By: David McPherson
Cambridge, ON – on the first day of spring, a trophy—nearly as old as the game—is removed from the locked wooden box where it’s stored. Its curator then transports this 47-centimetre tall cup to a car waiting outside for a journey down the highway for that night’s opening match of the Robertson Cup Finals.
The defending two-time regular season champion Wentworth Gryphins edged the Dundas Real McCoys 3-2 in the opening game of the best two out of three series. With the win, the Gryphins are one game away from hoisting this 47 centimetre tall trophy—topped with a sterling silver bowl engraved with a hockey-scene and interlaced with maple leaves in bas-relief—for the first time.
Silversmiths in London, England crafted the Cup that is lined with gold. John Ross Robertson, who founded the Toronto Evening Telegram—and served as president of the OHA from 1899 to 1905—donated the silver and gold trophy on December 3, 1898.
In Scott Young’s book “100 Years of Dropping the Puck,” Robertson, who was against professionalism in sports, is quoted in his donation speech saying: “sport should be pursued for its own sake, for when professionalism begins, true sport ends.” Robertson passed away in 1918 and was posthumously inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1947.
The J. Ross Robertson Cup is one of three eponymous trophies the philanthropist donated to hockey: the other two are one for the annual champions of the junior division and one for the champions of the intermediate division. In 1899, Queen’s University were the inaugural winners of the senior league J. Ross Robertson Cup; they defeated the University of Toronto 19-11.
After researching the history of this storied Cup, one is left with just one question: when you donate this many trophies maybe you should have come up with different names for each one to avoid confusion.
Follow the Allan Cup Hockey League social media on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and now Bluesky to see who wins the J. Ross Robertson Trophy. Game 2 of the championship series is set for J.L. Grightnire Arena in Dundas, Ont. on Friday, March 28.
About the Ontario Hockey Association
The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) was founded on November 27, 1890, and is the governing body for the majority of Junior and Senior hockey in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is a Member Partner of the Ontario Hockey Federation which is one of thirteen Provincial and Regional Branches of Hockey Canada.
It is comprised of three Junior hockey leagues and two Senior hockey leagues: Junior A – Ontario Junior Hockey League; Junior B – Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League; Junior C – Provincial Junior Hockey League, Senior –Allan Cup Hockey (AAA) and Ontario Elite Hockey League(AA). For the 2024-25 season, these five leagues encompass 125 teams.
The objectives of the OHA are to foster and encourage the sport of amateur hockey, to conduct competition in the various categories established, to determine teams for entry into the inter-branch competitions that may be provided by Hockey Canada, and to provide for the affiliation of other hockey organizations.
The OHA provides administrative resources, coordinates programs, services and events for hockey participants and provides support to various Development Programs for coaches, officials, trainers and players, Safety and Risk Management Issues and offers resources for Harassment and Abuse education.
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For more information or to set up an interview, please contact:
Chris McCleary
General Manager, Operations & Marketing
Ontario Hockey Association
