A Pretty Girl’s Guide to NHL History

Guide to NHL History:

The History That Actually Matters

The NHL has been around for more than 100 years, which means its history can get overwhelming very quickly. There are old teams, relocated teams, dynasties, rival leagues, lockouts, rule changes, iconic players, curses, scandals, expansion eras, and about a million times you find yourself asking, “wait, that team used to be where?”.

If you’re trying to understand the NHL as a modern fan, you don’t need to memorize every single year, owner, or defunct franchise. You honestly just need to understand the history that actually shaped the league like how the NHL became the NHL, why certain teams carry so much legacy, why certain expansions changed everything, why Wayne Gretzky called is “The Great One”, why the salary cap matters, and why the league today feels like a mix of old-school tradition and new-school chaos. So, here’s the NHL history that really matters.

Before the NHL

Before the NHL existed, hockey was already becoming a serious sport in Canada. By the late 1800s and early 1900s, the game was growing fast especially in places like Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, and Quebec. There were amateur teams, professional teams, regional leagues, challenge cups, ownership fights, and constant arguments over who actually controlled the sport.

The Stanley Cup already existed before the NHL was born. It was first donated in 1892 by Lord Stanley of Preston, Canada’s Governor General, as a trophy for the best hockey team in Canada. At first, it was a challenge trophy, meaning different teams could compete for it rather than it belonging to one specific league. This is why the Stanley Cup is just that girl! She’s so much more sacred than a normal championship trophy. She predates the NHL itself!

By the early 1900s, hockey was shifting from a mostly amateur sport into a professional business as players were being paid, teams were becoming more organized, and owners were starting to understand that hockey could make real money, but with money came drama. One of the biggest leagues before the NHL was the National Hockey Association, or NHA, which formed in 1909. The NHA was basically the NHL’s older sister. The NHA helped shape modern hockey in huge ways, but it was also full of internal conflict.

The NHA included important teams like the Montréal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Quebec Bulldogs, Montréal Wanderers, and Toronto teams that eventually connected to what became the Maple Leafs. This version of the Canadiens are especially important because they were founded in 1909 as part of the NHA era, which means their history goes back before the NHL. That’s a huge reason why Montréal feels like hockey royalty, they’re not just the oldest team in the league, they’re older than the league. The NHA also helped establish major parts of modern hockey making the sport faster, more organized, and more recognizable. The sport moved away from earlier versions of the game and toward the structure we know today. One of the biggest changes was the shift to six players per side, which became the standard – three forwards, two defensemen, and a goalie.

The NHA’s biggest problem was ownership drama. The biggest source of conflict was Eddie Livingstone, the owner of the Toronto franchise. Livingstone had ongoing disputes with other owners, and by 1917, the rest of the league basically wanted him out, but instead of simply kicking him out, which would have created legal and business problems, the other owners came up with a strictly business solution. They decided to suspend the NHA and create a brand-new league without Livingstone.

That new league was the National Hockey League. So the NHL was born because early professional hockey was growing, the Stanley Cup had already become important, the NHA had created the foundation, and the owners needed a way to move forward without one of their biggest sources of conflict.

The NHL Was Founded in 1917

The National Hockey League was founded in 1917 in Montréal, after the National Hockey Association suspended operations. At the very beginning, the NHL was not the giant 32-team league we know now. It started small, Canadian, and honestly kind of messy…

The early NHL included teams like the Montréal Canadiens, Montréal Wanderers, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Arenas, and later the Quebec Bulldogs. Some of those teams disappeared, changed names, or folded, but the important part is that the NHL began as a Canadian professional hockey league before slowly becoming the major North American hockey league.

The Montréal Canadiens are the most important surviving piece of that early era. As I said earlier, they were founded before the NHL itself and became one of the league’s cornerstone franchises. Now, you may be wondering about the Ottawa Senators since they exist today too, but they aren't the original team, so the only team in the NHL to survive this divorce are the Montréal Canadiens.

