Herder Memorial Trophy
The Herder Memorial Trophy, or Herder, is the championship trophy awarded annually to the senior ice hockey champions of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The trophy was originally donated in 1935 by the Herder family, owners of The Evening Telegram newspaper, as a memorial to five brothers who played hockey in St. John's. The Herder was first awarded to the Corner Brook team that won the inaugural all-Newfoundland hockey championships on March 22, 1935. The most recent winners of the Herder Memorial Trophy were the Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts on April 14, 2019.
History
The Herder trophy was the brainchild of Ralph Herder, then president of The Evening Telegram, as a memorial to his five late brothers, Arthur, William, Douglas, Augustus and Hubert, who were all avid hockey players in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. The trophy was donated in 1935 by The Evening Telegram newspaper and was to be awarded to Newfoundland's best ice hockey team. The Evening Telegram was published by a member of the Herder family since the founding of the paper in 1879 up until the retirement of Stephen Herder in 1993. The Telegram has played an integral role in the promotion and sponsorship of the Herder, which continues to this day.Originally donated by Ralph Herder in memory of five of his late brothers, the trophy now honors the memory of eight members of the Herder family including Ralph's brothers Ralph and James. In 2009, the name of Ralph's son Stephen was added to the trophy. All seven Herder brothers were fine hockey players and often played together, with four of them sometimes playing together on a championship team. James Herder coached the 1935 Guards team that lost the inaugural Herder championship to Corner Brook in March 1935.
The St. John's Guards had earned the right to compete for the inaugural Herder Memorial Trophy in 1935 by first defeating St. Bon's in a 2-game series to become St. John's city champions, and later toppling the Bay Roberts Rovers in a 2-game, total goal series to become the Avalon Peninsula champions. The championship match-up was then set – the Guards of St. John's would play host to the Corner Brook All-Star Team. Fans in St. John's eagerly awaited the arrival of the Corner Brook Royals; tickets to the 2 games were sold out quickly. The Royals edged the Guards 1–0 in Game 1, and were victorious in Game 2 by a 4–2 margin to become the island's top team, and Herder Trophy Champions.
Today, fan interest and competition is as keen as it was in the glory days of senior hockey. The Herder Memorial Trophy will live forever in the minds and hearts of the people of Newfoundland.
The Herder family
The trophy was originally donated by Ralph Herder on behalf of the Herder Family as a memorial to five Herder brothers who had all been prominent hockey players in St. John's. Later the names of Ralph, his brother James and Ralph's son Stephen were added to the trophy.The Herder is now a memorial to the following Herder family members:
1. Arthur, a lawyer, was a captain in the First World War. In 1917 he was fatally wounded in France and died at age 32.
2. Hubert, a lieutenant when he was killed at Beaumont Hamel July 1, 1916 at the age of 25.
3. William, vice-president of the Evening Telegram when he died in 1934.
4. Douglas, who died from typhoid in 1908.
5. Augustus, vice-president of the Evening Telegram when he died in 1934.
6. Ralph, also a lieutenant, was seriously wounded July 1, 1916. He survived the war. He became publisher on the deaths of his brothers in 1934, and was the driving force behind the creation of the Herder Memorial Trophy in memory of his five brothers who predeceased him. Ralph was the father of Rendell and Stephen. He died in 1955 at the age of 61.
7. James was the youngest of the seven brothers. He was vice president and general manager of The Evening Telegram when his brother Ralph died in 1955. Jim, as he was known, took over as publisher and piloted The Evening Telegram Ltd through a period of tremendous growth and prosperity during the late 1950s and through the 1960s. He died in 1970.
8. Stephen succeeded his uncle Jim and was the longtime publisher of The Telegram. An environmentalist long before his time, he was known for saving Rennies River, and a bridge over that river is dedicated to his efforts. Steve was a proud proponent of the Herder memorial Trophy. He and died in 1993, at the age of 65.
