Mount Allison Mounties

Overview[]

"Mounties" is the name of the sports teams of the Mount Allison University located in Sackville, New Brunswick. They formerly competed in university and senior hockey. The team folded after the 1997-98 season. They remain members of the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) conference and U Sports (formerly known as CIS) in other sports.

History[]

Mount Allison started in an intercollegiate competition for the Hewson Cup in 1905-06, which was followed by the Sumner Cup for the winner of the Intercollegiate Hockey League in 1908-09.

Mount Allison was an original member of the Maritime Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) hockey league in 1919-20. The conference changed names in 1968-69 to the Atlantic Intercollegiate Athletic Association (AIAA), in 1973-74 to the Atlantic Universities Athletic Association (AUAA), and finally in 1998-99 to the present AUS.

From 1929-30 to 1934-35 they also played in the Atlantic Central Section and, when they advanced, the Maritimes Senior Playoffs leading to the Allan Cup.

Early History[]

SOURCE: Mount Allison Site

Origins at Mount Allison

Until hockey emerged at Mount Allison, there were no competitive sports played in winter. Rugby football was played in the autumn, and baseball and track and field competitions were staged in the spring.

In autumn 1893, the circular shaped Tantramar Skating Rink was destroyed by fire, and two years later a new rink was built to replace it. On 6 January 1896, Copp’s Rink, a rectangular rink located near the northeast corner of Weldon and Bridge streets, officially opened. According to The Argosy (February 1896),

"With the opening of the rink in Sackville came the advent of hockey at Mt. Allison."

The male University students immediately put together a team and began practicing one hour per week. The first game played by Mount Allison against an outside hockey team occurred on 4 February 1896, and the Chignecto Post (6 February 1896) reported:

"A pretty lively game of hockey was played in Copp's rink Tuesday evening between the local and college teams resulting in a victory for the latter. The score stood 4 to 2. There was a large number of highly interested spectators present."

SOURCE: Mount Allison Site

Athletic Club Takes Over

In fall 1896, hockey was placed under the direction of the student-run Mount Allison Athletic Club. This helped increase practice time for the players at the new rink from one hour per week in 1896 to four hours by January 1897. All members of the Athletic Club were urged to play, because hockey was considered to be the only sport that ensured a vigorous workout in the winter. By February 1897, interclass competition at Mount Allison had also begun.

Placing hockey under the umbrella of the Athletic Club made it easier to schedule games against outside teams and colleges. In February 1897, Mount Allison’s first intercollegiate hockey match was played against Dalhousie, which saw Mount Allison fall 5-2. Another game of note occurred on 27 February 1897, when a team from Montreal played Mount Allison and won. The Montreal team, which was touted by The Argosy (March 1897) as being one of the best in Canada, had been on a tour of the region, playing games in Saint John, Halifax and Amherst.

SOURCE: Mount Allison Site

Emotions Run High

Until Mount Allison joined its first intercollegiate hockey league in December 1905, the varsity team played a wide assortment of one-off games against college and town teams. In 1903, for example, the Mount Allison team went on a tour of Nova Scotia, and played against Canning and Windsor town teams, and Acadia University. This was the first time Mount Allison met Acadia on the ice, and Mount Allison defeated its opponent 4-0. The president of Mount Allison, Dr. David Allison, was so happy upon hearing of his school’s victory over Acadia that he declared a school holiday.

The game against Acadia, however, was also noteworthy because it was the first time Mount Allison hockey players had been accosted by unruly collegiate spectators. An unidentified player from the Mount Allison squad commented on this in The Argosy (March 1903):

"We very much regret that a Mt. Allison man struck an Acadia player in the game, even though provocation was great. At the same time we take serious exception to the action of the spectators, most of whom were Acadia students, in hissing that man. We are not in the habit of hearing collegians hiss nor of being hissed ourselves and think such action at least somewhat unsportsmanlike."

SOURCE: Mount Allison Site

Intercollegiate League Formed

In December 1905, two years after the Sackville Hockey Club entered the New Brunswick Hockey League, Mount Allison joined a four-team intercollegiate hockey league, comprised of the University of New Brunswick (UNB), Acadia University and St. Francis Xavier (St. FX), all of whom vied for the Hewson Trophy. Membership fees to Mount Allison's Amateur Athletic Association jumped two-fold to two dollars, apparently to help offset travel costs in the new league. In 1908, the intercollegiate league disbanded, but returned the next year with Acadia, UNB, and Mount Allison competing for the new league trophy, the Sumner Cup.

In addition to intercollegiate competition, Mount Allison continued to wage competitions against town teams. The Sackville Club, which won the New Brunswick provincial league title in February 1905, defeated Mount Allison’s varsity team 10-0 in March of the same year.

The sport was very popular among athletes and fans. More than 500 people watched a home game against Acadia in March 1907, which Mount Allison won 10-8. On 23 February 1911, Mount Allison played in front of 900 spectators in Fredericton during a 6-4 loss to UNB.

