The 1974–75 OMJHL season was the first season of the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League. The league operated semi-autonomously while still being part of the Ontario Hockey Association. The OMJHL inaugurated the William Hanley Trophy, awarded to the most sportsmanlike player. Eleven teams each played 70 games. The Toronto Marlboros won the J. Ross Robertson Cup, defeating the Hamilton Fincups.

League business The Major Junior A Series of the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) was rebranded as the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL) in 1974. The league began operating semi-autonomously from the OHA, and later became fully independent. Tubby Schmalz was appointed the first commissioner of the OMJHL on September 23, 1974.

Schmalz set about to implement a revised mandatory player contract. It included a clause in which 20 per cent of a player's earnings during his first three professional seasons would go back to the junior clubs to recuperate development costs. He explained that the clause was a result of Mark Howe and Marty Howe both departing in the summer for the Houston Aeros, and there was nothing in the OHA junior contract to cover development payments by professional teams. The new clause was a basis for potential legal action against the World Hockey Association (WHA) which had not made payments to the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) or OHA.

Schmalz confirmed in January 1975, that development payments from the National Hockey League (NHL) were coming, and that the WHA was holding a meeting in February to discuss the issue. WCHL president Ed Chynoweth said his league's governors agreed to withdraw from the CAHA if the payment issue was not resolved, and foretold the possibility of Canada's three major junior leagues banding together under one umbrella. The NHL and WHA were delinquent in $600,000 in payments as per the existing professional-amateur agreement. The Winnipeg Free Press reported that the WCHL was negotiating a separate deal with the WHA for development fees, and the WCHL would break away from the CAHA after the 1975 Memorial Cup. Schmalz was angered at the report and called for the three major junior league to remain unified.

In February 1975, the NHL and the WHA agreed to stop drafting underage junior players. Mark Napier of the Toronto Marlboros who was not drafted, signed a professional contract with the Toronto Toros later that month to take effect in the following season. Schmalz stated he would seek legal advice on the matter, with the possibility of suspending Napier for the remainder of the junior season. During a game against the Marlboros, St. Catharines Black Hawks owner Hap Emms ordered his players to wear their jerseys backwards and play with their sticks upside down in protest of Napier's contract. Schmalz later ruled Napier eligible to play, and suspended Emms for the remainder of the season and fined him $1,000.

Regular season Standings Rank Team GP W L T PTS GF GA 1 y-Toronto Marlboros 70 48 13 9 105 469 303 2 x-Peterborough Petes 70 37 20 13 87 311 254 3 x-Hamilton Fincups 70 37 24 9 83 337 271 4 x-Ottawa 67's 70 33 30 7 73 379 382 5 x-Sudbury Wolves 70 31 29 10 72 324 281 6 x-St. Catharines Black Hawks 70 30 33 7 67 284 300 7 x-Oshawa Generals 70 28 33 9 65 288 306 8 x-Kingston Canadians 70 25 35 10 60 297 345 9 London Knights 70 26 37 7 59 296 368 10 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds 70 25 36 9 59 312 367 11 Kitchener Rangers 70 17 47 6 40 239 351

Scoring leaders Player Team GP G A Pts PIM Bruce Boudreau Toronto Marlboros 69 68 97 165 52 Tim Young Ottawa 67's 70 56 107 163 127 Dennis Maruk London Knights 65 66 79 145 53 John Tonelli Toronto Marlboros 70 49 86 135 85 Doug Jarvis Peterborough Petes 69 45 88 133 39 Mark Napier Toronto Marlboros 61 66 64 130 106 Peter Lee Ottawa 67's 70 68 58 126 82 Dale McCourt Hamilton Fincups 69 52 74 126 57 Cary Farelli Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds 69 56 65 121 35 Paul Woods Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds 62 37 84 121 116

Playoffs

OMJHL quarter-finals (1) Toronto Marlboros vs. (8) Kingston Canadians

(2) Peterborough Petes vs. (7) Oshawa Generals

(3) Hamilton Fincups vs. (6) St. Catharines Black Hawks

(4) Ottawa 67's vs. (5) Sudbury Wolves

OMJHL semi-finals (1) Toronto Marlboros vs. (5) Sudbury Wolves

(2) Peterborough Petes vs. (3) Hamilton Fincups

J. Ross Robertson Cup finals (1) Toronto Marlboros vs. (3) Hamilton Fincups

Awards J. Ross Robertson Cup: Toronto MarlborosHamilton Spectator Trophy: Toronto MarlborosRed Tilson Trophy: Dennis Maruk, London KnightsEddie Powers Memorial Trophy: Bruce Boudreau, Toronto Marlboros Matt Leyden Trophy: Bert Templeton, Hamilton FincupsJim Mahon Memorial Trophy: Mark Napier, Toronto MarlborosMax Kaminsky Trophy: Mike O'Connell, Kingston CanadiansDave Pinkney Trophy: Greg Millen, Peterborough PetesEmms Family Award: Danny Shearer, Hamilton FincupsWilliam Hanley Trophy: Doug Jarvis, Peterborough Petes

See also List of OHA Junior A standings List of OHL seasons 1975 Memorial Cup 1975 NHL entry draft 1974 in sports 1975 in sports

References

External links HockeyDB