The trophy
The Herder Trophy was donated in 1935. Over the years additional tiers were added to the original base, filled with shields bearing the names and years of championship teams.St. Bon's star Edward "Key" Kennedy was the model for the hockey player that stands atop the original trophy. It is well known that trophy-donor Ralph Herder took a photo of Kennedy, in playing pose, to New York, where he had a model made and then had the figure cast in silver.
The original trophy was retired. A replica was made and is currently presented to championship teams.
Conditions placed by the trophy donor
The Herder family attached eight conditions to the donation of the Herder Memorial Trophy:- Trophy is to be known as The Herder Memorial Trophy presented by The Evening Telegram in memory of Arthur, Douglas, William, Augustus and Hubert Herder.
- Trophy is to be emblematic of the All-Newfoundland Amateur Hockey championship, and must be competed for each year in St. John's.
- All matches held for the Trophy to be held under the rules of the body governing hockey in Newfoundland.
- The Trophy cannot be won outright but to be competed for each year.
- The winner shall hold the Trophy until the start of the hockey season the following year and then it must be returned to the donors.
- Arrangements for the playing of the All-Newfoundland championship are to be made by the main body governing hockey, the management of the rink, and the donors.
- No names of teams or players winning the trophy to be engraved on the trophy or base.
- If an All-Newfoundland championship is impossible in any year, the Trophy shall be held by the team winning the championship of the Avalon Peninsula or other Inter-Sectional championship.
Changes to the original conditions
In 1947, the Herder championship was held in Gander. Grand Falls and St. Bon's faced off in the finals at the first Gander Gardens which was located in an old RCAF hangar at the airport. The Gardens had a natural sheet of ice which, at the time, was the largest ice surface on the island. The 1948 the finals were held at the Grand Falls Stadium that opened just two months prior. The state-of-the-art arena had Newfoundland's first 'regulation size' artificial ice surface and, for the next few years, was the only arena on the island with an ice plant.
In recent years, the Herder finals series was held at Mile One Centre in St. John's and frequently sold out the 6,000 seat building. Games were also held in the Pepsi Centre in the city of Corner Brook, on the west coast of the island, when teams from that area were playing for the cup.
Since 2013 the Herder finalists have the right to decide the location of their home games.
Series format
Since the original series of eastern champions versus western champions was organized over a short period, the NAHA has dictated a number of series formats that included the winners of divisional, local league or island-wide league playoffs.On February 25, 2015, Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador approved a request by the Central West Senior Hockey League in which they asked to play for the historic Herder Trophy because it was the only operating Senior A hockey league registered in the province.
Series format history
This is a list of Herder championship series formats since 1935.Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
| Herder | Format | Teams |
| 1935 | Two-team Herder final, two games total goals series | Eastern vs. Western champions |
| 1936 to 1939 | Three-team single-round robin Herder final series, top two teams in a championship game | Eastern champions, Conception Bay League Champion, Western champions |
| 1940 | Two-team Herder final, two games total goals series | Eastern vs. Western champions |
| 1941 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-three series | Eastern vs. Conception Bay champions |
| 1942 | Herder championships were cancelled due to the Second World War | |
| 1943 | Herder championships were cancelled due to the Second World War | |
| 1944 | Two-team Herder final, two games total goals series | Eastern vs. Western champions |
| 1945 | Two-team Herder final, two games total goals series | Eastern vs. Conception Bay champions |
| 1946 | Two-team Herder final, two games total goals series | Eastern vs. Western champions |
| 1947 | Two-team Herder final, two games total goals series | Eastern vs. Western champions |
