- 1934
- 1935
-
The Move from Ottawa
The Senators’ owners decided to move the franchise to St. Louis, Missouri, and the transfer was approved by the league on May 14, 1934. Thomas Franklin Ahearn resigned as president of the Ottawa Auditorium and Redmond Quain became president. Quain transferred the players’ contracts and franchise operations to a new company called the Hockey Association of St. Louis, Inc. Eddie ... -
The End of the Eagles
By season’s end, the Eagles ownership had lost $70,000, due primarily to the cost of train travel. In those days, NHL teams traveled primarily by rail. Due to being in the Canadian Division, the Eagles had to make a lot of trips to Montreal and Toronto. An attempt to stabilize the franchise by selling off some of its players netted ...
History of the Eagles
The St. Louis Eagles were a professional ice hockey team that played in the National Hockey League (NHL). Based in St. Louis, Missouri, the Eagles played for only one year, the 1934 – 1935 NHL season.
The team was founded in 1883 as the Ottawa Senators, a successful independent team that joined the NHL as a charter member in 1917. From the mid-1920s onward, they endured financial strain caused, in part, by being in the NHL’s smallest market. The financial problems forced the Senators to suspend operations for the 1931 – 1932 season. Upon their return to play, having sold their better players in an effort to raise funds, the Senators finished in last place for two straight seasons and continued to lose money. Following the repeat last place finish, the team decided that it could not survive in Ottawa and hoped to move to a bigger market.
In an attempt to recoup losses and pay outstanding debts, the Senators moved the NHL franchise to St. Louis, where it was nicknamed the Eagles. However, the team continued to lose money because of its travel expenses, and it was forced to sell players to other teams to meet its financial obligations.
After the season, the owners asked the NHL for a second time for permission to suspend operations. This time, the NHL refused the request. Instead, the league bought back the franchise, halted its operations, and dispersed its players among the remaining teams.
Established
1917
City
Ottawa – St. Louis
League History
1917 – 1935 / National Hockey League
Team History
1934 – 1935 / St. Louis Eagles
1917 – 1934 / Ottawa Senators
Nickname
Eagles – The club was renamed the Eagles, inspired by the logo of the Anheuser-Busch brewing company, which was founded in St. Louis.
Championship
Stanley Cup 0
1920, 1921, 1923, 1927
Arena
1934 – 1935 / St. Louis Arena
*Ottawa*
1923 – 1934 / Ottawa Auditorium
1908 – 1923 / The Arena
Owner
1929 – 1935 / Ottawa Auditorium
1925 – 1929 / Frank Ahearn
1923 – 1925 / Tommy Gorman and Frank Ahearn
1918 – 1923 / Tommy Gorman and Ted Dey
1917 – 1918 / Tommy Gorman, Ted Dey and Martin Rosenthal
Retired Number
*Blue is this team’s history