Ontario Hockey League

The Ontario Hockey League (OHL) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues in the Canadian Hockey League, along with the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. It is for players aged 16 to 20 and currently has 20 teams: seventeen in Ontario, two in Michigan, and one in Pennsylvania.

The league began in 1980 when its predecessor, the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League, separated from the Ontario Hockey Association and joined the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League, becoming directly linked with Hockey Canada. The OHL’s history in Junior A hockey goes back to 1933. By 1970, the OHA Junior A League was one of five Junior A leagues in Ontario and was promoted to Tier I Junior A for the 1970–71 season, taking the name Ontario Major Junior Hockey League. Since 1980, the OHL has grown quickly into a popular and well-known league, with many games shown on television and radio.

History

Main article: History of the Ontario Hockey League

Ice hockey leagues in Ontario began in 1890 with the Ontario Hockey Association. Over time, these leagues grew and changed. By 1896, they started focusing on players of a certain age. In 1933, they split into two levels, and in 1970, one of those levels split again. In 1974, the top level became its own league, the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League, which later became the Ontario Hockey League in 1980.

The OHL later separated from the OHA in 1982 and began managing itself. Despite this, they still worked together for some events. In 2005, the OHL started broadcasting games online for fans to watch.

Commissioners

OMJHL and OHL Commissioners (years in office)

• Tubby Schmalz (September 23, 1974 – December 15, 1978)
• Bill Beagan (December 15, 1978 – January 1979)
• Sherwood Bassin (interim; January–September 1979)
• David Branch (September 17, 1979 – August 6, 2024)
• Bryan Crawford (August 6, 2024 – present)

Teams

Former teams

Some teams used to play in the Ontario Hockey League but moved to different cities or changed their names over the years. For example, the Cornwall Royals played from 1981 to 1992 and then moved to Newmarket, becoming the Newmarket Royals. The Niagara Falls Flyers moved to North Bay and became the North Bay Centennials. Many other teams also moved or changed names, such as the Brantford Alexanders, Guelph Platers, and Toronto Marlboros.

Timeline of franchises (since 1980)

The image below shows how the teams in the Ontario Hockey League have changed since 1980. The current teams are shown in blue, and gold stars mark the teams that have won the J. Ross Robertson Cup, the league championship.

!Timeline of OHL franchises

Schedule

The Ontario Hockey League (OHL) has 20 teams that play 68 games each season, starting in September and ending in March. Most games are scheduled on weekends to help players miss fewer school days.

Many players from the OHL go on to play in the National Hockey League. The top 16 teams in the OHL compete in playoffs, with the winner earning the J. Ross Robertson Cup. The OHL champion then joins champions from other leagues to compete for the Memorial Cup, the top prize for junior hockey in Canada. The most recent OHL winner was the London Knights in 2025.

Memorial Cup champions

The Memorial Cup has been won 19 times by teams from the Ontario Hockey League since 1972, when the tournament started including three leagues.

Before that, from 1945 to 1971, teams from the Ontario Hockey Association won the Cup 16 times.

Priority selection

The Ontario Hockey League used to have a way to choose players called the draft, which started in the 1950s. Over the years, the rules changed a lot. At first, it was for 17-year-old players, but later younger players could be chosen too.

Before 2001, the draft happened in front of a crowd, which could be stressful for the players. In 2001, the league started doing the draft online to save money and reduce pressure on the players. In November 2025, it was announced that the 2026 draft would happen in person again for the first time since 2000.

The Jack Ferguson Award is given each year to the player picked first overall, named after Jack Ferguson, a long-time scout for the league.

Trophies and awards

The Ontario Hockey League has many special prizes and awards for players who do great things during the season.