OHA recognized junior hockey - referring to skill rather than age. In 1896 the OHA moved to the modern age-limited junior hockey concept, distinct from senior and intermediate divisions. Since then the evolution to the Ontario Hockey League has developed through four distinct eras of junior-aged non-professional hockey in Ontario. In 1933, the junior division was divided into two levels, Junior A and Junior B. In 1970 the Junior A level was divided into two levels, Tier I (or Major Junior A) and Tier II (or Minor Junior A). In 1974 the Tier I/Major Junior A group separated from the OHA and became the independent Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL). In 1980, the OMJHL became the Ontario Hockey League.
The OHL split from the OHA in July 1982.[2] The OHA and OHL disagreed on financial terms of affiliation, then the OHL decided to handle its own administration.[3] The OHA and the OHL later reached an interim affiliation agreement, which allowed the OHL to compete at the Memorial Cup.[4]
In March 2005, the league announced the launch of OHL Live Stream, resulting in OHL games being broadcast live on a pay-per-view (PPV) broadband basis.[5]
OMJHL and OHL Commissioners (years in office)[6]
Note: The 12 original OHL franchises were all previously members of the OMJHL. Some other franchises played in different junior leagues prior to joining the OHL.
PlotData= width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s
bar:1 color:Former from:01/01/1979 till:06/01/1984 text:Brantford Alexanders bar:1 color:Former from:09/01/1984 till:06/01/1988 text:Ham.Steelhawks bar:1 color:Former from:09/01/1988 till:06/01/1996 text:Niagara Falls Thunder bar:1 color:Current from:09/01/1996 till:end text:Erie Otters
bar:2 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Kingston Canadians / Raiders / Frontenacs
bar:3 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Kitchener Rangers
bar:4 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:London Knights
bar:5 color:Former from:01/01/1979 till:06/01/1982 text:Nia.Falls Flyers bar:5 color:Former from:09/01/1982 till:06/01/2002 text:North Bay Centennials bar:5 color:Current from:09/01/2002 till:end text:Saginaw Spirit
bar:6 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Oshawa Generals
bar:7 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Ottawa 67's
bar:8 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Peterborough Petes
bar:9 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds
bar:10 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Sudbury Wolves
bar:11 color:Former from:01/01/1979 till:06/01/1989 text:Toronto Marlboros bar:11 color:Former from:09/01/1989 till:06/01/1991 shift:(-7) text:Ham.Dukes bar:11 color:Current from:09/01/1991 till:end text:Guelph Storm
bar:12 color:Current from:01/01/1979 till:end text:Windsor Spitfires
bar:13 color:Former from:09/01/1981 till:06/01/2015 text:Belleville Bulls bar:13 color:Former from:09/01/2015 till:06/01/2023 text:Hamilton Bulldogs bar:13 color:Current from:09/01/2023 till:end text:Brantford Bulldogs
bar:14 color:Former from:09/01/1981 till:06/01/1992 text:Cornwall Royals bar:14 color:Former from:09/01/1992 till:06/01/1994 shift:(-3) text:Newmarket bar:14 color:Current from:09/01/1994 till:end text:Sarnia Sting bar:15 color:Former from:09/01/1982 till:06/01/1989 text:Guelph Platers bar:15 color:Current from:09/01/1989 till:end text:Owen Sound Platers / Attack
bar:16 color:Former from:09/01/1990 till:06/01/1997 text:Detroit Amb./Jr.Red W./Whalers bar:16 color:Former from:09/01/1997 till:06/01/2015 text:Plymouth Whalers bar:16 color:Current from:09/01/2015 till:end text:Flint Firebirds
bar:17 color:Current from:09/01/1995 till:end text:Barrie Colts
bar:18 color:Former from:09/01/1997 till:06/01/2007 text:Toronto St. Michael's Majors bar:18 color:Former from:09/01/2007 till:06/01/2024 text:Mississauga St. Michael's Majors / Steelheads bar:18 color:Current from:09/01/2024 till:end text:Brampton Steelheads
bar:19 color:Former from:09/01/1998 till:06/01/2007 text:Mississauga IceDogs bar:19 color:Current from:09/01/2007 till:end text:Niagara IceDogs
bar:20 color:Former from:09/01/1999 till:06/01/2013 text:Brampton Battalion bar:20 color:Current from:09/01/2013 till:end text:North Bay Battalion
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:5 start:1980
LineData = at:07/15/1980 color:lineColor layer:back width:0.66 #OHL begins
TextData = pos:(39,125) tabs:(60-left) fontsize:S text:Formation of OHL
The 20 OHL clubs play a 68-game unbalanced schedule, which starts in the third full week of September, running until the third week of March. Ninety percent (90%) of OHL games are scheduled between Thursday and Sunday to minimize the number of school days missed for its players.