The Original Six Era

When people talk about the “Original Six”, they’re talking about the six teams that made up the NHL from 1942 to 1967 which include the:

• Boston Bruins

• Chicago Blackhawks

• Detroit Red Wings

• Montreal Canadiens

• New York Rangers

• Toronto Maple Leafs

The phrase “Original Six” is a little misleading because these were not literally the first six NHL teams, but they were the league’s only six teams for 25 years. The Canadiens, Bruins, Leafs, Rangers, Red Wings, and Blackhawks all carry that old-school weight of hockey. I mean, their rivalries are older, their fanbases are deeply emotional, and their histories are packed with legends. The Original Six era also explains why Toronto’s Stanley Cup drought is such a big deal. The Maple Leafs last won the Cup in 1967, which was the final season before the NHL expanded. 

1967 Expansion Changed the Entire League

In 1967, the NHL doubled from six teams to twelve and that was one of the most important turning points in league history. The six expansion teams were:

• Los Angeles Kings

• Minnesota North Stars

• Oakland Seals

• Philadelphia Flyers

• Pittsburgh Penguins

• St. Louis Blues

This took the NHL from a small, tradition heavy league and pushed hockey further into the United States, especially into markets that had not been central to the sport before. This is where the league started becoming less an old boys’ Canadian hockey club and more of a professional sports empire.

This expansion also created new fan cultures. The Philadelphia Flyers, for example, became famous in the 1970s as the “Broad Street Bullies,” a tough, intimidating, extremely physical team that won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 1974 and 1975. They helped define the idea that an expansion team could become powerful, hated, beloved, and iconic, all at one.

The WHA Forced the NHL to Evolve

In the 1970s, the NHL had a rival called the World Hockey Association, or WHA. The WHA challenged the NHL’s control over professional hockey because it offered players another place to play, created competition for talent, and helped change the business of the sport. Most importantly, it gave young Wayne Gretzky his first major professional stage with the Indianapolis Racers and then the Edmonton Oilers.

In 1979, the WHA folded into NHL history when four WHA teams joined the NHL, including the:

• Edmonton Oilers

• Hartford Whalers

• Quebec Nordiques

• Winnipeg Jets

This was huge because it brought new teams, new markets, and new stars into the league. The Edmonton Oilers became the most important of the four because they brought Wayne Gretzky into the NHL and then became one of the greatest dynasties in hockey history.

Wayne Gretzky Changed Hockey Forever

You cannot talk about NHL history without Wayne Gretzky. Gretzky is called “The Great One” for a reason. He didn’t just dominate the sport of hockey, he rewrote what people thought was possible. His vision, passing, scoring, and hockey IQ made him the defining player of the 1980s. With the Edmonton Oilers, Gretzky helped create one of the most iconic dynasties in NHL history. The Oilers won four Stanley Cups with him in the 1980s, and their style was fast, skilled, creative, and overwhelming.

Then came one of the biggest moments in NHL history – the Gretzky trade.

In 1988, Wayne Gretzky was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings. This wasn’t just some regular sports trade, this was like when Zayn left One Direction. It shook the league to its core. Canada was devastated, Los Angeles suddenly had the biggest hockey star in the world, and the NHL’s future in non-traditional American markets became much more real.

The Gretzky trade helped make hockey more visible in California and the south-western regions of the US. Without that moment, the league’s later expansion into places like Anaheim, San Jose, Dallas, Tampa Bay, Florida, Nashville, Vegas, and Seattle feels harder to imagine.

The Dead Puck Era Made Hockey Slower, Heavier, and More Defensive

The 1990s and early 2000s are often associated with what fans call the “Dead Puck Era.” This was a period where scoring dropped, defense became extremely structured, and games would start to feel slower and more clogged. Teams used systems like the neutral zone trap to limit offense, and goaltending became more technically advanced. The game was still intense, but it wasn’t pretty.