| 1948 to 1952 | Two-team Herder final, two games total goals series | Eastern vs. Western champions |
| 1953 to 1954 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-three series | Only Buchans and Grand Falls entered teams for Herder competition in 1953, 1954 and 1955 |
| 1955 to 1956 | Three-team Herder playoff series, best-of-five final series | St. Bon's Bluegolds vs. Buchans in best-of-three semi-final, winner vs. Grand Falls in a best-of-five final series |
| 1957 | No competition for the Herder | NAHA awarded the trophy to the only team entered |
| 1958 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | Only Corner Brook and Grand Falls entered teams for Herder competition in 1958 |
| 1959 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | Eastern champions vs. Western champions |
| 1960 to 1962 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | East Division champions vs. West Division champions |
| 1963 to 1970 | Best-of-seven finals series | One provincial senior league with a regular season, top four teams in semi-finals, followed by the Herder finals |
| 1971 to 1973 | Best-of-seven finals series | One provincial senior league with a regular season, home-and-home round robin, Herder finals |
| 1974 | Best-of-seven finals series | One provincial senior league with a regular season, top four teams in semi-finals, followed by the Herder finals |
| 1975 | Best-of-seven finals series | Three-team provincial senior league with a 16-game regular season, 2nd & 3rd place teams in semi-final, winner played #1 in Herder final |
| 1976 | Best-of-seven finals series | Four-team provincial senior league with a 20-game regular season, 3rd & 4th place teams in best-of-five Quarter-final, winner played 2nd place in semi-final, winner played 1st place in Herder final |
| 1977 to 1978 | Best-of-seven finals series | Eight-team provincial senior league with East and West Divisions, Winner of Eastern playoffs faced winner of Western playoffs in Herder final |
| 1979 to 1989 | Best-of-seven finals series | One provincial senior league with a regular season, top four teams in semi-finals, followed by the Herder finals |
| 1990 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven finals series | Eastern champions. The winner played a final series vs. the Western Champion |
| 1991 | No Herder competition | |
| 1992 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-five series | Avalon East League champions vs. Central League champions |
| 1993 | Two-team Herder final | Eastern champions vs. Central League champions |
| 1994 | Two-team Herder final | Eastern champions vs. Central League champions |
| 1995 to 96 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | Avalon East League champions vs. Avalon West League champions |
| 1997 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-five series | Eastern champion vs. Central League champions |
| 1998 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | Round robin semi-final between champions of Avalon East, Avalon West and the Central League. Top two teams got berth to final. |
| 1999 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-five series | Round robin semi-final between champions of Avalon East, Avalon West and the Central League. Top two teams got berth to final. |
| 2000 to 2011 | ||
| 2012 to 2014 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | NLSHL championship final |
| 2015 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | Central West Senior Hockey championship final |
| 2016 to 2017 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-five series | CWSHL champions vs. AESHL champions |
| 2018 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | CWSHL champions vs. ECSHL champions |
| 2019 | Two-team Herder final, best-of-seven series | NSHL Central Division champions vs. Eastern Division champions |
Summary of Herder finals results and locations
Note: TG = Two games total goals series| Year | Winning team | Series result in games or TG | Runner-up | Location |
| 1935 | Corner Brook | 5-2 | St. John's Guards | The Prince's Rink |
| 1936 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 5-2 | Corner Brook | The Prince's Rink |
| 1937 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 4-1 | Buchans | The Arena |
| 1938 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 9-1 | Grand Falls Papertowners | The Arena |