Approximately 20% of players on active rosters in the National Hockey League (NHL) have come from the OHL, and about 54% of NHL players are alumni of the Canadian Hockey League.
The J. Ross Robertson Cup is awarded annually to the winner of the Championship Series. The Cup is named for John Ross Robertson, who was president of the Ontario Hockey Association from 1901 to 1905.
The OHL playoffs consist of the top 16 teams in the league, 8 from each conference. The teams play a best-of-seven game series, and the winner of each series advances to the next round. The final two teams eventually compete for the J. Ross Robertson Cup.
The OHL champion then competes with the winners of the Western Hockey League, the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League, and the host of the tournament to play for the Memorial Cup, which is awarded to the junior hockey champions of Canada. The host team of the tournament is alternated between the three leagues every season. The most recent OHL team to win the Memorial Cup was the Saginaw Spirit in 2024.[8]
The Memorial Cup has been captured 18 times by OHL/OHA teams since the tournament went to a three-league format in 1972:
The OHL's predecessor, the OHA, had a midget and juvenile draft dating back to the 50s, until voted out in 1962. In 1966 it was resumed, though not publicized. Starting in the 1970s the draft went through several changes. Originally the draft was for 17-year-old midgets not already associated with teams through their sponsored youth programs. In 1971 the league first allowed "underage" midgets to be picked in the first three rounds. In 1972 disagreements about the Toronto team's rights to its "Marlie" players (and Greg Neeld) and claims to American player Mark Howe led to a revised system. In 1973 each team was permitted to protect eight midget area players (Toronto was allowed to protect 10 players from its midget sponsored teams). In 1975 the league phased out the area protections, and the 1976 OHA midget draft was the first in which all midget players were eligible. In 1999 the league changed the draft to a bantam age (15 and 16 year old). It is a selection of players who are residents of the province of Ontario, the states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York, and other designated U.S. states east of the Mississippi River plus Missouri.
Prior to 2001, the OHL held the Priority Selection in a public forum, such as an arena. Drafts were attended by many players and family members. In 2001, the OHL decided to hold the "draft" via the internet, greatly reducing the costs the league and its member teams incurred in hosting a public draft. This move reduced the stress and pressure that prospective players faced with a large crowd present.
The Jack Ferguson Award is presented annually to the first overall selection. The award was named in honour of long time OHL scout and former Director of Central Scouting Jack Ferguson.
List of trophies and awards in the Ontario Hockey League.[9]
| Playoffs trophies | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Trophy name | Recognition | Founded | |
| OHL Finals champion | 1934 | ||
| Eastern Conference champion | 1999 | ||
| Western Conference champion | 1999 | ||
| Playoffs MVP | 1999 | ||
| Regular season — Team trophies | |||
| Trophy name | Recognition | Founded | |
| Team with best record | 1958 | ||
| East division champion | 1976 | ||
| Central division champion | 1976 | ||
| West division champion | 1995 | ||
| Midwest division champion | 1999 | ||
| Regular season — Executive awards | |||
| Trophy name | Recognition | Founded | |
| Coach of the year | 1972 | ||
| General manager of the year | 2020 | ||
| Lifetime achievement | 1989 | ||
| Executive of the Year (not awarded since 2013) | 1990 | ||
| Regular season — Player awards | |||
| Trophy name | Recognition | Founded | |
| Most outstanding player | 1945 | ||
| Top scorer | 1946 | ||
| Lowest team goals against | 1949 | ||
| Most outstanding defenceman | 1961 | ||
| Top scoring right winger | 1972 | ||
| Rookie of the year | 1973 | ||
| Most sportsmanlike player | 1975 | ||
| Best rookie GAA | 1976 | ||
| Scholastic player of the year | 1980 | ||
| Overage player of the year | 1984 | ||
| Goaltender of the year | 1988 | ||
| Humanitarian of the year | 1993 | ||
| Top academic college/university player | 2005 | ||
| Top academic high school player | 2005 | ||
| Team captain that best exemplifies character and commitment | 2009 | ||
| First All-Star Team | 1915 | ||
| Second All-Star Team | Second best player at each position as determined by the league's GMs | 1968 | |
| Third All-Star Team | Third best player at each position as determined by the league's GMs | 1975 | |
| Second All-Rookie Team | Best rookie at each position as determined by the league's GMs | 1992 | |
| Second All-Rookie Team | Second best rookie at each position as determined by the league's GMs | 1992 | |
| Prospect player awards | |||
| Trophy name | Recognition | Founded | |
| First overall pick in priority selection | 1981 | ||
| OHL Cup MVP | 2003 | ||