SOURCE: Mount Allison Site

Hockey Banned

Faculty at Mount Allison University, and at other universities in the Maritime provinces, did not display as much enthusiasm toward hockey as the students. Mount Allison’s faculty, along with newly installed president Byron Crane Borden, singled out hockey for taking away too much study time from the students. On 12 December 1911, after discussion between the faculties of Mount Allison, Acadia and UNB, president Borden issued the following decree in a night telegram message [see bottom right] to president George Barton Cutten of Acadia University:

"Mount Allison Faculty approves rules and agrees to abolish Hockey this winter."

The president of Acadia followed Borden's message to the letter, banning not only intercollegiate and interclass hockey, but basketball as well. Mount Allison students, however, continued to participate in interclass hockey and games with outside teams, while UNB, after some deliberation, opted not to participate in the ban. This caused confusion among students and staff of the respective universities. On 19 January 1912, president Cutten of Acadia wrote a letter to president Borden of Mount Allison explaining the dilemma at his school:

"Our boys are coming to me with the complaint that both Mt. Allison and U.N.B. are playing games with other teams than college teams. If this is so, of course they might as well play Intercollegiate Hockey. Will you kindly let me know concerning the matter?"

SOURCE: Mount Allison Site

War Years

In 1915, intercollegiate hockey continued, making hockey the only varsity sport played at Mount Allison during that year. By 1916, however, intercollegiate hockey stopped, although a varsity team was formed and interclass competition continued. Mount Allison faculty also got onto the ice. A game on 21 March 1916, described by The Argosy as the “most interesting game of the season,” pitted the Seniors against the Science Faculty, which featured former Mount Allison star athlete Harold Eugene Bigelow on defense. The faculty won the game 5-3.

For the duration of the war, Mount Allison formed a varsity hockey team and played outside teams and colleges. These matches, however, were played for benefit and patriotic purposes only. Interclass hockey continued, too, and the Academy, which received its first coach in 1917, won the interclass cup in 1918.

Season-by-Season Records Table[]

MIAA/Senior 1896 to 1940-41[]

Year/Comp.	GP	W	L	T	F	A	Pts	Placing
1896	1	1	0	0	4	2	2	exh
1897	2	1	1	0	?	?	2	exh
1898-1905	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	exh
1906 Hewson	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1907 Hewson	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1908 Hewson	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1909 Sumner	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1910 Sumner	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1911 Sumner	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1912 Sumner	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	cancelled
1913 Sumner	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1914 Sumner	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	champions
1915 Sumner	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	champions
1916-19	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	cancelled
1920 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 2nd
1921 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W ?
1922 MIAA	4	3	1	0	16	8	6	W champ
1922 final	1	0	1	0	0	1	0	finalist
1923 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W ?
1924 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W ?
1925 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1926 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 3rd
1927 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 1st
1927 final	1	0	1	0	0	1	0	finalist
1928 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1929 MIAA	2	0	2	0	3	9	0	W 2nd
1929 Central	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1930 MIAA	2	0	1	1	2	3	1	W 2nd
1930 Central	6	3	3	0	?	?	6	2nd
1930 Playoffs	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	withdrew
1931 MIAA	2	2	0	0	7	3	4	W 1st
1931 final	1	1	0	0	1	0	2	champions
1931 Mt.A.-Ox	4	3	1	0	?	?	6	1st
1931 Maritimes	2	0	1	1	3	5	1	N q-final
1932 MIAA	2	1	0	1	6	3	3	W 1st
1932 final	1	1	0	0	3	0	2	champions
1932 Central	6	4	2	0	?	?	8	B 1st
1932 Playoffs	2	0	2	0	3	5	0	lost final
1933 MIAA	2	2	0	0	4	1	4	W 1st
1933 final	1	1	0	0	0	0	2	champions•
1933 Central	6	6	0	0	?	?	12	1st
1933 Playoffs	2	2	0	0	17	2	2	won final
1933 Maritimes	4	2	1	1	8	9	5	lost north final
1934 MIAA	4	2	1	1	?	?	5	W 2nd
1934 Central	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	1st
1934 Playoffs	2	2	0	0	9	3	4	won final
1934 Maritimes	6	3	2	1	18	21	7	lost final
1935 MIAA	4	3	0	1	?	?	7	W 1st
1935 final	1	1	0	0	3	2	2	champions
1935 Central	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	2nd
1935 playoffs	2	0	2	0	3	6	0	lost final
1936 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1937 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 1st
1937 final	1	0	1	0	2	6	0	finalist
1938 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 1st
1938 final	1	1	0	0	4	3	2	champions
1939 MIAA	3	3	0	0	12	5	6	W 1st
1939 final	1	1	0	0	4	0	2	champions
1940 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 2nd
1941 MIAA	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	withdrew

NOTES:

The Hewson Cup involved UNB, Acadia, St. Francis Xavier, and Mount Allison. St. F.X. won it 3 times and kept the trophy.
The Sumner Cup was awarded to the winner of the Intercollegiate Hockey League and then the West Division winner of the MIAA. Mount Allison therefore also won the cup in 1922 and 1927.
MIAA divided into East and West sections in most seasons.
1921, 1923-28, 1938 divisional results not available
Did not operate from 1941-42 through 1945-46.
In 1933 the Saint Mary's University administration forbade the playing of hockey during Lent and they forfeited the final.