This era shaped how the NHL later changed its rules. The league wanted more speed, more offense, and more entertainment and fans were tired of every game feeling like a defensive trench war. So when the NHL came back after the 2004–05 lockout, the league made major rule changes that opened up the game.

The 2004–05 Lockout Changed the Business of Hockey

The NHL lost the entire 2004–05 season because of a lockout. Yes, an entire season.

This is one of the biggest moments in modern NHL history because it led to the salary cap era. Starting in 2005–06, teams had to operate under a salary cap, meaning they could only spend up to a certain amount on player salaries, and the salary cap changed the sport to what we know it as today. The salary cap makes roster construction more strategic, making it harder to keep dynasties together. It forces teams to choose which stars to pay, which depth players to sacrifice, and when to go “all in.” It also gave smaller-market teams a better chance to compete financially.

This is why NHL fans talk so much about contracts, cap space, entry-level deals, trade deadlines, and LTIR.

The Post-Lockout NHL Became Faster and More Skilled

After the lockout, the NHL introduced rule changes meant to increase speed and offense. The shootout was added to decide regular-season games that were still tied after overtime. The league cracked down more on obstruction, hooking, and holding. The two-line pass rule was removed, which helped create more stretch passes and rush chances. Basically, the NHL wanted the game to breathe again and go back to that fast era everyone knew and loved.

This helped create the modern style of hockey that’s faster, more skilled, more open, and more centered on speed. Today’s NHL is still physical, but it is not just about being big and intimidating. You have to skate, think fast, and you have to be skilled.

That is why modern stars like Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Auston Matthews, Jack Hughes, and Connor Bedard feel so electric. They’re the products of a league that increasingly rewards speed, skill, creativity, and transition play, so the boys have to be up to par.

THE OFFICIAL NON OFFICIAL SORT OF OFFICIAL TIMELINE

The NHL didn’t become a 32-team league overnight, because that would be insane, obviously.

For a long time, the NHL was just the “Original Six”: the Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montréal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and Toronto Maple Leafs. 

Then, in 1967, the NHL doubled in size from 6 teams to 12. This was the league’s first major expansion era. The new teams were the Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota North Stars, Oakland Seals, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and St. Louis Blues.

Then, the league moved deeper into the United States, including California, Pennsylvania, Missouri, and Minnesota. Some of those teams are still exactly where they started, like the Flyers, Penguins, Kings, and Blues. Others eventually changed. The Minnesota North Stars later moved to Dallas and became the Dallas Stars, while the Oakland Seals eventually disappeared through relocation and franchise changes.

In the 1970s, the NHL kept growing. Teams like the Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, Atlanta Flames, and Kansas City Scouts joined the league. The Atlanta Flames relocated to Calgary and became the Calgary Flames. The Kansas City Scouts eventually became the Colorado Rockies, and later moved again to become the New Jersey Devils.

Then came the WHA merger in 1979. The WHA was a rival hockey league, and when it folded, four of its teams joined the NHL, including the Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, Quebec Nordiques, and Winnipeg Jets. The Edmonton Oilers became one of the greatest dynasties ever with Wayne Gretzky. The Hartford Whalers later moved and became the Carolina Hurricanes. The Quebec Nordiques later moved and became the Colorado Avalanche. The original Winnipeg Jets later moved and became the Arizona Coyotes.

So yes, a lot of current NHL teams have past lives, but we’re not done yet!

The 1990s brought another huge wave of expansion and relocation. The San Jose Sharks, Ottawa Senators (they’re back!), Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Ducks, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Atlanta Thrashers, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Minnesota Wild all entered the league during this broader era.

Some 1990s teams were brand-new expansion teams, like the Sharks, Lightning, Ducks, Panthers, Predators, Blue Jackets, and Wild. Others were connected to relocation, like mentioned earlier, the Minnesota North Stars became the Dallas Stars in 1993, and the Winnipeg Jets became the Phoenix, later Arizona, Coyotes in 1996. The Hartford Whalers became the Carolina Hurricanes in 1997. The Quebec Nordiques became the Colorado Avalanche in 1995.