| 1939 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 2-0 | Bell Island Islanders | The Arena |
| 1940 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 17-7 | Buchans | The Arena |
| 1941 | Bell Island Islanders | 2-1 | Royals | The Arena |
| 1942 | Not held due to WWII | |||
| 1943 | Not held due to WWII | |||
| 1944 | Bell Island Islanders | 16-5 | Corner Brook | Corner Brook Rink |
| 1945 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 13-4 | Bell Island Islanders | |
| 1946 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 35-3 | Grand Falls All-Stars | St. Bon's Forum |
| 1947 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 12-8 | Grand Falls All-Stars | Gander Gardens |
| 1948 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 6-3 | Buchans | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1949 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | 21-6 | Corner Brook | Corner Brook Rink |
| 1950 | Buchans Miners | 17-5 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1951 | Buchans Miners | 12-6 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1952 | Buchans Miners | 12-3 | St. Bon's Bluegolds | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1953 | Grand Falls All-Stars | 2-0 | Buchans Miners | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1954 | Buchans Miners | 2-1 | Grand Falls All-Stars | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1955 | Grand Falls All-Stars | 3-1 | Buchans Miners | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1956 | Grand Falls Andcos | 3-0 | Buchans Miners | Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1957 | Grand Falls Andcos | n/a | n/a | |
| 1958 | Grand Falls Andcos | 4-1 | Corner Brook Royals | Grand Falls Stadium & Humber Gardens |
| 1959 | Grand Falls Andcos | 4-1 | Conception Bay Cee Bees | Harbour Grace Stadium & Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1960 | Conception Bay Cee Bees | 4-2 | Grand Falls Andcos | Grand Falls Stadium & Harbour Grace Stadium |
| 1961 | Conception Bay Cee Bees | 4-0 | Gander Flyers | Harbour Grace Stadium & Gander Gardens |
| 1962 | Corner Brook Royals | 4-1 | Conception Bay Cee Bees | Humber Gardens & Harbour Grace Stadium |
| 1963 | Buchans Miners | 4-2 | Corner Brook Royals | Humber Gardens & Buchans Stadium |
| 1964 | Corner Brook Royals | 4-2 | Buchans Miners | Humber Gardens & Buchans Stadium |
| 1965 | Conception Bay Cee Bees | Corner Brook Royals | ||
| 1966 | Corner Brook Royals | Conception Bay Cee Bees | ||
| 1967 | Conception Bay Cee Bees | Gander Flyers | ||
| 1968 | Corner Brook Royals | Buchans Miners | ||
| 1969 | Gander Flyers | 4-0 | Buchans Miners | Gander Gardens & Buchans Stadium |
| 1970 | St. John's Capitals | 4-3 | Gander Flyers | Gander Gardens & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1971 | Grand Falls Cataracts | 4-3 | St. John's Capitals | Grand Falls Stadium & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1972 | Grand Falls Cataracts | 4-0 | St. John's Capitals | Grand Falls Stadium & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1973 | St. John's Capitals | 4-0 | Grand Falls Cataracts | Grand Falls Stadium & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1974 | St. John's Capitals | 4-1 | Grand Falls Cataracts | Grand Falls Stadium & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1975 | St. John's Capitals | 4-0 | Corner Brook Royals | Humber Gardens & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1976 | St. John's Capitals | 4-0 | Grand Falls Cataracts | Grand Falls Stadium & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1977 | Corner Brook Royals | 4-2 | St. John's Blue Caps | Humber Gardens & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1978 | St. John's Blue Caps | 4-3 | Gander Flyers | Gander Gardens & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1979 | St. John's Mike's Shamrocks | 4-3 | Gander Flyers | Gander Gardens & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1980 | Gander Flyers | 4-1 | St. John's Blue Caps | Gander Gardens & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1981 | Grand Falls Cataracts | 4-2 | Corner Brook Royals | Humber Gardens, Corner Brook & Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1982 | Grand Falls Cataracts | 4-2 | Gander Flyers | Grand Falls Stadium & Gander Gardens |