MIAA 1945-46 to 1967-68[]

Year/Comp.	GP	W	L	T	F	A	Pts	Placing
1946 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1947 MIAA	2	0	1	1	10	18	1	W semi-final
1948 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W ?
1949 MIAA	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	withdrew
1950 MIAA	6	1	2	3	-	-	5	W 3rd
1951 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1952 MIAA	2	0	2	0	3	5	0	W semi-final
1953 MIAA	2	2	0	0	13	5	4	W final
1953 final	1	1	0	0	6	2	2	cancelled
1954 MIAA	4	4	0	0	26	3	8	W winner
1954 final	2	0	2	0	3	6	0	finalist
1955 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 1st
1955 final	2	0	2	0	1	17	0	finalist
1956 MIAA	6	4	2	0	?	?	8	W 1st
1956 final	2	0	2	0	2	8	0	finalist
1957 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 3rd
1958 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W ?
1959 MIAA	6	3	3	0	-	-	6	NB 2nd
1959 playoffs	2	0	2	0	5	16	0	NB final
1960 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	NB 4th
1961 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	W 2nd
1961 playoffs	2	0	1	1	3	4	1	W final
1962 MIAA	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
1963 MIAA	11	3	5	3	54	59	15	5th
1964 MIAA	11	2	8	1	24	58	8	8th
1965 MIAA	11	4	6	1	51	58	11	5th
1966 MIAA	14	9	5	0	65	52	18	4th
1967 MIAA	13	8	4	1	56	44	17	3rd
1967 CWGNB	1	0	1	-	3	4	0	semi-finals
1968 MIAA	16	6	10	0	62	87	6	7th

NOTES:

The 1952-53 final was called after stands collapsed.
There were some 4 point games from 1962-63 to 1964-65.
The two divisions were called Nova Scotia (NS) and New Brunswick (NB) in 1958-59 and 1959-60.
A one division format started in 1962-63.

AIAA/AUAA years with ties 1968-69 to 1996-97[]

Year/Comp.	GP	W	L	T	F	A	Pts	Placing
1969 AIAA	18	2	16	0	40	140	4	10th
1970 AIAA	18	0	18	0	33	139	0	10th
1971 AIAA	18	5	13	0	?	?	10	7th
1972 AIAA	18	5	12	1	56	88	11	10th
1973 AIAA	20	10	8	2	?	?	22	5th
1974 AUAA	20	10	9	1	87	79	21	N 4th
1975 AUAA	18	4	14	0	62	88	8	9th
1976 AUAA	16	12	4	0	81	49	24	3rd
1976 playoffs	1	0	1	-	4	9	0	semi-finals
1977 AUAA	20	7	13	0	67	97	14	5th
1978 AUAA	20	6	13	1	61	99	13	6th
1979 AUAA	20	7	12	1	78	102	15	7th
1980 AUAA	27	14	13	0	142	157	28	W 3rd
1980 playoffs	1	0	1	-	0	4	0	quarter-finals
1981 AUAA	21	13	4	4	160	107	30	M 1st
1981 playoffs	1	0	1	-	3	5	0	semi-finals
1982 AUAA	26	17	9	0	?	?	34	M 1st
1982 playoffs	2	1	1	0	7	10	2	pool 2nd
1983 AUAA	24	12	10	2	123	113	26	3rd
1983 playoffs	3	1	2	-	10	18	2	semi-finals
1984 AUAA	24	9	14	1	?	?	19	6th
1985 AUAA	24	7	16	1	92	146	15	7th
1986 AUAA	24	4	20	0	81	173	8	M 5th
1987 AUAA	24	3	21	0	88	156	6	M 5th
1988 AUAA	26	5	20	1	?	?	11	M 4th
1989 AUAA	26	6	19	1	77	176	13	M 4th
1990 AUAA	21	5	16	0	90	118	10	M 5th
1991 AUAA	26	8	14	4	120	146	20	M 5th
1992 AUAA	24	7	16	1	95	149	15	M 5th
1993 AUAA	26	6	19	1	102	149	13	M 5th
1994 AUAA	26	2	21	3	?	?	7	M 5th
1995 AUAA	26	2	22	2	82	183	6	M 5th
1996 AUAA	26	5	21	0	?	?	10	K 5th
1997 AUAA	28	2	22	4	8	?	?	M 5th

NOTES:

Two divisions in 1973-74, North and South.
Two divisions in 1979-80, East and West.
Two divisions in 1980-81 to 1981-82 and 1985-86 to 1996-97, Kelly and MacAdam.

AUAA years with ties and OT losses 1997-98[]

Year/Comp.	GP	W	L	T	OL	F	A	Pts	Placing
1998 AUAA	28	3	23	2	0	84	171	8	K 5th

NOTES:

Two divisions in 1997-98 to 1999-00, Kelly and MacAdam.
One division format from 2000-01 onwards.
From 1997-98 to 2001-02 overtime losses were also included in the loss column.