The Atlanta Thrashers are another important relocation story. They joined the NHL in 1999, but in 2011 they moved to Winnipeg and became the current Winnipeg Jets. That means the current Jets are not the same franchise as the original Jets, even though they brought the name back. Confusing, right?

Then came the modern expansion era.

The Vegas Golden Knights joined the NHL in 2017 as the league’s 31st team. They completely changed expectations for expansion teams because they reached the Stanley Cup Final in their first season, which was basically unheard of. Then, in 2023, they won the Stanley Cup.

The Seattle Kraken joined in 2021 as the NHL’s 32nd team, giving the league an even 16 teams in the Eastern Conference and 16 teams in the Western Conference.

You thought we were done, right? Wrong!

In 2024, the Arizona Coyotes situation became the NHL’s latest relocation drama. The Coyotes had struggled for years with arena issues in Arizona, including playing at Mullett Arena, a much smaller college arena, while trying to find a long-term home. Eventually, the NHL approved a plan that sent the Coyotes’ hockey operations to Salt Lake City under new ownership.

Officially, though, Utah was treated as a new franchise, while the Arizona Coyotes franchise became inactive, with a possible path to return if a proper NHL arena could be built. However, for fans, the result was pretty clear, that the Arizona Coyotes relocated to Utah.

Utah played its first season in 2024–25 as Utah Hockey Club, which was basically a placeholder name while the team figured out its permanent identity. In 2025, the team officially became the Utah Mammoth.

So, the simple version is this: the NHL started with a small core, expanded in 1967, added more teams in the 1970s, absorbed four WHA teams in 1979, grew and relocated through the 1990s and early 2000s, added Vegas and Seattle to reach 32 teams, and then saw Arizona’s hockey operations shift to Utah in one of the weirdest “technically not a normal relocation” moves in modern league history.

Diversity Is One of the NHL’s Most Complicated Histories

The NHL has a long history, but it has not always been an inclusive one. Willie O’Ree broke the NHL’s color barrier in 1958 when he debuted with the Boston Bruins. His story matters because he opened a door in a sport that has historically been overwhelmingly white and often inaccessible due to cost, geography, and culture.

Since then, the NHL has seen more players of color, more international stars, and more women entering hockey operations, scouting, broadcasting, and coaching spaces, but progress has often been slow. This matters a ton for modern fans because hockey is still trying to grow beyond its old image. The future of the sport depends on making the game more accessible, more diverse, and more welcoming to people who were not always treated like they belonged.

Fun Facts You Should Know

• The Stanley Cup has spelling mistakes on it… she’s just like me.

• The Toronto Maple Leafs, as an Original Six team, have not won the Stanley Cup since 1967.

• The Montréal Canadiens have won the most Stanley Cups in NHL history with 24!

• The Vegas Golden Knights reached the Stanley Cup Final in their first season and won the Cup in their sixth season.

• The Seattle Kraken are the NHL’s newest team and helped bring the league to 32 teams.

• The Stanley Cup is the only major North American sports trophy where the players’ names are engraved on the actual trophy.

• The Cup has its own keepers, because of course hockey’s most important trophy needs chaperones.

• Wayne Gretzky has so many NHL records that some of them sound fake. He is the league’s all-time leader in points and assists, and his numbers are so far ahead that many records may never be broken. He also held the record for the most goals, 894, until Alexander Ovechkin broke it just last year. 

• The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning have helped prove that hockey can thrive in warm-weather markets. But let’s be real, the Kings walked so all these warm-weather market teams can run.

• The NHL has had multiple lockouts, but the 2004–05 lockout was the most dramatic because the entire season was canceled and rules were rewritten like crazy.