| 1983 | Stephenville Jets | 4-3 | Grand Falls Cataracts | Stephenville Gardens & Grand Falls Stadium |
| 1984 | Stephenville Jets | 4-1 | Corner Brook Royals | Stephenville Gardens & Humber Gardens, Corner Brook |
| 1985 | Corner Brook Royals | 4-2 | Stephenville Jets | Stephenville Gardens & Humber Gardens, Corner Brook |
| 1986 | Corner Brook Royals | 4-2 | Stephenville Jets | Stephenville Gardens & Humber Gardens, Corner Brook |
| 1987 | St. John's Capitals | 4-2 | Stephenville Jets | Stephenville Gardens & Memorial Stadium, St. John's |
| 1988 | Corner Brook Royals | 4-1 | St. John's Capitals | Memorial Stadium, St. John's & Humber Gardens, Corner Brook |
| 1989 | Port aux Basques Mariners | 4-2 | St. John's Capitals | |
| 1990 | St. John's Capitals | 4-0 | Corner Brook Royals | |
| 1991 | Herder championship was not played'' | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 1992 | Badger Bombers | 3-1 | Flatrock Flyers | Badger Stadium |
| 1993 | Flatrock Flyers | 3-2 | Gander Flyers | Gander Gardens |
| 1994 | La Scie Jets | 3-2 | Southern Shore Breakers | Cape St. John Arena, La Scie & Southern Shore Arena |
| 1995 | Southern Shore Breakers | 4-0 | Flatrock Flyers | |
| 1996 | Southern Shore Breakers | 4-3 | Flatrock Flyers | Southern Shore Arena & Fieldian Gardens, St. John's |
| 1997 | Flatrock Flyers | 3-0 | Badger Bombers | Badger Stadium |
| 1998 | Flatrock Flyers | 4-3 | Southern Shore Breakers | Southern Shore Arena & Fieldian Gardens, St. John's |
| 1999 | Southern Shore Breakers | 2-1 | Badger Bombers | Southern Shore Arena |
| 2000 | Southern Shore Breakers | 4-0 | Torbay West Side Charlies | |
| 2001 | Deer Lake Red Wings | 3-2 | Flatrock Flyers | |
| 2002 | Corner Brook Royals | 3-2 | Flatrock Flyers | |
| 2003 | Flatrock Flyers | 3-0 | Corner Brook Royals | |
| 2004 | Southern Shore Breakers | 3-1 | Corner Brook Royals | |
| 2005 | Deer Lake Red Wings | 4-3 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | |
| 2006 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | 4-2 | Deer Lake Red Wings | |
| 2007 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | 4-2 | Deer Lake Red Wings | |
| 2008 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | 4-2 | Deer Lake Red Wings | |
| 2009 | Clarenville Caribous | 4-1 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | Mile One Centre, |
| 2010 | Clarenville Caribous | 4-1 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | |
| 2011 | Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts | 4-0 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | |
| 2012 | Clarenville Caribous | 4-1 | Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts | Mile One Centre, & Pepsi Centre |
| 2013 | Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars | 4-0 | Clarenville Caribous | Clarenville Events Centre & S.W.Moores Memorial Stadium |
| 2014 | Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts | 4-2 | Clarenville Caribous | Clarenville Events Centre & Joe Byrne Memorial Stadium |
| 2015 | Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts | 4-0 | Corner Brook Royals | Corner Brook Civic Centre & Joe Byrne Memorial Stadium |
| 2016 | Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts | 3-0 | St. John's Capitals | Joe Byrne Memorial Stadium & Jack Byrne Memorial Arena |
| 2017 | Harbour Grace CeeBee Stars | 3-2 | Clarenville Caribous | Danny Cleary Community Centre & Eastlink Events Centre |
| 2018 | Clarenville Caribous | 4-0 | St. John's Senior Caps | Eastlink Events Centre & Jack Byrne Memorial Arena |
| 2019 | Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts | 4-1 | Southern Shore Breakers | Jack Byrne Memorial Arena & Joe Byrne Memorial Stadium |
Broadcasting
The first island-wide live broadcast of a Herder championship game was on the VONF radio station on Saturday night March 23, 1935. Jack Tobin provided the play-by-play of the second and final game of the first all-Newfoundland hockey championships between Corner Brook vs. the Guards of St. John's live from the Prince's Rink in St. John's. The final score was 4–2 for Corner Brook.In 2007 and 2008, Rogers Television broadcast the Herder finals and province-wide using the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly Channel. In 2009, games 3 to 5 of the finals were streamed online at thesportspage.ca.
The 2011–2019 Herder finals games were webcast live, with George Scott providing the play-by-play.