This Day in Hockey History – January 2, 1918 – Arena Ice on Fire

Montreal hockey suffered a major loss shortly after the NHL formed. Mid-day on January 2, 1918, a fire broke out at the Arena on St. Catherine Street and Wood Avenue in Westmount, a suburb of Montreal. The rink burnt to the ground that afternoon leaving two NHL teams, five Montreal City League clubs, and a college team without a home. All but one found new arenas and continued to play. The Montreal Wanderers instead became the first NHL franchise to fold.

The Arena had opened almost exactly 19 years earlier, on the final day of 1898. It hosted the first NHL game on December 19, 1917. The Wanderers defeated the visiting Toronto team 10-9. That would be the sole victory for the Wanderers who only played in three other NHL games.

Come January, the Fire Underwriters’ Association inspectors had just certified the safety of the Arena. They reported that “usual precautions had been taken by the company to prevent fire.” However, a fire started, as the Montreal Gazette reported, “which originated between the floor of the secretary-treasurer’s office and the ceiling of the west side dressing-room.” The cause was not known, but they “thought a defective electric wire was responsible.” Later, historian J. Andrew Ross confirmed this theory of faulty wiring at the root of the fire.

Fortunately, very few people were on the property at that time of day even though a game between the Wanderers and the Canadiens was scheduled for that evening. James McKeene, the superintendent of the building who had been there since it opened, had been eating a meal with some family members, and they rushed to help the firemen. In fact, the only injury occurred when a spectator broke a leg slipping on the icy sidewalk.

Firemen from both Westmount and Montreal arrived on the scene to combat the flames. The southern wall fell soon afterwards. The Gazette noted that the fire “spread so rapidly that it was impossible to save the building.” Their report continued, “For twenty minutes the flames raged from end to end of the structure; then the boilers exploded and the entire framework collapsed.” So many streams of water were needed that the water pressure was too low until the Montreal brigade brought their powerful pumping engines. Although the heat was so high that they could not get too close, the firemen bravely stuck it out for four hours. Chief Moffatt of the Westmount brigade commented, “It is the biggest fire that the firemen of Westmount have been called upon to handle, and we are thankful to Chief Tremblay, Deputy Chief Mann and their men for the aid they gave us.”

The firemen mainly focused on saving the structures around the Arena. The ice-producing plant to the east of the rink was “damaged by the smoke and water,” but President Ed Sheppard of the Montreal Arena Co. reassured that it would be “repaired and in operation in the course of a few days.” The front windows smashed on all of the houses on the block of Wood Avenue to the west of the Arena, and one roof caught fire. Otherwise, the firemen were able to stop the fire from spreading.

When the Arena burnt to the ground, Sheppard estimated the damages at $150,000. The building had cost $75,000 to build and was only insured for $50,000. The Gazette felt that the building would cost too much to reconstruct, so they predicted that the Montreal Arena Co. would sell the valuable property instead.

In addition to the building itself, much was lost within. Manager William Northey had stored a large Buick there, and McKeene lost all household goods but for a music cabinet. On top of that, each of the many teams housed at the Arena lost equipment. The Wanderers and Canadiens each lost about $1,000-worth of uniforms and sticks. Only the skates that had been sent for sharpening before their game were spared. All five City League clubs lost their effects as well. The estimated losses included about $1,000 for McGill, $900 for the Canadian Vickers, $850 for the Shamrocks, $800 for Laval, and $750 for the Nationals. Loyola College lucked out with few damages because they had not yet returned their equipment to the dressing room after traveling for a game.

Instead of holding a game that evening, hockey leagues held meetings to plan their next steps. The City League arranged to move to Victoria Rink and pushed back the schedule by a week. The Canadiens’ manager, George Kennedy, made arrangements to move the francophone NHL franchise to Jubilee Rink on St. Catherine Street, Maisonneuve, in the French-speaking East End of Montreal. They would skate there until the following April, when it also burned down. Although instructed to try Jubilee Rink as well, the Wanderers balked because their English-speaking supporters would not leave the West End.

The Wanderers also had a roster issue at the time. World War I left the NHL with few players. As Manager Art Ross told the press, “We are badly in need of players and unless we receive help from the other clubs we cannot make a showing in the race for the title.” Unfortunately for them, the Ottawa Senators had also just lost two players to the war effort while the Canadiens and Toronto had barely enough to keep themselves playing. With the disbanding of the Wanderers, forward Harry Hyland and defenseman Dave Ritchie would be sent to Ottawa, goalie Harry Holmes to Toronto, and Jack McDonald and Jack Marks to the Canadiens.

After a “lengthy and stormy” meeting of NHL directors at the Windsor Hotel on January 3, the Wanderers’ resignation was not accepted. President Frank Calder gave the owner, S.E. Lichtenhein, 24 hours to reconsider. Despite folks in Hamilton offering to purchase and relocate the franchise, the Wanderers chose to default on the game scheduled in Toronto and officially withdrew from the NHL on January 4.

Six years later, in 1924, the English-speaking population of Montreal received a new NHL franchise that came to be called the Maroons. They tried but failed to get the rights to use the name Wanderers. The Maroons would play at the new Forum built just one block to the east of the old Arena.

Additional Sources:

• Mike Commito, Hockey 365: Daily Stories from the Ice (Toronto: Dundurn, 2018), kindle edition.
•  “Arena Not Likely to Rise from Ashes,” Montreal Gazette, 3 Jan. 1918, p. 5.
• “No Curtailment in Local Hockey,” Montreal Gazette, 3 Jan. 1918, p. 12.
• “Wanderers Hand in Resignation,” Montreal Gazette, 4 Jan. 1918, p. 12.
• “Wanderers Default,” Montreal Gazette, 5 Jan. 1918, p. 16.
• https://www.si.com/nhl/2017/02/09/montreal-arena-fire-wanderers